It's not the parting of the Red Sea, but the opening prayer will continue at Coeur d’Alene City Council meetings. 

Councilors on Tuesday voted 4-1 to allow faith-based nonprofits beyond city limits in Kootenai County to offer the invocation at the twice-monthly gatherings.  

“Post Falls isn’t such a wicked city they shouldn’t be able to come and pray,” said Councilor Dan English. 

The move was necessary because not enough pastors and others had signed on to give the invocation. A few years ago, the city adopted a lottery system that allowed any nonprofit or faith-based organization within the city to provide the invocation, with a single exception: the Coeur d’Alene Tribe. 

But over the past year, the city received only 12 qualified registrants, necessitating that the lottery be run twice, with some applicants providing two invocations. 

Councilor Christie Wood said her thoughts on the matter were “a little bit different, and they’re not wicked.” 

She said it may be more challenging to fill the prayer slots because fewer government agencies have them. Wood served on the Coeur d’Alene School District and North Idaho College boards, which did not offer invocations. 

“I think a lot of it is because it’s highly unusual,” she said. 

Wood said she was looking for a “happy medium,” perhaps including a moment of silence to honor all faiths. 

“I don’t want to vote against prayer,” she said. 

Mayor-elect Dan Gookin had requested the council discuss opening the invocation countywide. He said he was a guest of the local ministerial association earlier this year and was told Coeur d'Alene residents attend churches outside the city. But the pastors of those churches weren't eligible to give the city invocation.

He said opening it up to a larger area could help find enough folks willing to pray before city council meetings. 

Councilor Kiki Miller said she liked the tradition of an invocation, which she described as a “moment to center ourselves and get our heads around the business at hand and call upon whatever we need for strength and to get through some tough times.” 

But she said the issue had become a distraction.

“When we are spending this abundant amount of staff time to try to produce this invocation panel when really anyone on the council could say a prayer or we could have a moment of silence,” she said. 

Miller, the no vote, said she did not see a need to open the invocation outside city limits. 

“We can handle it,” she said. 

Mayor Woody McEvers said he thought the invocation was part of Coeur d’Alene's roots.

“It made me feel good. I never thought about the politics of it, who's saying it, who's doing it,” McEvers said. “I just thought it was nice when you see the guy in the collar and then you see the guy with the hat and all those different vibes.” 

McEvers said those who have offered prayers were coming to the same conclusion. 

"They were thinking good thoughts for us and for our people,” he said. 

The City Council agreed to revisit the issue in a year to see if the expanded lottery system attracted more people to give a “three-minute blessing.” 

“I would never support just plain getting rid of it,” English said. 

Gookin said it was ironic that on social media, the city council is referred to as liberal and extremist. 

“We are the only government entity in the county that has an invocation,” he said.