Obamas celebrate Easter in Episcopal church

ByABC News
April 12, 2009, 9:21 PM

WASHINGTON -- President Obama picked the self-described "Church of the Presidents," a history-drenched Episcopal church across from the White House, for his first venture to services since he was inaugurated Jan. 20.

The Obamas' Easter visit to St. John's Church doesn't mean they have found a permanent place of worship in the capital.

"The first family has not made a decision yet on which church they will formally join in Washington," spokesman Joshua Dubois said Sunday.

The Obamas have not belonged to a church since about a year ago, when they left Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. The departure followed their break with Jeremiah Wright, longtime pastor of the black, socially active church. His controversial statements about AIDS, the 9/11 attacks and Obama himself had threatened to derail Obama's campaign.

St. John's has been part of the U.S. political establishment from its first service in 1816. Since then, the church's website says, "every person who has held the office of president of the United States has attended a regular or occasional service at St. John's."

Pew 54 is the President's Pew, reserved for chief executives. The 1,000-pound bell in the church steeple was cast in 1822 by Paul Revere's son, Joseph.

For Obama, "it's a very safe and traditional choice. It makes perfect sense on Easter Sunday for him to follow in the steps of his predecessors," said Mark Rozell, a George Mason University political scientist who studies presidents and religion.

Two days before Obama was sworn in, he attended a service at the Nineteenth St. Baptist Church, founded in 1839 as the first black church in Washington. Last week, Obama hosted a Passover Seder at the White House.

"This is exactly what a president should be doing: showcasing a broad, open, interdenominational approach. He is ultimately president of all the people," Rozell said.

Shortly before he left Trinity, Obama said his attendance there had become a spectacle, and "I certainly don't want to provide a distraction for those who are worshiping at Trinity."