In 2005, prayer came face to face with a federal judge – a judge who ultimately determined that sectarian prayer in the Indiana legislature should be banned. Ultimately, this meant that chaplains could not utter the name of any higher power while leading a prayer before the Indiana Legislature – including the name of Jesus Christ.
Recently, President Barack Obama announced his intention to nominate that judge – Judge David Hamilton – to a seat on the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals. Due to Judge Hamilton’s ruling on prayer, this potential nomination is troubling.
In Ohio we faced a similar issue. As Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives I was faced with resistance on the prayers we offered before each legislative session. Like the Indiana case, Ohio legislators had offered prayer before each session for more than 100 years. The prayers were not limited to one religion or belief – we hosted guest chaplains from all faiths and religious backgrounds or affiliations. Yet, some wanted to censor the words spoken or worse, silence the prayers altogether.
I addressed the issue head on after much reflection and personal prayer. As the leader of the legislative chamber and a man of faith myself, I would not allow our prayers to be censored. Prayer is a time of reflection and guidance, not a time for political advocacy or personal opinion and diminishing or completely eliminate prayer prior to our sessions was simply not an option.
Thankfully, a higher court overturned Judge Hamilton’s ruling, preserving the liberties of free speech and religion, as protected by the first amendment. Unlike Indiana, we didn’t face the order of a Federal judge, but we did face the question and the challenge. Still today, I know that I made the right decision. We may not have faced the order of a federal judge, but we did confront the challenge.
It should be a concern to all that Judge David Hamilton is one of the first people President Obama turned to when looking for judicial nominees.
