CHURCH AND STATE

Phoenix Votes to Avoid Satanic Prayer

Now moment of silence will open City Council meetings.

Phoenix’s city council voted Wednesday to replace its traditional invocation at the beginning of meetings with a moment of silence, in an effort to block a group from leading a satanic prayer at an upcoming meeting. After hours of discussion, the council voted 5-4 in favor of the moment-of-silence rule, which will go into effect immediately and prevent the local Satanic Temple from opening the meeting on Feb. 17 with a satanic prayer. Critics told the council it had no right to deny the Satanists’ opportunity to pray and raised concerns over a possible lawsuit. “There are worse things to fear than a lawsuit. There is a Satan who wants to destroy us,” one Phoenix lawyer told the crowd. “Why invite him here?”