Church Services in the Capitol
After Charlie Kirk’s memorial service, those who use fear-mongering against patriotic Christians, calling us “Christian nationalists,” predictably amped up their rhetoric. The tired arguments and ludicrous accusations that we want to force Christianity and biblical ideals on everyone ratcheted up again. You know you are losing the battle when all you have left are lies and slander.
Sadly, even many pastors have bought into the lie that churches should avoid all cultural issues. Many of them refused to comment on Kirk’s assassination, not even willing to offer a prayer for his family. “Don’t mention societal issues, government, education, etc., at church. Don’t mix religion and politics,” they say.
However, isn’t it interesting that by mixing faith, politics, education (campuses were his mission field), and the societal issues of our day, Charlie Kirk was used by God more than any Christian leader of our time. It wouldn’t surprise me if, when all is said and done, his influence will have led more people to Christ than any pastor in America. Maybe more than any denomination. So much for the “leave politics and culture alone; just win people to Christ” theology.
The fact is that most people attending church on a regular basis want their pastors to teach them what the Bible says about societal and cultural issues. A few years ago, George Barna conducted a poll entitled, “What Would People Like to Hear About in Church Sermons?” The poll revealed the broad interest Christians have in topics regarding governance and related social issues. When asked about interest in these topics, a clear majority of Christians expressed a desire to learn more:
Abortion - 91% (beginning of life, right to life, contraception, adoption, unwed mothers)
Religious persecution/liberty - 86% (personal duty vs. government duty, church response, global conditions)
Poverty - 85% (personal duty vs. government role, church response, homelessness, hunger, dependency)
Cultural restoration - 83% (appropriate morals, law and order, defensible values and norms, self-government)
Sexual identity - 82% (same-sex marriage, transgenderism, marriage, LGBT)
Israel - 80% (role in the world, Christian responsibility to Israel, US foreign policy toward Israel and her enemies)
Christian Heritage - 79% (role of Christian faith in American history, the church's role in U.S. development, modern-day relevance)
Role of Government - 76% (biblical view, church-state relationship, personal responsibility, limitations)
Bioethics - 76% (cloning, euthanasia, genetic engineering, cryogenics, organ donation, surrogacy)
Self-governance - 75% (biblical support, personal conduct, impact on freedom, national sovereignty)
Church in politics/government - 73% (separation of church and state, legal boundaries, church resistance to government)
Islam - 72% (core beliefs, response to Islamic aggression, a threat to U.S. peace and domestic tranquility.)
According to Mark Burrell in his book Rediscovering the American Covenant, people were asking for biblical guidance on these issues, which are certainly some of the most relevant and important of our time. The survey also asked pastors if they had plans to discuss these topics from the pulpit. The results? Only 14% answered “Yes.”(1)
The truth is that the supposed “wall of separation” between church and the government isn’t in the Constitution; it was a phrase used by Thomas Jefferson in a letter. The First Amendment of the Constitution states in part that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof…”
In his letter, Jefferson assured denominational leaders that our government would never be controlled by one religious group (as had been the case in England), nor would the government have the right to control the church (as also occurred in Britain). NEVER was it implied by our founders that God or religion should have no influence in government, education, or public life. Nor is it true that government funds or public facilities were to be prevented from use by the church. These are all lies designed to remove the influence of God from our nation. If someone had told our Founding Fathers to leave God out of the process of forming and running our government, they would’ve thought that person was insane.
It would shock some Americans to know that Thomas Jefferson, who wrote the letter with the now-famous phrase “wall of separation,” attended a church service in the Capitol building two days later.(2) (Share that with a liberal friend, but only if they have a strong heart.)
Actually, numerous presidents and members of Congress attended church services in the Capitol – for decades! – including John Quincy Adams, James Madison, Abraham Lincoln, and others. Adams explained why he attended: “I consider it as one of my public duties – as a representative of the people – to give my attendance every Sunday morning when Divine service is performed in the Hall.”(3) The Rostrum of the House Speaker was used as the pulpit, and Congress purchased the hymnals! I realize you probably weren’t taught this in our public school system, many of which indoctrinate, propagandize, and revise history. But, as Adams said, “Facts are stubborn things.”
