PRAYING FOR RIGHTS PASTOR FLOUTS LAW WITH INVOCATION AT COUNTY MEETING.

Byline: Nicholas Grudin Staff Writer

The invocation at Tuesday's county supervisors meeting, which named Jesus Christ the ``only one mediator between God and man,'' is being harshly criticized for its disregard of a constitutional law recently reaffirmed by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The speaker, the Rev. Martin Brauer of the Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Santa Clarita, said he is aware of the law - which seeks to maintain separation between church and state - but chose not to comply to make a point about his freedom of speech.

``To ask religious leaders not to pray in the name of the God in whom they believe is asking them to compromise their integrity,'' said Brauer, a real estate salesman-turned-pastor. ``I don't think that a Jewish leader or a Muslim leader should be restricted from speaking their truth either.''

However, supporters of the constitutional protection call Brauer's conduct disrespectful, alienating and unlawful.

``He's showing a lack of respect for every American who doesn't share his brand of religion,'' said Shelley Rubin, wife of the late chairman of the Jewish Defense League, Irv Rubin. ``My husband would find it absolutely disgusting that a man who considers himself a religious leader would spit in the face of the American system of justice by pushing his religion down the throats of those people who are not a part of it.''

It was Irv Rubin who in 1999 filed suit against the Burbank City Council after a prayer by a Mormon speaker invoked the name of Jesus Christ.

Rubin won the case and last week the U.S. Supreme Court refused to review Burbank's appeal of two lower court decisions banning the City Council from opening meetings with sectarian prayers.

Burbank was joined by 80 other cities from across the country in appealing the California decision.

The high court's refusal means that all California cities and counties are prohibited from using sectarian prayers.

``Sectarian prayers are clearly unconstitutional. Such prayers are impermissible and it may take another lawsuit,'' said Irwin Chemerinsky, a constitutional law expert at the University of Southern California.

But the county, aware of the Burbank decision, has had sporadic difficulty enforcing the law, according to county counsel Bill Pellman.

``We may have to consider that people who violate the law will not be re-invited to the ceremonial portion of the board meetings,'' Pellman said.

The county's executive office provides its prospective speakers - which have included all varieties of religious leaders - with guidelines regarding their invocations.

``Please keep in mind that you may not call upon or invoke names specific to a particular doctrine or denomination,'' the guidelines read. ``Your voluntary participation in the invocation indicates that you will abide by the guidelines.''

Brauer, who was invited to give the invocation by Supervisor Michael D. Antonovich, declined the invitation after reading the guidelines, but signed back on a few days later after deciding to disregard the ``silly'' law.

``How much are we going to water down whatever we say? We're always going to offend people. Let's let people have their beliefs and state them, and test the different beliefs that are out there,'' Brauer said.

Brauer said that if government groups are asking for nonsectarian invocations, they should not invite religious leaders to give prayers.

Antonovich compared the ban on invoking specific religious figures to segregation and disagreed with the county's guidelines.

``Freedom of speech is not free unless you can speak from your mind and heart and this pastor was a man of God who was speaking from his heart,'' Antonovich said.

Roger Jon Diamond, an attorney who represented opponents in the Burbank case, said that as long as the county is acting in good faith, it is not liable for Brauer's prayer.

``If the county is in good faith trying to prevent it, then I think that's the end of the matter,'' Diamond said.

Nonetheless, Shelley Rubin said she intends to demand an end to the sectarian prayers.

``We are putting the Board of Supervisors on notice that such behavior will not be tolerated,'' Rubin said.

To avoid lawsuits, some government agencies may decide to abolish invocations altogether, according to attorney Douglas Collodel, who defended sectarian prayer in the Burbank case.

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Photo:

(color) The Rev. Martin Brauer of Bethlehem Lutheran Church defends his invocation at the Board of Supervisors meeting.

David R. Crane/Staff Photographer