Church in the U.S. Capitol

/www.wallbuilders.com ^ | 11/10/2005 | David Barton

[Mier]

From 1800 to 1801, the services were held in the north wing; from 1801 to 1804, they were held in the "oven" in the south wing, and then from 1804 to 1807, they were again held in the north wing. From 1807 to 1857, services were held in what is now Statuary Hall. By 1857 when the House moved into its new home in the extension, some 2,000 persons a week were attending services in the Hall of the House. 23 Significantly, even though the U. S. Congress began meeting in the extension on Wednesday, December 16, 1857, the first official use of the House Chamber had occurred three days earlier, when "on December 13, 1857, the Rev. Dr. George Cummins preached before a crowd of 2,000 worshipers in the first public use of the chamber. Soon thereafter, the committee recommended that the House convene in the new Hall on Wednesday, December 16, 1857." 24 However, regardless of the part of the building in which the church met, the rostrum of the Speaker of the House was used as the preacher's pulpit; and Congress purchased the hymnals used in the service.

[Mier]

Church in the U.S. Capital,can you imagine what the liberals of today would say about this? In my opinion it's past time that our federal and state government went back to this. I'm sure a lot more would be accomplished during Sunday sermons than would be the rest of the week!

[unkus]

Thank you.

[Ciexyz]

Sacre bleu!

[RobbyS]

The historian Ray Billington, in his Protestant Crusade, pointed out that at the time of the Civil War, denominational Protestantism was informally the established faith of the United States.

[smokingfrog]

bookmark

[AmericanInTokyo]

Few people realize this this window, inside a small, dark, quiet prayer room, is literally 10 seconds walk away from the great Rotunda of our Capitol.

[huldah1776]

The First Prayer of the Congressional Congress 1774, found here.

http://chaplain.house.gov/archive/continental.html