“This Board Has Sold Your Souls”

Trustee Jim Shelton took some fellow board members to task Monday night for their support of a prayer policy that forbids the mention of Jesus Christ.

The district adopted a non-sectarian prayer policy, one that prohibits student-led prayer in favor of a more generic prayer led by a school board member, after receiving a letter from the Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation.

That group threatened to bring legal action against the school district, the board and its individual members if the district did not cease opening board meetings with an invocation.

The board did not drop prayer entirely from the beginning of its meetings, but adopted the non-sectarian policy, at the urging of legal counsel.

Shelton said the board was giving up without a fight.

He said founding fathers risked life, liberty and their treasure to form this country.

“They certainly had a lot more courage than this board seems to have,” Shelton said.

“All our public has asked us to do is to fight, push back. As far as I’m concerned, we’ve abandoned our constituents in that.”

He said he knew the odds weren’t necessarily in the district’s favor.

“I’m aware of the risks,” Shelton said. “But you folks asked us to fight – and that’s not happening. There’s two things that can happen in a fight, you can win or you can lose. If you quit, there’s only one option. You’ve lost.”

“’What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, if they forfeit their soul?’” Shelton quoted. “Ladies and gentlemen, the soul that’s been for fitted tonight is not us, it’s you. This board had sold your souls to protect themselves.”

Shelton moved to table the final vote on the issue.

“The board has had four months to consider, since the letter came in from the FFRF group,” Shelton said. “We’ve had basically 15-20 minutes to consider alternate courses of action. I think it’s in our best interest to explore those further before we make our final decision.”

Trustee Alex Saitta disagreed.

“I’ve spent four months reading it,” he said. “I don’t see anything new today.”

The motion to table the issue did not pass.

Trustee Ben Trotter said he would hold to his upbringing and not support the non-sectarian prayer policy.

“There’s only one way to pray,” he said. “You only go to the Father through the Son. I believe a moment of silence – which we’re not even talking about – is useless.”

Saitta said taking the issue to the courts would be costly – and the district would lose.

“A two-minute prayer at a board meeting isn’t going to convert anyone,” Saitta said.

Keeping student-led prayer at the start of board meetings is risky.

“They’ve sued oodles of counties over it,” he said.  “You see that risk, you take it seriously.”

Personal opinions don’t matter near as much as legal opinion and precedent, Saitta said.

“What matters is how the courts have seen these cases and how they’ve ruled,” Saitta said. “The landmark cases in the Fourth Circuit Court … the courts ruled that sectarian prayers advance religion and are unconstitutional.”

Non-sectarian prayers doesn’t advance religion.

Members of the public had told the board to seek help from the American Center for Law and Justice.

“We got an opinion from them,” Saitta said. He then read an excerpt.

“Although we believe the Joyner v. Forsyth case is flawed in several respects, it is none the less binding law in Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. Any legislative body within these states should follow the 4th circuit parameters discussed herein ensure that any legislative prayer is non-sectarian in both policy and practice.”

Saitta said the solution wasn’t to bring cases unlikely to be won before liberal courts.

"Thirty, 20 or even 10 years ago a sectarian prayer would have been fine,” Saitta said. “And they were. Since then the courts have moved to the left. I can’t see how our old practice of student-led sectarian prayer taken to the 4th circuit could result in a legal victory. How are the odds going to be in our favor, taking the same case to them? I don’t see it.”

The answer is in electing conservatives who will then appoint conservative justices, Saitta said.

“Once you get conservative courts, you then bring your cases right back,” Saitta said. “That’s how you get reversals.”

Saitta said the board and district is fighting the FFRF, which is unhappy about the non-sectarian policy.

“We believe prayer at the start of deliberative bodies such as a school board, county council or state legislature has its roots in the first session of the US Congress,” Saitta said. “It is a 200-plus year tradition that I support. Our new policy of a non-sectarian prayer is constitutional, as well as in line with state law, and we believe the state of South Carolina stands along side that of the Pickens County School Board on this issue.”

Nearly 20 people signed up to speak to the board on the prayer issue, urging board members to stand and fight.

Jim Durham said the new prayer policy had been “railroaded” through.

