This year happens to be the 250th anniversary of the beginning of the first Congress (then known as the Continental Congress). Its first session opened in prayer. And Congress has opened each session in prayer since then. But earlier this year, the prayer opening the 118th Congress caused quite a stir. Among other things, the […]

In 1629, the first American balloting for an election occurred in Salem, Massachusetts. The issue? Choosing a minister and choosing a Christian teacher for the colony. “Such is the origin of the use of the ballot on this continent; [Samuel] Skelton was chosen pastor and [Francis] Higginson teacher.”  So writes George Bancroft, an early American […]