Amy Hardy-McAdams, co-owner of a Pagan- and Wicca-themed business in Broken Arrow, Okla., was invited by a member of the Tulsa City Council to deliver a guest invocation before a meeting last week. Hardy-McAdams did so, and now, some politicians in the state are going off the rails.
Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) tweeted, “Satan is trying to establish a foothold, but Oklahoma is going to be a shining city on the hill. Tulsa City Council needs to stand against actions like this, and Tulsans need to remember who allowed this at the ballot box.”
Ryan Walters, the state superintendent of public instruction, also felt compelled to weigh in – even though this incident has nothing to do with public education in the state.
“Satanic prayers are welcome in Hell but not in Oklahoma,” Walters tweeted. “Satanism is not a religion. Tulsa should immediately move to ensure this never happens again and the person who allowed it should be held accountable.”
Let’s unpack this a bit: First off, Hardy-McAdams’ prayer was not “satanic.” She’s Pagan. There’s a difference. People like Stitt and Walters are in effect saying, “I don’t like this, I don’t understand it – it must be satanic and therefore not a religion.” Stitt and Walters are not in a position to decide what’s a legitimate religion and what’s not.
Secondly, as I told Fox25 in Oklahoma City, the government can’t play favorites among faith groups. When the government opens up a forum, all religious groups can take advantage of it – even ones people like Stitt and Walters don’t like.
“When the government creates a forum for expression like prayers before city council meetings or allowing groups to display their symbols on the town green during the holiday season, that means all religious groups get that right of access,” I said. “And I think some officials in Oklahoma are a little bit confused about that principle.”
In the case of the Tulsa City Council, members have on several occasions invited guests to deliver invocations. In August, one meeting featured a man who gave a Christian invocation that repeatedly mentioned the Lord and ended in Jesus’ name.
Crista Patrick, the council member who invited Hardy-McAdams, is herself Pagan. Patrick has been on the council since 2018 and decided not to run for reelection, and this recent meeting was her last. I feel certain that in the past six years, she has listened to many Christian invocations. Giving a Pagan a little equal time is hardly a huge deal.
Sure, Patrick invited Hardy-McAdams, but she’s not ultimately responsible for her being there. The First Amendment is. We live in a country where government must respect all religious (and non-religious) views and treat them equally. In those cases where the state extends privileges to faith groups, it must extend them to all. Legally, there is no such thing as a second-class religion in America. (As an aside, another way to address this issue is to simply stop delivering invocations before government meetings. That’s always an option.)
State neutrality toward religion has given us an amazing diversity. Our citizens are Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu, Wiccan, Pagan, Humanist, Atheist, Agnostic and so on. What an amazing mosaic! At this time of year, when we’re expressing thanks, we should definitely be thankful for religious freedom and its only true protector, separation of church and state.
It’s a shame Stitt and Walters can’t grasp this basic principle or choose to spurn it. They seek religious freedom for me – not but for thee. You can call that many things – hypocritical, intolerant and ignorant to name a few – but I believe the best word for it is simply “un-American.”
Photo: Amy Hardy-McAdams addresses the Tulsa City Council
