All these words, however, are not enough to describe the man who grew up in a public housing project in Cherry Hill, Maryland, to become who he is today. He has been known by many names: rear admiral, doctor, and pastor. But underneath all the titles and accolades, he's still Barry-first and foremost, a servant of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Barry Black has become the first African-American, the first Seventh-day Adventist, and the first military chaplain to hold the office of chaplain to the United States Senate-an accomplishment that makes all Adventists feel proud. Black was best known in the United States as historically becoming the first African-American and first Seventh-day Adventist chief of naval chaplains in August 2000. The thought of becoming Senate chaplain was something he had contemplated for a while.
"I didn't think of it until recently-maybe about a year ago. The idea entered my head as I started thinking about what I should do in retirement," he says. As always, the Lord works in mysterious ways. As he was preparing to leave the military chaplaincy, Black said he was experiencing "withdrawal pains" at the thought of no longer being able to provide ministry in a setting of religious diversity. He had been praying at the Senate for a couple of years as a guest chaplain. "My time there sort of created an interest in my heart for that kind of ministry." He quotes Psalm 37: "Delight thyself also in the Lord; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart." Being chosen as Senate chaplain was an ideal transition, he says, and because he knew that from the beginning it made him desire to compete for the opportunity.
Black's first personal goal in the Senate chaplaincy is to come up with a strategic plan. He intends to accomplish that by doing a lot of listening. This way, he says, he will be able to learn what the needs of the people are. From there he'll decide what direction to take. Looking back on his past accomplishments, one can see that all along God was formulating His own strategic plan for Black's life, and it has prepared him for this newest position. In fact, Black draws many parallels from his Navy chaplaincy to the role of Senate chaplain.
"First, the military is a pluralistic setting of religious diversity, and so is the Senate. Second, in my responsibility as chief of chaplains I have an advisory function to some very powerful people. It will be the same in the Senate. Third, the military is frequently faced with tremendous challenges that relate to national security and international stability, and that will also take place in the Senate."
As chief of chaplains, Admiral Black was in charge of advising the secretary of the Navy, chief of Naval Operations, commandant of the Marine Corps, and commandant of the Coast Guard on religion, ethics, and moral issues. He also directed the ministry for chaplains of different faiths. "At the current time, both active and reserve, we have about 1,500," Black says.
Most of the chaplains come from Christian traditions, divided into Roman Catholic, Protestant, and another category called "special worship," which includes both Christian and non-Christian religious groups. Falling under the "special worship" category are imams, rabbis, and bishops of the Latter-day Saints. Also included in "special worship" are Seventh-day Adventists.
Will serving as a high-profile spiritual leader for the Senate alter the way Black, as an Adventist, ministers? "I don't think it's going to change me at all," he casually answers. Working in government in a segment that is nonpolitical, nonpartisan, and nonsectarian may seem for some to be an intimidating task. Of course, it also has its advantages. "It's in many ways a relief not to have to enter into so many of the weighty debates that are going on around you, but to be able to concentrate on just nurturing the spiritual and moral sides of senators and their significant others." Black says he keeps his focus by realizing what the mission of his responsibility entails. All legislative sessions in the Senate are opened with prayer. In addition, the Senate chaplain provides ongoing pastoral counseling to senators and their families and staff. They perform a variety of ceremonies, from officiating at weddings to conducting memorial services.
Black may be best known for officiating at John Kennedy, Jr.'s burial at sea in 1999. While Black served as Navy chaplain, he had the privilege of delivering scripture and prayers at the Pentagon for the September 11 memorial services in 2001 and 2002. He decided that rather than read the scriptures he would put together a medley of scriptures that talked about the resurrection and that spoke about hope in the afterlife. In the second memorial service he gave the prayer. One of the themes of his prayer was the "Let's roll" statement made by Todd Beamer. Black says he received very positive feedback on both prayers.
He also delivered the keynote sermon for the rededication of the Camp David Chapel in Maryland to a congregation including President George W. Bush and his father, George H. W. Bush, in 2001. In 2002, he, along with a number of other prominent American preachers, was selected to participate in the International Conference of Preaching in Edinburgh, Scotland.
"There were also preachers from other countries-Australia, Scotland, and Great Britain. And that was very, very exciting." He says that they don't call it a preaching competition, but that's what it feels like. However, he says, "One of the nice things that happens is that you actually forget that it's a preachers' conference, and you begin to concentrate on the worship experience."
