Shoalhaven City Council will no longer open with a Christian prayer in a step towards embracing the community's "religious diversity".
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The change, put forward by Labor councillor and deputy mayor Liza Butler, suggested replacing the opening prayer with a moment of reflection.
"Living in such a diverse, ecumenical, and multicultural society as ours...the reading of a Christian prayer is discriminating and holds no part in our public institutions, especially within the chamber of Shoalhaven City Council," Cr Butler said in the first ordinary meeting of the year on Tuesday.
"By having a moment of reflection at the start of each meeting, it allows each councillor and all those present to offer a silent prayer to whoever or whatever they believe in quietly and respectfully."
The new-look Shoalhaven council has a progressive majority for the first time.
"We are now part of a progressive and forward thinking council that is looking to the future and not living in the past," Cr Butler said when the motion was put forward.
Cr Watson expressed his dissent and said removing the prayer would be breaking tradition.
"I find it a very sad occasion that we would turn our back on what's been a tradition, not only of this council, but of the Commonwealth Government," he said during the meeting.
"This is one of the traditions that has been carried on, because whether you like it or not, the majority of people in Australia profess to be Christian."
Cr Paul Ell also took aim and labelled the motion "another example...of woke culture".
"I just think it's very disappointing that this initiatives been brought forward...I think it's unnecessarily divisive in the community," he said.
"I urge councillors to not do away with the the opening prayer which has been such a wonderful tradition."
Cr John Wells said if another religion's prayer was read out he would walk out of the room.
"I'm not allowed to pray for anything or anyone other than the Lord my God," he said.
"And if you're asking me to participate in a process, whereby I could fall into apostasy and sin, then I will have to vacate myself from the chamber."
Cr Moo Dath responded to Wells dispute: "The moment of silence is not, councillor Wells, to make you not pray to your God."
"The moment of silence is for everyone to choose their guiding spirit, their belief, their God...and take that moment, themselves quietly, to reflect and go into the next meeting," said Cr Dath.
"It's not woke to be spiritual. It's progressive. And I actually do look around and I see progress in the making tonight."
In her right of reply, Cr Butler said the opening prayer had been widely discussed in the community and the only way to "include beliefs and cultures of everybody around this table...and everybody in our community, is to have a moment of reflection at the start of each meeting."
For: Crs Findley, Christen, Norris, Butler, Dath, Kotlash, Gray.
The balance voted against and the motion was carried.
The opening prayer has been long-debated in the council and Tuesday's meeting was not the first time Cr Watson expressed his dissent against removing it.
At a meeting in September 2020, former councillor Kaye Gartner was interrupted by Cr Watson while she was reciting a Buddhist prayer to open proceedings.
The council then voted to mandate only a Christian prayer could be read at the opening of meetings.
Since then, the Rationalist Society of Australia called on the council to adopt inclusive meeting procedures and to "stop playing favourites between religions".
A councillor's amendment regarding the opening prayer was lost also lost four votes to nine in 2017.
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