WASHINGTON (BP)–U.S. Senate Chaplain Lloyd Ogilvie is leaving his position to be with his seriously ill wife.
Ogilvie’s retirement will be effective March 15 and will mark the close of eight years as the Senate’s 61st chaplain. His decision was made in response to a severe lung ailment afflicting his wife, Mary Jane, that resulted in her transfer to a Los Angeles respiratory hospital in October. She has been hospitalized for seven months. After her recovery, the Ogilvies plan to remain in Los Angeles.
Before accepting the chaplain’s post, Ogilvie, 72, served for more than 22 years as pastor of First Presbyterian Church in Hollywood, Calif.
In announcing his departure, Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D.-S.D., and Republican leader Trent Lott of Mississippi praised Ogilvie’s service. Daschle said in a written release Ogilvie has been “a real source of strength and comfort to countless members of the Senate family, from senators to staffers to elevator operators.” Ogilvie has been “the watchful shepherd: a man of God ministering to our Senate family,” Lott said in a written statement.
The Senate chaplain not only is responsible for the opening prayer each day in the chamber, but he provides spiritual care for the senators, their families and their staffs. Ogilvie leads separate weekly Bible studies for the senators, their spouses and their staffs.
All sessions of the Senate have been opened with prayer for more than 200 years. The first Senate elected its first chaplain in 1789.
Ogilvie has written more than 40 books, including Quiet Moments With God, a book of his prayers published while he served in the Senate.
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(BP) photo posted in the BP Photo Library at https://www.bpnews.net. Photo title: LLOYD OGILIVIE.