Black brings to the office of the Senate chaplain a passion for learning, and he stands on his educational training as the foundation of his career. He has three master's degrees-divinity, counseling, and management-and two doctorates-theology and psychology.
"I was always interested in studying in areas that I thought I could be stronger in. I'm very fortunate in that school has always been fairly easy for me. So I was able to really do most of my academic training in my spare time." His bachelor's degree in theology from Oakwood College was the catalyst. While serving as pastor at several churches in North Carolina, he met five sailors who drove five hours to hear him preach. He asked them why they didn't attend services at the base chapel. "We've never seen an African-American chaplain," they said. That prompted him to join military chaplaincy. Black currently preaches somewhere at least three times a month. He says he's probably most satisfied when he's preaching and when he can see how God blesses him to have people respond.
At the time of this writing, he had recently conducted revival meetings in Washington, D.C. "A significant number of people accepted the Christian faith-probably about 50. That was a tremendous experience for me, and I've seen it happen time and time again.
I was once coordinator of religious outreach to the Haitian and Cuban migrants during the Guantánamo Bay migrant crisis. Many of the migrants were baptized by Navy chaplains, and I participated in those baptisms."
As Senate chaplain, Black will have a schedule equally as demanding. He juggles his daily activities by prioritizing.
"You spend the first part of your day in a devotional period. You read your Bible, you pray, you reflect, you meditate, and you plan your day in the presence of God. And if you do that, you then are able to go through the day with a focus, and I think that with divine help you end up accomplishing far more than you would do if you jumped into your day without that quiet time."
His most memorable event thus far was officiating at the reinterment ceremony of the remains of Matthew Henson, an African-American and codiscoverer of the North Pole, at Arlington National Cemetery in 2000. "That was quite an experience, meeting his relatives, and participating in a substantive way in that reinterment ceremony."
Moving from the main floor in the Navy Annex to an office in the Senate overlooking the Washington Monument has been quite a journey. He likens it to having his "coast enlarged" (referring to the prayer of Jabez in 1 Chronicles 4:10). Unquestionably his sphere of influence will expand "by appearing on C-SPAN on a regular basis to offering the invocation at the opening of the Senate sessions." But he humbly recognizes that "this too shall pass." His new home is in the civilian sector in the Washington Navy Yard.
The term is open, and doesn't require reelection of any sort. "As long you are making an impact in terms of ministry, and you're happy to be there, you stay there. There was one Senate chaplain who served for 25 years," says Black. "I'd be 110 if I were to stay there that long!" he jokingly adds.
Black is "addicted to a little game called chess," loves reading, and "plays at golf." He also loves running. He says he started running while in seminary to save on gas. He would run five miles from where he stayed to the seminary, shower, go to class, and then run five miles back home. "I was running 10 miles a day. It became an addiction, and I continued it, and I still love to do it."
His favorite Bible character happens to be Daniel, who, like himself, served God and nation. "I like Daniel because there is never a hint that he deviated from the path of integrity. I like him because he was a government worker, and he functioned more than 70 years as a government worker. I like him because as a young man, he resolved to serve God, and God honored that. So I think he's a magnificent role model of someone who starts early in serving God and serving a nation, and continues for a very long time."
The journey is not over for Black. On the contrary, it's only just begun. Out of his 54 years, more than half of it has gone toward serving the Lord. And that's how he wants to be remembered. After all is said and done, the cornerstone of his success has been the pursuit of his goal of pleasing God and not man.
"My identity is not rooted in what my job title may be, because a job can change. My identity is rooted in who I am in Christ. And I see myself as the apostle Paul puts it in 1 Corinthians 4:1, as a servant of Christ and a steward of His mysteries. So I think that whether I'm in the Senate, the Navy Chaplaincy, or in a congregational setting, it really doesn't matter. I believe that He requires, as Paul says, that servants and stewards be found faithful."
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Lahai Allen is a senior journalism major at Columbia Union College and worked at the Adventist Review office as a summer intern.
IPLOMATIC. ARTICULATE. DRIVEN. These are the first words that come to mind during a conversation with Barry C. Black.
"I really enjoy ministry in a setting of religious diversity. I don't get excited when everybody is the same-comes from the same religious tradition." In the Senate, Black has the chance to serve people from a wide variety of religious backgrounds. "It's an extremely wonderful opportunity and it is historymaking, so I feel a great deal of gratitude to God." As far as adjusting into his role, Black says, "I think I'll go with the flow."
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