The city attorney was quoted in the linked article as saying that "doing away with the chaplaincy program would alienate those within the police department who are Christian." Why would this be so? Does the department provide chaplains to everyone, or just Christians of a certain denomination?
A government agency should not be involved in religion, anyway. The are plenty of community and religious organizations to organize such things as prayer vigils.
Remember that one cannot use the term "religion" with any accuracy because it is an extremely generic term. When people talk about "religion" they must specify which religion and which denomination or group within that religion to which they are referring.
A government agency should not be involved in religion, anyway.
Why not?
Senate and House both open the session with a prayer.
Have, for the most part, since about 1789
Why not? First, the separation of church and state must be observed strictly.
Secondly, these prayers are sectarian, preferring one religion and one denomination over another. Sectarianism is a deep problem within just about every one of the world's religions. Government should have no part in this. Even within the faith of Christianity, there are deep divisions. There always have been. Look how splintered people who are Christians are.
There are people right here on USMB who say that people who do not agree with their sect don't believe in a Supreme Being, are "atheist," (which there is nothing wrong with being in the U.S.), or who say that they don't believe in another person's idea of a Supreme Being are terrible, evil people. There was one guy just this morning who said that people who support Democratic candidates have abandoned "God." This is total horseshit; sectarian slop.