Michigan Commissioners Open Meeting With Islamic Prayer

I would like to preface this eye-witness report with some thoughts.

First, that America, it’s founding and government, is based upon Judeo/Christian philosophy.  Freedom is not compatible with Islamic law.

Right now in Michigan, the establishment Republican leadership is actively trying to suppress any “anti-Muslim” sentiment as vigorously as they are suppressing any Bible references or, “pro-Christian” sentiment.  They are doing so, in my view, because Michigan is home to the largest population of Muslims in the nation.

The particular commission has eight of its twelve commissioners listed as Republicans.  Most of the people who praised the Islamic minister and his prayer were Republican women.

The Berrien County Commissioners opened their meeting on February 6th, 2014 with an Islamic prayer and chant.

Berrien County is the southwestern-most county in Michigan, home to Benton Harbor and St. Joseph.   According to Bernd Krebs, who was at the meeting but refused to pray along, the commission was allowing the minister to speak because he had asked to do so when the commission had a hard time finding ministers to perform the invocation at the beginning of the meetings.  When asked, one of the commissioners responded, “what were they supposed to do, deny him?”

After the initial prayer, the minister was allowed to “preach” for about another five minutes, and explained what the 11 Commissioners and the audience had just prayed from a printed prayer sheet he had given out (see photos below).  One of the points that the muslim minister highlighted was that  a verse on the sheet was a prayer that allah loose the knots in our tongues, and that like Moses who found wisdom after praying to allah could then speak to the “President of his time in Egypt, Pharaoh, that the commissioners knotted tongues should be loosed, to go and speak with our President.”

One man left in anger as the prayer began.  When contacted after the meeting, he had a hard time expressing himself, but eluded to his service to our country.

The minister went on to say that at the end of the prayer everyone should say “akchman,” that is is just like saying, “Amen,” and that all present had agreed with allah being called to be “over” the  meeting.   Commissioner Theineman (R) proceeded to explain that the word, “akchman” means “so be it,” and all had agreed that it was so.  Bernd goes on to report:

Commissioner Dab Panozzo (R) and Jeanette Leahy (R) along with Marletta Seats(D) extolled to the audience how great this was and my opponent in the race for 6^th District Berrien County (Jeanette Leahy) made sure to tell the audience how culturally ‘enlightening” this prayer was.

During the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance, the Muslim, who had previously had his arms folded in front of him, put both his arms to his sides, and only raised them to be folded once again when the Pledge was finished.  He would not participate.

After this the business part of the agenda began, Marletta Seats (D) handed the minister a gift, which appeared to be a pen box and gave a small bow, bending her head obviously downward.

At this point, Bernd reports that a woman came in an sat down next to him in the audience and saw the printed prayer sheet on the chair between them.  She picked it up and asked quietly what it was, and he whispered to her that it was the prayer the commissioners had just began the meeting with. “Her eyes got as big as saucers and she asked again what this may be. I told her again that it was our Berrien County Commission meeting invocation.  She shook her head.  When the meeting was about to end, this women asked the commissioners if she could close in prayer and was denied, under the grounds, ‘this is not our tradition to close in a prayer, we have already prayed for this meeting.’”  It turned out that the woman was a newly hired news director for a local radio station, and began talking to the other attendees.

Below are the sheets that the attendees to the February 6th meeting prayed and sang along with.   The minister sang and as those who attended mimicked him, he said quietly, and repeatedly, “alluah akbahr.”

To get a feel of how the “service” went, the minister sang and then translated it to English.  Then, the attendees repeated the line just translated to them while he walked around animated and quietly said, “alluah akbahr.”  He then gave the sermon on loosening tongues.