Baptist Press
Evangelist Franklin Graham read from 1 Timothy 1 and 2 at President Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration.
-Screen capture from Fox News
WASHINGTON — The participation of at least five Southern Baptist pastors in inaugural activities for President Donald Trump continues a tradition of prayer, Scripture and references to God surrounding presidential inaugurations dating back to George Washington.
Evangelist Franklin Graham read from I Timothy 1 and 2 at President Donald Trump’s Jan. 20 inauguration.
Dallas pastor Robert Jeffress preached Jan. 20 at a private worship service for the families of Trump and Vice President Mike Pence at St. John’s Church near the White House. The service is a pre-inauguration tradition dating back to the 1933 inauguration of Franklin Roosevelt, according to the U.S. Capitol Historical Society.
A Jan. 21 National Prayer Service at the National Cathedral in Washington featured Arkansas pastor Ronnie Floyd, Texas pastors Jack Graham and Ramiro Peña and California pastor David Jeremiah.
The National Prayer Service tradition also dates to at least 1933, according to a press release from the Presidential Inaugural Committee.
