St. Paul, MN – A member of the Minnesota Senate says she wants to make sure that chaplains who pray in the Senate chamber avoid overt mentions of Jesus Christ and Christianity, or other faith-specific references.
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That’s after a prayer on the Senate floor Monday by Pastor Dennis Campbell of Granite City Baptist Church in St. Cloud. Sen. Terri Bonoff, who is Jewish, says the numerous mentions of Jesus and Christianity made her uncomfortable.
Bonoff, a Democrat from Minnetonka, wants Senate leaders to require visiting chaplains to keep their prayers nondenominational rather than just request they do so.
But Sen. David Brown, a Republican from Becker, says he believes chaplains who pray in the Senate should be allowed to say what they want and that senators don’t have the right to “censor their prayers.”
just another leftest
Whatever happened to the separation between church and state? They remove the name G-D in all prayers and now they hem and haw regarding this?
I don’t see a big deal if you invite a pastor let him or her say what they want
According to Sen. Brown, does that mean that it’s only matter a time until prayers include ‘Mohammed’ and ‘Allah’?
A pastor should be free to say what he wants – these democrats make Jews look bad and cause antisemitism
Hey #3, that’s easy for you to say, but if a pastor would show up at your place of employment and start leading Christian prayers for all to follow, I’ll bet you’d get mighty uncomfortable.
What a tzedeikus. I bet she davens every day.
She is wrong. Rav Avigdor Miller always said that we live in a Christian country that is benevolent to us. We should be grateful. This could have terrible ramifications.
This state senator, who I highly doubt is Jewish, has absolutely no constitutional basis for her opposition. As a matter of fact her stated wish to curtail such speech is a direct violation of the first amendment. If you don’t believe it you could look it up: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech….”
To Rachel-#6-In fact, in 1983, at my place of employment, a supevisor did say a prayer mentioning the name of J.C. I was not comfortable. It was the only time that it happened. However, three years earlier, at a conference, a speaker got up and stated “I’m a Christian, I believe in J.C.” This was an insurance conference, which had absolutely nothing to do with an opening prayer, or religion. Yet, when I complained to a supervisor, he was not too appreciative. Unfortunately, we live in Golus, and these sort of incidents will probably continue to happen.
How uncomfortable is she? Does she light Shabbos candles? Keep Kosher? She shouldn’t be a hypocrite if she’s not even remotely religious. Any religious declarations that encourage faith-based respect & tolerance is better than the apologist’s version we’re used to by Jewish public officials who are generally “uncomfortable” with appearing too Jewish.
I belong to a fraternal organization whose members are of all faiths. At the start of each meeting there is an invocation by a priest or a decon from the Catholic church who are themselves members. The prayers are not religion specific and are just words that never mention JC or any figure the non Christian members would feel unconfortable hearing. The same policy should apply to government meetings. We are supposed to have separation of church and state. If that doesn’t work then a clergyman from each religion whose members are present should be allowed to pray…that won’t be a separation but at least it would balance the scales.
Anonymous 15, you sound as whiny as those Israeli liberals and Arabs who want to take the star off the Israeli flag because it makes them feel “uncomfortable”! The ones who want IDF recruits to stop pledging to protect the Jewish people, because it “hurts their feelings”. My advice, is that you make aliyah, rise up from exile in America and return to Yerushalayim . THIS year in Yerushalayim, Anonymous 15, not “next year.”
I worked in a X-ian nursing home for years as admin. staff. They would always start the Board meeting with a x-stian prayer. I would sit respectfully, but always say the Shma to myself during the prayer. With that said, I do not think it is appropriate to mention J-sus in a prayer for a non religious body. A simple prayer thanking G-d is sufficient. Honestyly, though, this woman should just keep her opinions to herself. I guarantee you she is not frum herself. It is always the frei who complain the loudest about this, as it reminds them in a not so subtle way that they are irreligious, and there Jewish neshama is “zezting” them deep down. That is really waht it is about. They want to remove their perfectly normal guilty feelings and make believe that they are not Jewish but just moral secualr humanists.
She shouldn’t cheppa with them. Just ignore it.
I work in a Catholic hospital. There are getchkes all over the place. Who cares.
To #17 -Barich-Your use of the term “Bubbaleh” as well as the sarcastic tone of your message was condescending, and inappropriate. I find that it is next to impossible to post a reply to a topic on this board, without receiving abrasive and rude responses.