WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Supreme Court Wednesday rejected an emergency appeal from a California atheist who wanted to block recitation of prayers at President Bush's inaugural ceremonies.<br /><br />The ruling means prayer ceremonies will proceed as they have in past inaugurations.<br /><br />Michael Newdow, an attorney and physician, had asked for a last-minute injunction to stop the invocation and benediction at Thursday's event. Newdow argued such prayers violated the U.S. Constitution's separation of church and state provisions.<br /><br />The court without comment refused to intervene. Newdow also had asked Chief Justice William Rehnquist to recuse himself from the case because he would be involved in Thursday's swearing-in of Bush. Rehnquist has judicial jurisdiction over cases filed in Washington, DC.<br /><br />Rehnquist did participate and Wednesday's decision was in his name. Rehnquist previously has sworn in four presidents since becoming chief justice in 1986.<br /><br />Two lower courts had rejected Newdow's request to ban the prayer. In his ruling last week, U.S. District Judge John Bates also said the court did not have authority to stop the president from inviting clergy to give a religious prayer at the ceremony. (Last week's ruling)<br /><br />According to a report from The Associated Press, attorneys representing Bush had argued that prayers have been widely accepted at inaugurals for more than 200 years. Bush's decision to have a minister recite the invocation was a personal choice the court had no power to prevent, according to filings reported by the AP.<br /><br />Newdow gained widespread publicity two years ago after winning his pledge case before the San-Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco, which ruled that public schools violated the separation of church and state by having students mention God.<br /><br />The Supreme Court rejected that appeal because Newdow did not have custody of his daughter at the time he filed his lawsuit. <br /><br />Newdow refiled the pledge suit in Sacramento federal court this month, naming eight other parents and children, the AP reported.
