August 24, 2011 4:10 PM

Bloomberg bans clergy from 9/11 ceremony

Bloomberg Bans Clergy From 9/11 Ceremony but Ground Zero Mosque OK

FNC/AP

Clergy Banned From 9/11 Ceremony

Religious leaders are calling on Mayor Michael Bloomberg to reverse course and offer clergy a role in the ceremony commemorating the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center.

Rudy Washington, a deputy mayor in former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani's administration, said he's outraged. Mr. Washington organized an interfaith ceremony at Yankee Stadium shortly after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.

"This is America, and to have a memorial service where there's no prayer, this appears to be insanity to me," said Mr. Washington, who has suffered severe medical problems connected to the time he spent at Ground Zero. Read more at wsj.com.

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Bloomberg Defends Ground Zero Mosque as Freedom-of-Faith Issue

In his fiercest defense yet of the mosque proposed near Ground Zero, Mayor Bloomberg declared yesterday that it must be allowed to proceed because the government "shouldn't be in the business of picking" one religion over another.

"I think it's fair to say if somebody was going to try, on that piece of property, to build a church or a synagogue, nobody would be yelling and screaming," the mayor said.

"And the fact of the matter is that Muslims have a right to do it, too." Read more at nypost.com.

Love,

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Comments

I couldn't read the WSJ article without registering so I didn't read the whole article. What was Bloomberg's reasoning for not allowing clergy? I find it totally offensive to not allow religious people a chance for prayer.

Did he feel like he would be pressured to include a Muslim cleric? That would not fly well with the American public. Perhaps he figured that if he only allowed for Christian/Jewish prayers that there would be yelling from other groups. Obama probably wouldn't like it. Maybe Obama has pressured him into not including any religious prayers at all.

I'm thinking that perhaps Bloomberg is trying to avoid Muslim/Jewish/Christian clashes. If the Muslims would demand equal time...there's going to be problems. They would have to offer prayers up for the victims otherwise there is going to be rage. Would they do it?

As a devout Catholic, I can only support allowing clergy to pray during the ceremony. If Muslim clerics didn't get controversial then I would say to include them. We can't cut Our Lord out of this. No way. No how.

Posted by: Sue from Buffalo | August 24, 2011 9:29 PM

"I think it's fair to say if somebody was going to try, on that piece of property, to build a church or a synagogue, nobody would be yelling and screaming," the mayor said.

I call BS on that. St. Nicholas greek orthodox church has faced opposition for the last 10 years, and they were there before 9/11.

Posted by: Courageous Grace | August 24, 2011 9:52 PM

Religious Leaders in NYC should hold their own interfaith Memorial Service in a House of Worship close to the 9/11 site and invite the First Responders and others who were outraged by the Mayors decision to attend a Memorial Service free of Mayor Bloomberg.

Posted by: Patrick Doran | August 26, 2011 9:36 PM

I've got to agree with Patrick. It would be nice if Bloomberg would change his mind but given government's desire to not appear partial toward any religion I don't see it as likely. If a religious service is desired a private group of interfaith clergy should organize and provide a comparative religious based memorial service open to all first responders, family members etc. We have freedom of religion and assembly in this country. Use it and don't wait around for the government to meet your needs.

Posted by: Diane | August 27, 2011 2:53 PM

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