House Speaker Wants a New Chaplain for the Chamber
Jacob Adams /
House Speaker Mike Johnson is looking for a new chaplain for the House of Representatives.
Johnson, R-La., the leader of the House Republicans, initiated the personnel change last week when the incumbent chaplain, Margaret Grun Kibben, was made acting chaplain, rather than being included in the resolution for new officers of the House.
The move is set to test the strength of Johnson’s control over the members of the chamber. A failed attempt at replacing the House chaplain in 2018 suggests that even minor changes to personnel can confound House leadership.
The House chaplain’s most public-facing role is to open each business day in the House with a prayer. He or she also provide spiritual counsel for the members of the legislative body, their families, and their staff.
The current House chaplain was elected by the then-Democratic majority led by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., in January 2021. House chaplains are elected to serve two-year terms, and it’s not out of the ordinary for them to serve several consecutive terms. James Ford, a Lutheran minister, served for more than two decades as the House chaplain.
Kibben was ordained by the Presbyterian Church (USA), which is typically seen as one of the more theologically—and politically—liberal Protestant churches, although House chaplains do not officially represent a particular denomination or faith.
House Chaplain Margaret Grun Kibben pays her respects to 49-year Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, as he lies in state in the U.S. Capitol on March 29, 2022. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images)
Johnson has not publicized his reasons for seeking a new occupant for the position, but Kibben has not always appeared apolitical. She made headlines in 2021 when she criticized lawmakers for their disagreements over COVID-19 relief. A spokesman for Johnson told The Daily Signal that the speaker and Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., have agreed to a process for making the change to the chaplaincy.
Close observers of the House will remember when then-Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., attempted to replace the Rev. Patrick Conroy, a Jesuit priest, in 2018. Conroy had been serving as the chaplain since 2011 when he suddenly offered his resignation in April 2018 at Ryan’s request. According to sources at the time, Ryan gave the chaplain an ultimatum of either retiring or being fired. What the speaker did not count on was Pelosi, at the time House minority leader, rallying Democrats to oppose the forced resignation.
The then-chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, Rep. Joseph Crowley, D-N.Y., denounced Ryan for “compromis[ing] the integrity and dignity of the House,” and he demanded that Conroy’s dismissal be investigated. The Republican majority in the House managed to prevent the initiation of a formal inquiry but without the support of two Republicans. Conroy then wrote a letter to Ryan withdrawing his resignation before he was set to officially leave his post. Ryan then backed down and reinstated Conroy.
As such, removing the House chaplain is not a sure deal. But it is an opportunity for Republicans to come together to shape the House in their image before the even tougher legislative battles begin.