COLORADO SPRINGS — You could say Peggy Littleton’s prayer has been answered.
In her first public meeting as an El Paso County commissioner, Littleton’s opening comment was a call for more prayer.
“I’d like to encourage my colleagues to have, at a minimum, prayer together every Tuesday and expand it to leaders, elected officials and citizens who would like to express their blessing over the board,” Littleton said during Tuesday’s meeting.
Because Littleton’s appeal was not a policy item, informal agreement by at least three commissioners propelled it into motion. And because the commission chair has authority over agendas, it’s a done deal.
New commission chairwoman Amy Lathen said Wednesday that she got the support needed and that probably starting next week, every Tuesday and Thursday meeting will include prayer.
A U.S. Supreme Court decision in the 1980s ruled that legislative bodies can start sessions with prayer without violating the U.S. Constitution. The Colorado Springs City Council, the state legislature and other elected groups routinely pray or have moments of silence before meetings.
In recent years, the county commission has had an invocation at one meeting a month.
Littleton’s comments Tuesday followed an invocation by Commissioner Dennis Hisey’s pastor, the Rev. Paul Aragon of Restoration Church in Fountain, who prayed for “a sense of common ground” and that the new board “would have the courage to ask what is best for El Paso County.”
The commission started once-a-week invocations in January 2006, when Commissioner Sallie Clark became board chairwoman.
“I felt it was important to take a moment to think about the decisions we were making and invite different clergy to ask for guidance from a higher being,” Clark said Wednesday.
Over the years, the practice decreased to twice a month, then once a month as it became more difficult to book religious leaders.
The commission has had clergy from various faiths represented, said Hisey, who stepped down Tuesday as commission chair.
To alleviate the scheduling burden, commissioners, county staff and other community leaders will lead prayers if a clergy member isn’t available, Lathen said, adding that praying before meetings helps her get centered. “I account to God first. I can’t do this by myself; it’s a big job we’ve got,” she said.