“All the options have not been weighed and time has not been given to an important historical decision, even though a lawsuit has not been filed,” Durham said. “The community was asked for input on the new school buildings but not on the prayer policy. I find that disturbing and definitely not transparency. It’s a matter of principle and faith. It’s time to take a stand for Pickens County.”

Rev. Roger Todd said the prayer issue was a David vs. Goliath-type fight.

“David faced the giant,” Todd said. “Was he afraid? He could have been. But David faced the giant in the name of the Lord. Daniel, in the heathen land, was ordered not to pray to any god but the pagan god. Did Daniel change his mind? No ma’am, nosir. Daniel prayed to his God. I guess you people may be afraid.”

Todd quoted General George S. Patton, who said, “Courage is holding on a minute longer.”

“I encourage you to hold on and do what’s right for Pickens County,” Todd said.

Vicky Gibson, retired educator, said she was a Christian and that it was sad that student-led prayer has become an issue.

“I see it simply,” she said. “Please vote to be right and not safe.”

Many of the speakers quoted scripture and several led the crowd in prayer during their time at the podium.

Jimmy Burrell asked God to grant the board the wisdom and the patience to “craft a policy that does not exclude you.”

Weldon Clark said he wanted to see the district defeat the Freedom From Religion Foundation in court. He said he expected the organization would sue the district anyway, despite the non-sectarian prayer policy, and that he would like to see the district recoup its legal costs “out of their hide.”

“The way you take steam out of an organization like that is to take away their war chest,” he said.

Dan Hotel said the prayer issue should have gone before the district’s policy committee, as other changes in policy do. 

“The Constitution makes it crystal clear our founding fathers intended for religion to be a part of life, including public life,” said Chuck Dooley. “It specifically states our inalienable rights, including the right to worship God, come from God. Freedom of religion, not from religion, has been a cornerstone of our governance from the very beginning.

“You do have a choice tonight,” Dooley told the board. “That choice is: If you can’t abide by what the voters elected you to do, by what this country was founded on, I respectfully ask those people who cannot do the right thing resign – tonight.” 

Trustee Jimmy Gillespie said speakers keep telling board members they’ll back them in a fight, even all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary, but he doesn’t believe them.

“All I’ve heard is empty words, sarcasm and what kind of person I am,” he said.

“I don’t think anyone’s called up our attorney and said ‘I’m going to put up my house and all my property (to support the legal fight). Everybody says, ‘Where’s your backbone?’ Well, where’s yours? If you’re not going to put your house and your property up, like you’ve asked me to, where’s your backbone?”

Gillespie said speakers had said God would not let them lose this fight.

“He let Chesterfield County and Forsythe County lose,” Gillespie said.

He said the school district had certain responsibilities.

“It’s the mandate of the school district to educate, all children in this county in academics,” Gillespie said. “It’s not the mandate of the school district to teach morals, ethics or religion. That responsibility falls on parents. I don’t want a teacher teaching my child religion or their faith — it may not be what I want. I don’t want a teacher leading my child in prayer or teaching them what they think’s right. That was my responsibility with my child.”

Gillespie said the district was not trying to remove prayer from schools.

“We’re going to change a policy about one prayer, before a school board meeting," he said. “Does that mean I can’t pray? Yes, it does. It means I can’t invite you up here to pray. It does not mean that you can’t come here and pray, because you’re a private citizen and I’m not.”     

He said the government was founded over freedom from government interference with all people.

“An example would be favoring a Baptist citizen’s prayer over a Hindu citizen’s prayer,” Gillespie said. “It’s not fair, as far as the government (is concerned.) What would you do if a Muslim teacher was leading your Baptist child in a Muslim prayer everyday and your child started thinking, ‘I may convert.’ Would you sue the school district? Sure you would. 

"If the government influences one child in the issue of faith or beliefs, the Constitution would be worthless," he continued. "It’s not up to you or to me, but particularly the government, to influence another person’s child, especially a young child, to choose a different religion. If that happens to any one child in a government setting, it’s illegal, according to our Constitution, whether you want to believe it or not.”   

The final reading of the non-sectarian policy passed 3-2, with Saitta and Trustees Judy Edwards and Dr. Herb Cooper in favor.

Shelton and Trotter opposed and Gillespie abstained.

After the meeting, several speakers told Gillespie they had been told by counsel to  wait until the last vote before establishing a legal defense fund to support the district.