Religion in Governmental Observances
The Supreme Court's Establishment Clause Precedent
The practice of opening legislative sessions with prayers by paid chaplains was upheld in Marsh v. Chambers (1983), a case involving prayers in the Nebraska Legislature. The Court relied almost entirely on historical practice. Congress had paid a chaplain and opened sessions with prayers for almost 200 years; the fact that Congress had continued the practice after considering constitutional objections in the Court’s view strengthened rather than weakened the historical argument. Similarly, the practice was well rooted in Nebraska and in most other States. Most importantly, the First Amendment had been drafted in the First Congress with an awareness of…
