GREENSBORO, N.C., March 13 (UPI) -- Three residents of Rowan County in North Carolina have asked a federal court to bar prayers at County Commission meetings.
In a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Greensboro, the plaintiffs say 97 percent of the commissioners' meetings begin with prayer, usually strongly Christian.
They seek an injunction ordering an immediate halt to the prayers.
The American Civil Liberties Union asked the county to change its ways in February 2012, The Charlotte (N.C.) Observer reported. The commissioners refused.
"I want my local government to be open and welcoming to people of all beliefs," said Nancy Lund of Salisbury, one of the plaintiffs. "But when officials begin a public meeting with prayers that are specific to only one religious viewpoint, I feel unwelcome and excluded."
Jim Sides, chairman of the board of commissioners, told the Salisbury Post Tuesday he has not changed his position on prayer at meetings.
The complaint quotes an email Sides allegedly sent after a meeting on March 5, 2012. Most of the attendees at the meeting supported the prayers with many arguing the commissioners have a constitutional right to express their faith.
"I will continue to pray in JESUS name ... I volunteer to be the first to go to jail for this cause ..." the email allegedly said.
The complaint also quotes prayers, including at least one where Jesus Christ is described as the "one way to salvation."
