Puyallup debates role of religion at City Council meetings

City Council meetings in Puyallup start with the Pledge of Allegiance and a roll call of council members.

Soon officials may add one more step before digging into city business: a non-sectarian invocation, or a moment of quiet reflection or silence.

The council has made no decisions, but some members say they want to explore options.

Rick Hansen, Puyallup’s newly named mayor, said an invocation or quiet moment could set a congenial tone. The council has been divided in recent years, with meetings at times marked with tension. This year, the seven-member council has four new faces.

“I’m trying to change the tenor of the meetings,” said Hansen, a council veteran. “That’s the thrust of what I want to do – to have people think of others than themselves.”

But kicking off government meetings with prayer can be touchy territory; it has sparked debate and legal action in other cities around the country. Puyallup Councilman John Palmer said an invocation could alienate people who aren’t religious.

“I think some of the people that are suggesting it think it’s a way to unite. But I actually think it could turn out to be divisive,” said the first-year councilman.

Another newcomer, Councilman John Hopkins, said the idea is not to “shove religion down people’s throats” but to get the meetings off to a peaceful start and acknowledge that “there are bigger things in play than just us (as council members).”

It’s unclear how many city councils in Washington open meetings with invocations or moments of reflection. Pat Mason, senior legal consultant for the Seattle-based Municipal Research and Services Center, said it doesn’t keep track. The center does get occasional inquiries from local governments about the legality, he said.

Mason said the practice is allowed, although prayer shouldn’t support a particular religion.

Pierce County’s two largest cities – Tacoma and Lakewood – don’t open their council meetings with invocations. Neither does the Pierce County Council.

But all three observe a moment of silence. At the Lakewood and county sessions, they are dedicated to the military.

The Puyallup council also at times holds moments of silence, such as in memory of citizens who have died.

In Olympia, floor sessions of the state House and Senate open with an invocation.

So do Sumner City Council meetings. It’s a tradition in the East Pierce city that stretches back many years.

The invocations are led by a local religious leader, generally a Christian minister. Sumner Mayor Dave Enslow said they add reverence to meetings.

“It’s one of the nice things you have in a small town. I think most people seem to like it and appreciate it,” he said.

Some Puyallup council members and residents don’t want to see their city take the same path as Sumner.

Councilman Kent Boyle described himself as a churchgoer but said he thinks “there should be a separation of church and state in this situation.”

Rebecca Lewinski also objects. The Puyallup resident said she feels an invocation would set up people like her, who aren’t religious, as outsiders.

“Every time a group prays before a public meeting, they’re telling the people that aren’t religious ... that they’re not part of the club,” she said. Lewinski said a moment of quiet reflection would be acceptable.

That alternative was given a test run at the Jan. 17 Puyallup council meeting. Hansen called for a moment of “prayer or belief in a higher power, or consideration and concerns for those less fortunate.”

Sara Schilling: 253-552-7058 sara.schilling@thenewstribune.com blog.thenewstribune.com/street