The City of Sydney will consider a proposal to review its practice of opening formal council meetings with prayers.

At Monday’s general council meeting at Sydney Town Hall, Councillor Matthew Thompson will present a motion requesting that council undertake a process of community engagement to understand views on the practice of reciting prayers.

The motion asks that such a review consider alternative options, including replacing prayers with a secular oath or affirmation in line with councillors’ responsibilities to the community, or simply removing prayers without introducing a replacement ritual. 

Councillor Thompson’s notice of motion argues that council’s practice of starting meetings with prayer “does not reflect the religiously diverse and secular communities we represent”.

The motion notes that the New South Wales’ Local Government Act 1993 provides that a councillor must consider the diversity of interests and needs of the municipal community. The motion also says many councils across the country are moving towards secular affirmations to ensure no one is excluded.

The short prayer that opens Sydney council meetings thanks “Almighty God” for the gifts of the city, and asks for God’s help in dealing with the needs and aspirations of all the city’s people.

Speaking today, Rationalist Society of Australia Executive Director Si Gladman said he was hopeful that all Sydney councillors would see the need for secular reform and support the motion.

“The City of Sydney is rich in religious and, increasingly, non-religious diversity. Having a review of the prayer practice will give residents an opportunity to put forward ideas for a more appropriate practice that better reflects the community,” he said.

“The meetings of local governments and all parliaments in Australia should be secular – in that they should not privilege one religious worldview about others – and welcoming for all people. They should not impose religious worship.”

At the 2021 Census, almost 52 per cent of residents in the City of Sydney said they had no religion, while just 27 per cent were Christian.

Momentum for change has been building on the prayer issue across the country, with a long list of local governments replacing Christian prayers with secular practices such as pledges to work in the interest of the community or moments of silence for private reflection or prayer. In New South Wales alone, councils to have made the reform in recent years include Shoalhaven, Wagga Wagga, Lismore, Byron Bay Shire, Lane Cove and Ballina.

The Rationalist Society of Australia is actively advocating for prayer rituals to be replaced with more appropriate practices in councils and parliaments. See the latest updates here.

Si Gladman is Executive Director of the Rationalist Society of Australia. He also hosts ‘The Secular Agenda’ podcast.

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