The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution last Tuesday (Oct. 22) honoring the importance of faith communities in the county. But it was a far cry from the intent of the measure’s initial sponsor.
Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity, the board’s lone Republican, attempted to convince his Democratic colleagues for the second board meeting in a row to declare Nov. 21 as Church Heritage Recognition Day in the county.
The measure, Herrity said, would celebrate the cultural, social and moral roles of Christian churches and their efforts to bring “peace, justice and reconciliation” to the broader world.
But as was the case when Herrity first proposed the resolution on Oct. 8, most other supervisors were silent, dubious or outright hostile. Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay said the wording of the resolution moved in “the opposite direction … this board and county should be going.”
Providence District Supervisor Dalia Palchik, who is Jewish, worried that Herrity’s measure would “cross the line” by singling out one religion without acknowledging that the importance and community work of other faiths.
“I don’t think that’s the role of government,” she said.
Braddock District Supervisor James Walkinshaw offered a substitute that more broadly recognized the county’s religious diversity and the role faith organizations and their adherents play in Fairfax County, inviting religious leaders and faith-based nonprofits to be honored by the board at a to-be-determined date.
Herrity said he would support Walkinshaw’s version, but wanted it approved in tandem with his original resolution. That also was the view of Mount Vernon District Supervisor Dan Storck.
“I support both of them,” Storck said. “I don’t see a reason not to support both of them.”
Herrity and Storck found no takers for that idea. In the end, Herrity’s measure died and the substitute motion by Walkinshaw passed 9-0, with Storck abstaining.
At the board’s Sept. 24 meeting, a number of speakers used the public comment period to request a Church Heritage Recognition Day proclamation. The proposal was pushed by the Family Foundation of Virginia in response to the Board of Supervisors recognizing March 31 as Transgender Day of Visibility — which happened to coincide with Easter this year.
Herrity’s draft version of Oct. 8 was similar, but not identical, to what had been proposed by advocates. He subsequently revised it some more.
Among other changes, Herrity’s resolution noted the county’s “commitment to religious diversity” and dropped a mention of a lawsuit settlement in Loudoun County that allowed religious organizations to employ “only individuals who profess and live” according to their beliefs, including on “abortion, marriage, sexuality, sex and gender.”
After this week’s vote, Herrity said he would develop a Springfield District resolution in support of Church Heritage Recognition Day. McKay cautioned him against wording it in a way that suggested full Board of Supervisors buy-in.
