Praying in Public discount creates a cultural backlash! This is the expression of today's cultural freedom...

Mary Haglund, owner of Mary’s Gourmet Diner in North Carolina, does something unique and much unexpected for people she catches praying in public at her restaurant: she gives them a 15% discount.

Mary at Mary’s:

As the daughter of a preacher and missionary, Haglund witnessed true need by living in the Philippines during her teenage years. She is very aware of how fortunate we are to be in this country and is touched by others when they acknowledge thankfulness for what they have.

Haglund told The Blaze:  “For me, every plate of food is a gift. And I never take that for granted and when I see someone in a restaurant honoring their gratefulness at my table … it touches my heart.”

Haglund notes that staff is not required to do it, but can whenever they feel compelled to do so. Jordan Smith, a recent recipient of Haglund’s ‘praying in public’ discount, posted her receipt on Facebook on July 30:

Mary’s Gourmet Diner is located at 723 Trade St NW, Winston-Salem, NC 27101   

Phone :( 336) 723-7239  

The Diner is open 8:00am until 3:00pm most days. 



Since my advanced posting of this great story - our culture has attacked this effort to express gratitude for expressing thanks to God. Here is the result:

News of the discount went viral when Z88.3, a Christian radio station in Orlando, Florida, posted a photo of a Mary’s receipt on Facebook on July 30.

“A friend of ours just shared her receipt from lunch where she got a discount for praying in public!!! How cool is that?” radio station staff wrote underneath a photo of the receipt, which clearly showed a line reading “-15% Praying in Public.”

The photo, which got 5,330 shares at last count, drew comments ranging from the overwhelmingly positive to the downright offensive.

“Paying people to pray. What next dragging people at gun point into churches?” read one critical comment posting under the name Deborah Rubano.

The reaction to the discount prompted the restaurant to post a message on its Facebook page on Aug. 1.

“There’s a lot of craziness going on in regard to the 15% discount. ... I will say that it is not a ‘policy’, it’s a gift we give at random to customers who take a moment before their meal,” the message read. “Who you talk to or meditate on etc. is your business.”

The discontinued discount at Mary’s appeared to be prompted by a letter from the Madison, Wisconsin-based Freedom from Religion Foundation, which sent a letter to the restaurant earlier this week that urged them to stop.

“Offering this discount violates the federal Civil Rights Act,” read the letter, signed by the foundation’s staff attorney, Elizabeth Cavell. “Your restaurant’s restrictive promotional practice favors religious customers, and denies customers who do not pray.”

In a press release dated Aug. 7, the foundation noted that “Co-owner Mary Haglund emailed Cavell yesterday (Aug. 6): ‘I am notifying you & the FFRF that as of today we are no longer offering the 15% discount for Praying in Public.’ ” A Hand written notice was placed on the door which reads: 

We at Mary’s value the support of ALL our fellow Americans. While you may exercise your right of religious freedom at this restaurant by praying over your meal to any entity or non-entity, we must protect your freedom from religion in a public place. We are no longer issuing the 15% praying in public discount. It is illegal and we are being threatened by lawsuit. We apologize to our community for ANY offense this discount has incurred.

Haglund told one media outlet earlier this week that her intent had always been positive and that she never meant to offend anyone.