THIS IS THE BLOG OF COLIN JONES, RHYL TOWN COUNCILLOR: BODFOR WARDl
The opinions expressed in this blog are entirely my own and not the views of the town council.
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Town councillors are involved in many kinds of committee meetings, whereas meetings of full council take place only once a month and they are chaired by the Mayor. Full council meetings begin with a prayer from the Mayor’s Chaplain and this is a routine act of tradition which is not underpinned by any requirement of law.
The connection between a mayor of Rhyl and the Almighty would be hard to trace; the tradition is as dusty and quaint as some other civic procedures. Like the vast majority of my residents I do not have any religious beliefs but I’m perfectly happy to stand quietly during the prayer; it’s a harmless exercise.
The prayer reminds me of morning assembly at primary school. Thankfully, it is not followed by town councillors singing a chorus of ‘All Things Bright And Beautiful’ and then playing a game of running, jumping and standing still.
Out in the real world the demand for non-religious marriages and funerals continues to grow and the need to modernise public institutions becomes ever more apparent.
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