HUNTSVILLE, Alabama – Here's what happens when an atheist offered Alabama's first non-theist invocation to open a public meeting: 90 seconds of thoughtful statements that began with "Dearly Beloved" and ended with "Let it be so," and no reaction from a packed City Council chamber. As the invocation ended, everyone swung automatically to face the flag to repeat the Pledge of Allegiance, with the atheists who had come going silent on the "under God" phrase.

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Many people at the meeting listened to the invocation, delivered by Kelly McCauley, a member of the board of directors of the North Alabama Freethought Association, with heads bowed. It was not a "prayer," McCauley said earlier this week, but an invocation of the highest values of Americans: wisdom, courage, moderation, with the added values added by the Enlightenment of the importance of diversity, protection of freedoms and constructing a society on egalitarian principles that protect the rights of all, especially minorities.

"Let doubt and skepticism be our lookouts," McCauley said during his invocation, going on to quote Thomas Jefferson, "'Truth is great and will prevail, if left to herself.'"

The idea of an atheist delivering the invocation received mixed reaction, but understanding, from leaders in Huntsville's Christian community when it was announced earlier this week that an atheist would be delivering the invocation. The interest in this invocation comes soon after a reaction to the announcement, in July, that a Wiccan high priest would be delivering his second invocation to open the City Council meeting. In both instances, member of the City Council have remained firm in their determination to continue with spoken invocations – most of which, mirroring the demographics of Huntsville, will be given by Christian minister – that reflect the diversity of Huntsville's population.

"The City Council wants an invocation as a way to set their intention to work for the greater good," said Jeannie Robison, executive director of the Interfaith Mission Service and an ordained deacon of the Episcopal Church. IMS has been asked by the City Council and also the Madison County Commission to coordinate the rotating roster of those giving invocations with the charge to reflect the area's demographics. "Huntsville is a very diverse city, and while Christianity is by far the largest, there are many other faith traditions, and the City Council wanted to let the voices of other faith and thought traditions be heard."

Some Christian leaders expressed puzzlement over the inclusion of a non-religious voice. John Buhler, a leader of Mission Huntsville, a coalition of evangelical Christian congregations in Huntsville, and also for the Alabama-Israel Task Force, said that the U.S. Supreme Court, in its May 2014 decision addressing public prayer, miss-read the Constitution.

"If the council believes it has sufficient wisdom and needs not the blessing or help of God, it has the right to omit an invocation," Buhler said. "My frustration is the folly across the nation that assumes that for an invocation to be Constitutional requires representation of all possible whomevers and whatever or lack thereof. Quite to the contrary, the only boundary, according to the Constitution, is that 'Congress' shall make no 'law' respecting an 'establishment' of religion."

"For me, the bigger issue, here and across the land, is whether what has led to this is really the Council's choice, or if they have been forced to do this by some who say this is what's required to be Constitutional."

The Council turned responsibility for the invocation rotation over to representatives of the Interfaith Mission Service in 2012, after the Freedom From Religion Foundation had written a letter noting the possible legal violations of including only Christian invocations.

For the Rev. Jana Williams, minister of family spiritualty for Weatherly Heights Baptist Church in Huntsville, the inclusion makes a lot of sense.

"As a Baptist minister –Baptists value the separation of church and state – praying at an official governmental meeting is not truly Baptist," Williams said this week, after delivering the invocation for the Madison County Commission meeting Wednesday. "But when I was asked, I'm happy to pray a blessing over the commission and to add maybe a little reminder to take care of the disadvantaged and not just to cater to the powerful. But I don't think prayers should ever be a weapon or be used to coerce or condemn others in any way. That's why I added a statement for atheists before the prayer."

"My hope is that we can all work together to make Huntsville a more inclusive community, where no one is left behind."

Invocation

Update at 10:15 p.m.: Kelly McCauley shared the text of the invocation with AL.com. Here it is, in its entirety:

Dearly Beloved,

When the ancients considered the values that were proper and necessary for the good governance of a peaceful, productive society, they brought to our minds the virtues of Wisdom, Courage, Justice, and Moderation. These values have stood the test of time.

In more recent days, an American style of governance has led to approbation for newer enlightened values; we celebrate diversity, we enjoy protections of our freedoms in a Constitutional Republic, and we dearly value egalitarianism - equal protection of the law.

So now let us commence the affairs that are presented to our community. Let Doubt and Skepticism and Inquiry be on our lookout when caution is the appropriate course. But also let innovation and boldness take point when opportunities for excellence appear on our horizon.

In this solemn discourse, let's remember Jefferson's words: "...that Truth is great, and will prevail if left to herself, that she is the proper and sufficient antagonist to error, and has nothing to fear from the conflict, unless by human interposition disarmed of her natural weapons free argument and debate, errors ceasing to be dangerous when it is permitted freely to contradict them."

Let it be so.