I went back to find this comic to show a friend and went back over the comments – some were newer and I hadn’t seen them before. The priest was there because Dan was (and still is) Catholic, and he got to invite the clergy of his choosing (in this case, our priest) to give an invocation during the ceremony. The prayer wasn’t a mandatory part of the process – if the new judge was an atheist, I’d imagine there would have been no clergy and no prayer if they didn’t want it. (Which is to say, it is not forced or expected, but instead it is a choice offered.) Even those who belong to any faith don’t have to have any clergy there. Unsure why the privilege of having one’s priest (or whatever clergy) participate is so controversial. Are we not free to practice our religion? Nothing Fr. Kovash said changed anything about the investiture process, or how Dan swore to follow the letter of the law. In this case, in accordance with our faith, Dan wanted his priest there to offer a prayer for him in this new position, which he was allowed to do and he chose to do so.
I went back to find this comic to show a friend and went back over the comments – some were newer and I hadn’t seen them before. The priest was there because Dan was (and still is) Catholic, and he got to invite the clergy of his choosing (in this case, our priest) to give an invocation during the ceremony. The prayer wasn’t a mandatory part of the process – if the new judge was an atheist, I’d imagine there would have been no clergy and no prayer if they didn’t want it. (Which is to say, it is not forced or expected, but instead it is a choice offered.) Even those who belong to any faith don’t have to have any clergy there. Unsure why the privilege of having one’s priest (or whatever clergy) participate is so controversial. Are we not free to practice our religion? Nothing Fr. Kovash said changed anything about the investiture process, or how Dan swore to follow the letter of the law. In this case, in accordance with our faith, Dan wanted his priest there to offer a prayer for him in this new position, which he was allowed to do and he chose to do so.