Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Catholic News

Home

Home
Catholic
Religion News
A tale of Satanists and political maneuvering in Arizona

A tale of Satanists and political maneuvering in Arizona

Last updated on: February 9, 2016 at 11:07 pm by CNA Daily News

A tale of Satanists and political maneuvering in Arizona 2016-02-09T23:07:00+00:00 CNA Daily News

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Phoenix, Ariz., Feb 9, 2016 / 04:07 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- Even though the Satanists lost, they won.

That's the opinion of Phoenix city councilman Sal Diciccio, a practicing Catholic who was embroiled in a heated debate over whether or not a Satanic group would be allowed to give the opening prayer at an upcoming council meeting.

Last week, the sharply divided city council voted 5-4 to adopt a moment of silence instead of prayer at the opening of council meetings, effectively blocking an upcoming invocation by a Satanic temple member from Tucson, but also banning all prayer in the future.

Diciccio, who voted against the moment of silence, said that banning all prayer was the real end game for the Satanists.

“It wasn't about one prayer, they wanted to ban all prayer,” Diciccio said. “That’s their win…they accomplished their goal.”

There could have been other ways to effectively block the Satanist group without banning prayer, a tradition of the city council for 65 years, Diciccio said. First and foremost, the city council could have banned the group on the basis that they were not from the community and that they don’t consider themselves a religion, he said.

“The fact is that they’re from Tuscon and we’re from Phoenix, we had every right to say look, you’re not a part of our community,” he said. “That was paramount to block them from being there.”

The four councilmen who ended up voting against the moment of silence also had presented alternative prayer practices that the council could have adopted, such as appointing a council chaplain.

Diccicio said he approached City Attorney Brad Holm with the proposal that the city council could ask the chaplains of the Phoenix police and fire departments to come in and offer prayers on a rotating basis, since their chaplains are already in place and would not cost the city council any extra money. The proposal was denied.

“Do you know what he said? He said they're Christian, and you can't do that,” Diciccio said.

The dissenting members of the council also proposed a model like that of the Arizona state legislature, which allows each member to personally invite someone to offer a prayer on a rotating basis.

Josh Kredit is the General Counsel and Vice President of Policy for Center for Arizona Policy (CAP), a nonprofit research and education organization that promotes and defends traditional values of life, marriage and family, and religious freedom. He said the state's practice holds members accountable for the prayers offered.

“If a council member wanted to sponsor a Satanist prayer, they could do that, but they would also live with any kind of backlash like what we saw the other night, versus this system where everyone just kind of throws up their hands and says well it’s a process, there’s nothing we can do,” Kredit said.

In their May 2014 decision Town of Greece v. Galloway, the Supreme Court upheld the right of public bodies to allow prayer under certain parameters, Kredit said. The city council could have had a constitutionally sound argument for changing their prayer practices without directly discriminating against Satanic groups, he added.

On Wednesday of last week, before the vote of the city council on the issue, more than a hundred people attended a the city council meeting, giving emotional testimonies that lasted more than two hours – many in opposition to the Satanic prayer. No Satanists addressed the council at the meeting.

"I am not for the silent prayer," Pastor Darlene Vasquez said at the meeting, according to azcentral.com. “I want those who believe in the one true God to pray. It breaks my heart to hear what is going on."

Diciccio, who said he is known for being outspoken on social issues, told a local T.V. news channel that allowing the Satanic group to proceed with the prayer would have been like inviting ISIS to offer an invocation. The newscaster argued that the comparison was unfair.

“But I said well, Satanism is the epitome of evil, if you think (ISIS) is evil, where do you think this all comes from?” Diciccio said.

The city council has heard many different types of prayer in its 65 years of the tradition, Diciccio said, not all of them necessarily from the Christian tradition, but all of them positive in some way. He said he believes a Satanic prayer would be fundamentally unhealthy for the city.

“I don’t think people really understand the depth of (the consequences) of allowing a satanic prayer,” Diciccio said. “I believe that is an unhealthy thing for a community. There’s this blase attitude that what’s going on is ok – I don’t think it’s ok, I don’t think it’s right.”

The Satanic temple had threatened to sue the city council if they were banned from prayer, but have dropped the idea since the passing of the moment of silence. According to azcentral.com, some city council members believed that the city could not have afforded the lawsuit.

Still, Diciccio said he is worried that the decision to get rid of prayer in the city council could have a domino effect on the rest of the state, and even other states around the country.
“I think Phoenix is kind of at the forefront, but I think this is going to be a debate nationwide,” he said.

“We have (public prayer) all over the country,” he added. “If it’s done somewhere else, why can’t it be done here? It’s not logical. And the Supreme Court said if you do it right, you can constitutionally protect it.”

Fr. Vince Lampert, a nationally known exorcist who travels the country speaking out spiritual realities, agreed that the move was a win for the Satanic group.

“The decision by the Phoenix City Council is a victory for the Satanists who wish to remove God from the public forum,” Father Lampert told CNA. “By opting for a moment of silence the only One who is silenced is God.”

“Humans have the innate desire and need for God,” he added. “St. Augustine put it best: ‘Our hearts are restless, O Lord, until they rest in you.’ When God is silenced from such settings as this City Council, it only further distances humanity from God and increases the emptiness of society as a whole. It is within this emptiness that Satan dwells.”

Previous Post

February 9, 2016

Cover sins with the blanket of mercy, Pope Francis tells priests

Next Post

February 10, 2016 If mercy doesn’t reach your pockets, it’s not real, Pope says

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Americas Asia - Pacific Europe Middle East - Africa Uncategorized US Vatican

Select a Month November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which couple taught Apollos more accurately about Jesus in Ephesus?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Mary and Joseph Ananias and Sapphira Priscilla and Aquila Lydia and Titus