Most mornings, after the gavel is struck in the Senate chamber on Capitol Hill, a prayer is offered in that most secular body ”” a practice that goes back to the founding fathers at the Continental Congress in 1774.
Chaplain Barry C. Black delivers the prayer, offering up some of the first words heard each day in the chamber.
Black works from an office in the Capitol building, a well-appointed room with high, arched ceilings and wall-to-wall mahogany bookcases. Compared with the number of people working for senators, the chaplain’s staff is downright humble. He has an executive assistant, a director of communications and a chief of staff.
But from this third-floor perch in the Capitol building, Black enjoys one of the best views of the National Mall’s mosaic of cherry trees, museums and monuments.