Chaplains of The United States Senate - Controversies

Controversies

In addition to court cases, controversy regarding the Chaplain's position included a number of petitions to abolish both the Senate and House Chaplains that were submitted as early as the 1850s, for reasons including claims that the positions represented a violation of the separation of church and state and that the choice of chaplains had become too politicized. From 1855-1861, the election of Chaplains for the House and from 1857-1859, the election of Chaplains for the Senate were suspended, with local clergy invited to serve on a voluntary basis, instead. However, as a result of "the difficulty in obtaining volunteer chaplains" and the opportunity for volunteer chaplains to get to know "their flock," Congress returned to the practice of selecting official Chaplains for both the House and the Senate.

There have also been occasions when actions or decisions of individuals serving in the position have created controversy. For example, in 2007 Senate Chaplain Barry C. Black canceled his scheduled appearance at the "Evangelical conference" "Reclaiming America for Christ." According to news reports, "Black reconsidered his appearance after "Americans United for Separation of Church and State" objected. Black announced he had reconsidered his participation because it would not be appropriate considering the Senate Chaplain's "historic tradition of being nonpolitical, nonpartisan, nonsectarian." Black said that he had received a "very generic invitation" to speak, and felt that the information about the event had been "incomplete."

In 1984, Dr. Paul Kurtz, "a professor of philosophy and advocate of secular humanism," sued the government in a case that reached the United States Supreme Court for the right to offer comments in place of the prayer that would normally be delivered by the Senate Chaplain or Guest Chaplain. The Court denied his suit on the grounds that no individual has the "right" to address Congress, and that the delivery of the prayer, coordinated by the Senate Chaplain, was governed by policies that dealt with "prayers" (not "remarks") which Kurtz did not seem prepared to offer.

In 2007, the prayer delivered by Rajan Zed, the first Hindu Guest Chaplain was briefly interrupted by protestors described by news reports as members of the Christian Right. Activists had organized supporters to lobby Congress to stop the delivery of the prayer and failing that action to interrupt the prayer itself. The protestors were removed by the Capitol Police, charged with disrupting Congress, and barred from the Capitol and its grounds for twelve months.