>Matthew Bieniek
The Cumberland Times-News Fri May 20, 2011, 11:12 PM EDT
CUMBERLAND — Once Mike McKay dug into county records and discovered that county meetings had once opened with prayer, he knew that offering a prayer when he was at the helm of those meetings was a precedent he wanted to follow.
“I personally believe that any important undertaking needs to invoke … the deity,” McKay said. “I want to stay true to who I am.” McKay found his precedent in the minutes of a 1963 commission meeting. He spent time researching the issue before he became a commissioner, he said.
So at each county commission meeting, after Danny Williams, president of the Mount Savage Water Company, leads the Pledge of Allegiance, McKay asks those present to bow their heads in prayer. It seems that everyone does just that and most present offer a hearty “Amen” at the conclusion of the prayer.
While the pledge is listed on the agenda, the prayer isn’t. McKay said that’s to avoid the appearance that the commission has made a formal decision to offer prayers. The prayer, he said, is his personal prayer. If he’s not present, another commissioner might choose not to offer a prayer, to request a moment of silence, or do nothing at all, he said.
“It’s not a policy or decision of the commission,” McKay said. McKay said there are no plans to have local clergy or others offer prayers.
McKay said his prayer is a nondenominational Masonic prayer. The prayer addresses God as the “Supreme Architect of the Universe,” and asks that the meeting be conducted and concluded in a spirit of peace and harmony.
So far, McKay said one person has lodged an objection to the prayer in an email. McKay said he respects the fact that some people may not approve of his decision to offer a prayer at meetings. Until McKay began offering his prayer, prayer had not been a part of commission meetings for some time in Allegany County, according to officials.
In recent weeks, Frederick County commissioners voted 3-2 to add an opening prayer to their public meetings, The Associated Press reported. Frederick County requires that prayers avoid the mention of any particular religion, denomination or sect.
While McKay is reviving a tradition, there’s nothing new about prayer at local governmental meetings, and there have been few, if any objections to the prayers over the years.
In Garrett County, commissioners have members of the Mountaintop Ministerial Association offer an invocation before each of their regular public meetings. The invocation is listed on commission agendas. Ministers from the association are free to offer whatever prayer they like. If a member of the association isn’t available, Commissioner Robert Gatto leads a moment of silence, said County Administrator Monty Pagenhardt. Pagenhardt said the prayers have been occurring for at least 15 years. “We haven’t had any issues,” Pagenhardt said.
The cities of Frostburg and Cumberland also open meetings with a prayer. John Kirby, the Frostburg city administrator, said there has been a tradition of prayer at the beginning of City Council meetings for decades. Frostburg and Cumberland, like Garrett County, list the invocation on their agendas.
Prayers are usually offered by members of the Frostburg Ministerial Association, or Kirby in their absence. Kirby said members of the Jewish faith are among those who have opened council meetings with a prayer. No guidelines are provided to clergy for their prayers. Kirby said that while he usually uses a prepared text, he sometimes offers an extemporaneous prayer.
Frostburg City Council meetings have recently been opened with the following prayer, Kirby said: “Heavenly Father: We offer our thanks and ask your blessing on this special community, for the time we share together and the bounty of our nation; For the commitment of the people who volunteer their time and talents to make our community a better place to live and to work and raise a family. We ask your blessing because we know that we alone cannot meet the challenges, solve the problems or provide sufficient inspiration. We offer our thanks to you for the beauty, the time and the place that is Frostburg. Amen.”
Contact Matthew Bieniek at mbieniek@times-news.com
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