The Freedom From Religion Foundation is calling on city officials in Vicksburg, Miss., to cease their unconstitutional sponsorship and promotion of an explicitly Christian prayer event.
On Dec. 4, Vicksburg Alderman TJ Mayfield announced that the city of Vicksburg is sponsoring a Christian prayer event on the coming New Year’s Day. His official statement makes clear that this event is only for Christians, openly discriminating against all non-Christians and nonreligious individuals in Vicksburg:
Dear Christian Friends,
On behalf of the Ward 1 Alderman’s Office and the City of Vicksburg, I wish you all a safe and joyful holiday season. The holidays are a time to reflect on the past year, express gratitude, and come together as a community. Regardless of our race, creed, gender, denomination, or political affiliation, this is a time for unity and mutual support. Vicksburg is a remarkable community, yet we have failed to support one another as a unified Christian body for too long. With over 300 active churches in our area, it is imperative that we put aside what divides us and focus on what unites us. We must put aside concerns about who gets the credit or whose name appears in the spotlight, and look to seeing the gospel spread to those in our community. As Christians, our primary goal should be saving souls. It is selfish and shortsighted to disregard other initiatives simply because they may not benefit our church or be our idea.
The City of Vicksburg proudly supports this event and encourages everyone to participate.
An official poster describes the event as a “gathering of Christian believers to cover our city in prayer and worship” and includes the city’s official seal.
“City-sponsored religious worship events, particularly those promoting one religion above all others, are unnecessarily divisive and violate the constitutional rights of residents,” FFRF Patrick O’Reiley Legal Fellow Hirsh M. Joshi states in a letter to the city. “Out of respect for the First Amendment and Vicksburg’s residents, we write to request that the city end its official sponsorship of this event and refrain from promoting religious events going forward.”
Mayfield’s official statement clearly states that this citywide prayer event is meant to advance his Christian religious beliefs. He only addresses Christians and uses the word “denomination” instead of “religion,” implying that other religions are not welcome and sending an exclusionary message to non-Christians. Speaking on behalf of the city, Alderman Mayfield advocates for spreading the “gospel … to those in the community.” He describes this city-sponsored event’s “primary goal” as “saving souls.”
FFRF emphasizes that government neutrality on matters of religion is not an attack on people of faith; instead, it ensures that public officials do not use their positions to favor one religion over others or religion over nonreligion. Residents of Vicksburg are free to participate in religious events in their personal capacities, but a city government cannot host a Christian event to “save souls” — or any religious event regardless of denomination. Fully one-fifth of the Mississippi population — 20 percent — identifies as religiously unaffiliated today.
“Three hundred untaxed churches are free to and fully able to organize and promote their own Christian prayer event, but the government may not do so,” says Annie Laurie Gaylor, FFRF co-president. “A city may not constitutionally organize and promote prayer events, Christian or otherwise, which sends an impermissible and exclusionary message to residents who do not share those beliefs.”
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national nonprofit organization with more than 40,000 members across the country, including members in Mississippi. FFRF’s purposes are to protect the constitutional principle of separation between church and state, and to educate the public on matters relating to nontheism.
