Facebook Users Rally For God
July 28, 2009
It’s a tradition the Lodi City Council has had for decades. It starts each meeting with a prayer which often calls on Jesus.
“This whole issue has taken on a life of its own,” said Lodi Mayor Larry Hansen.
Groups advocating the separation of church and state are calling on the city council to ban prayer from its meetings. Now that debate has hit the internet on sites like Facebook.
“Facebook has been very helpful because it attracts the young people. We want young people who are full of energy who love Jesus,” said Chaplain Gordon James Klingenschmitt of Colorado Springs. He’s organizing a rally ahead of next week’s council meeting and is spreading the word via Facebook.
“We hope that pastors from all over California will bring their church buses, their people to simply pray in Jesus’ name,” said Klingenschmitt.
“People are certainly welcome to meet, to exercise their freedom of speech, their freedom of religion,” said Mayor Hansen.
Already more than 125 people have said they’ll attend. Four thousand others have signed an online petition. Many non-Christians are also sounding off on the social networking site saying “Keep your religion out of my government” and “Christianity is not the only religion in the U.S.”
“It’s time for California to stand up for Jesus. We don’t need to be silenced by atheist complainers,” said Klingenschmitt.
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