Chaplains of The United States Senate - Duties

Duties

The Chaplain of the United States Senate is chosen to "perform ceremonial, symbolic, and pastoral duties." These responsibilities include opening Senate sessions with a prayer or coordinating the delivery of the prayer by guest chaplains recommended by members of the Senate. The Chaplain's prayer is referred to as "one of the Senate's most enduring traditions" in the official Senate pamphlet "Traditions of the U.S. Senate."

The Senate Chaplain is also responsible for "hosting" Guest Chaplains on the day they deliver prayers. According to the U.S. Senate website, these guest chaplains have represented "all the world's major religious faiths," and their participation is a sign that the Senate is sensitive to the "increasing religious diversity of the nation."

According to Robert C. Byrd in his book "The Senate:1789-1989", has written that "The Duties that chaplains perform...are not all written down, but they are numerous and have evolved over the centuries." His description continues:

"The Chaplain visits senators when they go to the hospital, represents the Senate in appearances before church groups across the nation, and is host to visiting religious figures who come to the Capitol. On occasion, chaplains of the Senate have led groups of saffron-robed Tibetan monks on tours of the building."

The Chaplain also provides pastoral care for the Senators, their staffs, and their families, and provides or oversees religious programs such as Bible study, reflection groups, and the weekly Senate Prayer Breakfast. The Chaplain also often presides over religious ceremonies such as funerals and memorial services for current or past members and participates, offering delivering the invocation or benediction, at many official U.S. ceremonies, including White House events. For example, Chaplain Barry Black delivered the keynote address at an "inaugural prayer breakfast" and the benediction at an "inaugural luncheon" for President Barack Obama. In a January 2011 post on "On Watch in Washington," the Chaplain of the Senate as well as the Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives were included as part of "Obama's Spiritual Cabinet."

Along with the House Chaplain, the Senate Chaplain is responsible for overseeing the Capitol Prayer Room, located near the Capitol Rotunda. Dedicated in 1955, there are no worship services held in the room, nor is it normally open to the public. Instead, as described by Sam Rayburn during the room's dedication, it is a place for members "who want to be alone with their God."

The Senate Chaplain has a staff that includes a Chief-of-Staff, Director of Communications, and Executive Assistant, and works with a volunteer liaison in each Senate office. While the annual salary for the first Senate Chaplains was $500, the salary is now set as a Level IV position in the Executive Schedule, which is $155,500.00 in 2011. The total annual budget for the office, including salaries and expenses, is $415,000 as of 2011.

Guest Chaplains have been selected to deliver occasional prayers to open Senate sessions "for many decades." In 1948 Wilmina Rowland Smith became the first female Guest Chaplain to deliver the opening prayer, in 1992 Warith Deen Mohammed was the first Muslim, and in 2007 Rajan Zed was the first Hindu. Senators are limited regarding the number of recommendations they can make regarding Guest Chaplains (in the House of Representatives, members are limited to one recommendation per Congress), and although there was originally no limit to the number of times per month a Guest Chaplain could deliver the prayer in the place of the Senate Chaplain, that number is now limited to two.