Wheaton to set rules for prayer before council meetings

Despite objections from a national group opposed to the practice, religious invocation before Wheaton City Council meetings does not appear to be going anywhere anytime soon.

But the city will create new guidelines aiming to include many faiths in the long-established pre-meeting routine - something the council says it has done for years anyway.

"Any policy we put forth would include the Judeo-Christian tradition and other religious traditions as well," Councilman Phil Suess said Monday.

The Freedom From Religion Foundation in October challenged the city's tradition. It sent a letter to Mayor Michael Gresk saying frequent references to Jesus Christ in the prayers represented a promotion of Christianity over other religions.

As a result, city attorney Jim Knippen was asked to research the matter and see if the city had solid legal grounds to continue its pre-meeting prayer. On Monday, he presented those results and recommended the board craft the outline so that it does not exclude any faiths.

The council directed Knippen to write the guidelines, which are expected to be ready by the council's next regular meeting Dec. 7.

Throughout the years, Knippen said, courts have held that opening prayers at council meetings do not violate the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. He said if the council establishes official guidelines, they will be more likely to defeat any challenges to the practice.

Knippen said the inordinate amount of Christian invocations was directly a result of an inordinate number of Christian churches in Wheaton.

But recently, Councilman Tom Mouhelis invited a rabbi to perform the invocation, and in December, an Islamic imam is scheduled to attend the meeting. Mouhelis said the intent has never been to exclude people of other faiths.

"It's essential that we open our doors to other faiths besides Christianity," Mouhelis said. "Let's set some guidelines that let people know that these are the guidelines to follow."

"It's an important tradition," said Councilman Todd Scalzo. "I think guidance to be civil, wise and just is very welcome and very needed today in these council chambers."

The Wheaton City Council isn't the only governmental body in DuPage County that regularly has prayers to open its meetings. The county board and forest preserve commission both have similar invocations.

Gresk said he was concerned Knippen would recommend the board eliminate the prayer, which he said has been around for at least 30 years. He also said he didn't know what to expect from the Freedom From Religion Foundation.

"It's reflective of our community," he said. "I see it as part of our tradition. I have full confidence in the legal staff's opinion on this. But it's a litigious society. We will see."