Should We Pray Before Public Meetings?

WDET’s Jake Neher and Michigan Public Radio’s Cheyna Roth talk about how the debate plays out in Michigan.

State Capitol Dome March 2017

Jake Neher/WDET
Floor of the Michigan House

There’s been a lot of debate recently surrounding the national anthem being played at the beginning of sporting events.

But an even longer-standing debate in America surrounds the recitation of prayers at the beginning of public meetings.

WDET’s Jake Neher and Michigan Public Radio’s Cheyna Roth talk about how that debate plays out here in Michigan.

Recently, courts ruled on a lawsuit out of Jackson County involving that county’s board of commissioners’ practice of beginning each meeting with Christian prayers and asking those in attendance to participate. In September, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled the board did not violate the U.S. Constitution in doing so.

But some onlookers say that ruling conflicts with other court rulings on the matter.

“When we’re talking about that (phrase) ‘separation of church and state,’ we’re talking about — in the legal sense — the Establishment Clause in the Constitution. So, what does it mean to establish a religion?” asks Neher. “It’s still legal gray area.”

“The reason that it’s such an important issue is because it’s all about feeling comfortable participating in the Democratic process,” says Roth.

Click on the audio player above to hear the full conversation.

Authors

  • Cheyna Roth is the co-host and creator of WDET's state politics podcast, MichMash. She has been an audio journalist for almost a decade, covering major events like presidential elections, college scandals, the Michigan Legislature and more, appearing on NPR and across Michigan public radio stations. Cheyna is also a senior producer and podcast host for Slate.com, having produced and hosted shows like Political Gabfest, The Waves, and What Next TBD. Also an author, Cheyna has written two true crime books and her written work has appeared in Broadly, Slate, and MLive, among others.
  • Jake Neher is senior producer for Detroit Today and host of MichMash for 101.9 WDET. He previously reported on the Michigan Legislature for the Michigan Public Radio Network.