And it gets worse for the “separation” crowd. The Capitol was actually used for church services before ever being used by Congress! Approved December 4, 1800, by both the House and Senate,(4) services began before the entire Capitol was completed, and Congress itself could move in. Jefferson (the wall of separation guy), Vice President at the time and therefore leader of the Senate, approved it on behalf of the Senate. He attended the services for years, throughout his time as Vice President and President,(5) had a designated seat,(6) and was so committed to it that he even made the journey in inclement weather.(7)
Services first began to be held in the north wing of the Capitol, moved to Statuary Hall as they grew in number, and eventually landed in the House Chamber. It was, in fact, the first official use of the Chamber on December 13, 1857, with as many as 2000 people in attendance!(8) Services were interdenominational, speakers were local pastors or the House and Senate Chaplains,(9) and included women(10) and blacks.(11) Some churches were actually allowed to use it as their meeting place until they procured other buildings.(12) And when needed, the Supreme Court Chamber, then in the Capitol building, was also used!(12,14) How ironic is that!
Don’t allow the lies of politicians, educators, or anyone else to deceive you. Our Founders were God-honoring and God-fearing men and women and were guided by Judeo-Christian ethics. And they welcomed God into governmental affairs.
Pray with me:
Father, just as Nehemiah told Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem, those trying to stop him from rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, that they had “no historical right” or “claim” to Jerusalem (Nehemiah 2:20; NIV and Expanded Bible), we echo those words today. Those who want to transform America into a non-Christian nation have no covenantal, historical right to America. You, who own all the earth, raised up America for YOUR purposes. We stand in Your authority and decree that this purpose will not be stolen.
And though we have previously lost ground in this spiritual war, You have told us America shall be saved. Your mercies endure forever, and we ask now for this never-ending mercy to be extended. In the all-powerful name of Jesus, we bind the forces of darkness trying to disconnect America from her Christian roots. We declare that the systems and groups these forces are using will be completely unsuccessful, and many from within them will come to Christ.
We declare with our Founders that America has “no King but Jesus,” and will serve no other gods. We declare that our roots are still alive and will once again bring forth the fruits Holy Spirit intends America to produce. We will experience a turnaround comparable to the great restorations of Israel. We declare that we will be a light and blessing to all the nations of the earth.
Father, we thank You in advance for the great revival that is beginning. Millions of people will come to know You in this nation, and hundreds of millions around the world. We thank You for the incredible revival coming to the campuses of America and the world. Thank You for saving a generation from the strongholds of humanism, rebellion, drugs, immorality, gender confusion, and more. May they taste and see just how good You are. May they fall in love with Your Word and become acquainted with Your ways.
We ask You to continue to transform the church. Mature us into the glorious church You spoke of in scripture. Build the Ekklesia You promised to build that cannot be overcome by the plans and government of hell. We ask and decree all of this in the all-powerful name of Jesus. Amen.
Our decree:
We decree that the voice of the church will no longer be silent. We will speak the Lord’s Word into all of society.
Click on the link below to watch the full video.
Adapted from Rediscovering the American Covenant, Mike Burrell (Washington, D.C.: Ballast Books, LLC, 2022), pp. 28-29.
William Parker Cutler and Julia Perkins Cutler, Life, Journal, and Correspondence of Rev. Manasseh Cutler (Cincinnati: Colin Robert Clarke & Co., 1888), Vol. II, p. 66, letter to Joseph Torrey, January 4, 1802. Cutler meant that Jefferson attended church on January 3, 1802, for the first time as President. Bishop Claggett’s letter of February 18, 1801, already revealed that as Vice-President, Jefferson went to church services in the House.
John Quincy Adams, Memoirs, Vol. XI, p. 169, June 5, 1842.
Debates and Proceedings in the Congress of the United States (Washington: Gales and Seaton, 1853), p. 797, Sixth Congress, December 4, 1800.
Smith, The First Forty Years, p. 13.
Smith, The First Forty Years, p. 13.
Cutler and Cutler, Life, Journal, and Correspondence, Vol. II, p. 119, in a letter to Dr. Joseph Torrey on January 3, 1803; see also his entry of December 26, 1802 (Vol. II, p. 114).
William C. Allen (Architectural Historian of the Capitol), A History of the United States Capitol, A Chronicle of Design, Construction, and Politics (Washington, D. C.: Government Printing Office, 2001), p. 271.
Smith, The First Forty Years, p. 15.
Smith, The First Forty Years, p. 15.
Henry Highland Garnet, Memorial Discourse (Philadelphia: Joseph M. Wilson, 1865), p. 73.
Fundraising brochure, Charles B. Boynton. Washington, D.C.: November 1, 1867, Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress; available at Library of Congress at https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/rel06-2.html.
Hutson, Religion and the Founding of the American Republic, p. 90.
From the Library of Congress, at https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/rel06-2.html.