St. George • Encouraged by the progress residents are making in saving water and being better earthly stewards, Washington County leaders are now imploring them to seek heavenly help to ease the severe drought gripping the area.
In their Jan. 17 plea for prayer on the county’s Facebook page, Washington County commissioners lauded residents for replacing over 2 million square feet of grass with more water-efficient landscaping and helping the county emerge as a leader in Utah water conservation.
They further cited God’s role in helping early St. George-area pioneers weather the arid climate and prosper despite scarce water resources, and urged today’s residents to follow their lead by fasting and praying for divine intervention to bring down the blessings of heaven – namely, rain.
“Today, we find ourselves in a similar moment of need,” the commissioners’ post reads. “As we face an extended period of drought, we are reminded of our dependence on the Lord’s provision and the power of unified prayer and fasting. Following the example of those who came before us, we, the Washington County commissioners, humbly invite all citizens and members of our faith-based community to join together in prayer and fasting for rain.”
Separation of church and state
The commissioners’ prayer plea garnered a swift rebuke from Americans United for Separation of Church and State.
“Americans United supports people who choose to pray, fast or otherwise call on their faith for support during difficult times,” said Alex Luchenitser, the organization’s associate vice president and associate legal director. “However, public officials should remember that they represent people with diverse religious and nonreligious beliefs. It is not the place of government officials to tell people if, when or how to pray.”
“Public officials using a government-operated platform,” Luchenitser added, “including a county government’s official social media account, to disseminate religious directives violates the religious freedom of residents and the Constitution’s promise of church-state separation.”
In December 2023, Americans United threatened to sue Washington City after a City Council member posted a religious Christmas message on the municipal website and in the newsletter, the latter of which was mailed to residents with their monthly utility bill. The Washington-based nonprofit called the religious missive a clear violation of the separation of church and state along with the U.S. and Utah constitutions.
Washington City avoided potential legal repercussions after it complied with Americans United’s demands to take down the offending message and to review future messages before posting them to ensure there are no legal issues.
Clifford Rosky, a constitutional law professor at the University of Utah, said the commissioners’ prayer plea is not as problematic as Washington City’s Christmas message and would likely not be viewed by the U.S. Supreme Court as a violation of the establishment clause of the First Amendment, which states “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.”
For starters, unlike Washington City’s message that enjoined residents to seek and follow Jesus Christ, the commissioners’ post simply invited all citizens and members of “our faith-based community” to fast and pray if they felt so inclined and did not involve any preaching or coercion.
“It’s actually quite common for governmental bodies to invite people to pray,” Rosky said. “It happens at the beginning of every Supreme Court session … It happens at the beginning of state legislative sessions, and the Supreme Court has said none of that violates the establishment clause.”
Asking people to fast and pray, the professor added, would probably not be deemed unconstitutional by the nation’s highest court because “it’s an invitation, not a command.”
Faith vs. works
Washington County Commissioner Adam Snow acknowledged getting some pushback from residents who said government officials should stay in their lane rather than stray into the prayer business and do more to rein in development but added most of the feedback has been positive.
“While we are asking citizens to be good stewards and conserve water as best they can,” the commissioner continued, “we put out the plea for prayer because we still need help at this point from heaven, our citizens and everybody in between.”
For his part, Jon Graf, leaves little doubt where he stands on the prayer issue.
“Regardless of religious background,” the St. George resident said, “the act of praying for rain is a powerful expression of hope and solidarity. It serves as a reminder that, in times of crisis, turning to faith and invoking divine aid can help bring people together, offering not only spiritual support but also a sense of community in the face of adversity.”
Conversely, Karen Conley prefers action to prayer.
“With all due respect,” the Ivins resident said. “I find asking for prayer offensive. If people believe their prayers will help, they will do it on their own and don’t need to be reminded to do so. Every time there is a tragedy, elected officials send out ‘thoughts and prayers,’ and by that time it is too late. Why not act or do something before there is a tragedy? We need action, not prayers.”
There is little disagreement, however, about the dire need for rain. National Weather Service meteorologist Hayden Mahan, meteorologist for the National Weather Service’s Salt Lake Office, said all of Washington County is now mired in severe drought, compared to only the lower half about a week ago. Elsewhere in Utah, most areas are only abnormally dry rather than suffering drought.
Moreover, the snow-water equivalent in the southwestern Utah mountains is a paltry 25% of normal. Since Oct. 1, the start of the water year, Mahan added, Washington County has received only 0.34 inch of rain, making the current water year the third-driest on record to this point. The only worse start to water years took place in 1916 and 1918.
Thanks to wet winters over the previous two years, Snow said, the Washington County Water Conservancy District’s reservoirs are in fairly good shape and the county will have enough water on tap to make it through next summer.
“But if next winter is like this one,” the commissioner added, “I don’t know how we can weather it.”
