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U.S. Appeals Court: Town council can't pray in Jesus' name
A three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has unanimously upheld a ruling against "sectarian" invocations at the Great Falls (S.C.) town council meetings.

A typical prayer went like this:

Our Heavenly Father we are here tonight to discuss town business. We ask that you would clear up our minds and our hearts from animosity that we might face these issues and address them with an open mind tonight. We pray that all decisions made tonight would be most beneficial for the town and the citizens. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.

Everything is constitutionally fine except for that penultimate sentence, the court ruled. "The prayers sponsored by the Town Council 'frequently' contained references to 'Jesus Christ,' and thus promoted one religion over all others, dividing the Town's citizens along denominational lines," Judge Diana Gribbon Motz wrote.

The Supreme Court has long made clear that the Constitution prohibits any such displays of "denominational preference" by the Government. … Public officials' brief invocations of the Almighty before engaging in public business have always … been part of our nation's history. The Town Council of Great Falls remains free to engage in such invocations prior to council meetings. The opportunity to do so may provide a source of strength to believers, and a time of quiet reflection for all. This opportunity does not, however, provide the Town Council, or any other legislative body, license to advance its own religious views in preference to all others, as the Town Council did here.

Town attorney Brian Gibbons called the ruling disappointing, and told The Herald of Rock Hill that he'll ask the full 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to hear the case. "If that petition is granted, we also may appeal to the U.S Supreme Court," he said.

Ten Commandments for sale on eBay
A lot of cool Hollywood props are going for sale on eBay—the KITT car from Knight Rider, the Ferrari from Magnum, P.I., Daryl Hannah's mermaid tail from Splash, Michael Keaton's Batman cowl, Spock's ears, Disneyland construction blueprints. … But this is a religion blog, so I'll mention that among the items are the "original 10 Commandments tablets" from Cecil B. DeMille's The Ten Commandments. So if you haven't bought Roy Moore anything yet for Christmas, you know where to go. Starting bid is $40,000.

Coming soon
Against expectations, Baylor's board of regents did not vote on removing Robert Sloan as president today. We have reporters on the scene, so be sure to come back this afternoon for the latest news.

Battle for Baylor:

• Possible regent vote may set Baylor's future | Supporters of Sloan have been on the offensive, taking out full-page advertisements in the Tribune-Herald, extolling the administration's virtues and calling for a prayer vigil during today's much-anticipated meeting (Waco Tribune-Herald, Tex.)
• Time to reunite | For the good of Baylor, which has risen to become one of America's top-flight universities, the regents need to lead by example by agreeing on a unified plan of action. (Editorial, Waco Tribune-Herald, Tex.)
• Baylor turmoil eludes students | Most don't care about conflict over leader's plan, classmates say (The Dallas Morning News)
• Another front: Baylor College of Medicine tosses another bomb at Methodist Hospital | Letter threatens legal action over 'interference' (Houston Chronicle)

House forbids courts to rule on same-sex marriage:

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July (Web-only) 2004, Vol. 48