James Shera Montgomery (17 October 1862 – 30 June 1952) was an American

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

minister who served as the 55th

Chaplain of the United States House of Representatives The chaplain of the United States House of Representatives is the officer of the United States House of Representatives responsible for beginning each day's proceedings with a prayer. The House cites the first half of Article 1, Section 2, Claus ...

, April 11, 1921 - January 3, 1950.

Life and works

Montgomery served as House Chaplain for 29 years. During that time he participated in many events, including the delivery of the invocation at the special joint session to honor the memory of President

Franklin Delano Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

on July 1, 1946. The House had introduced legislation for a joint session with the Senate (H. Con Res. 152) on May 23, 1946, with the Senate's concurrence filed on June 1, 1946. The historic session "included dignitaries from around the world as well as prominent figures in the U.S. government." The rostrum was covered in greens, and

Robert Merrill Robert Merrill (June 4, 1917 – October 23, 2004) was an American operatic baritone and actor, who was also active in the musical theatre circuit. He received the National Medal of Arts in 1993. Early life Merrill was born Moishe Miller, ...

of the

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera (commonly known as the Met) is an American opera company based in New York City, resident at the Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, currently situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The company is opera ...

performed two solos in Roosevelt's memory.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Montgomery, James Shera 1864 births 1952 deaths Chaplains of the United States House of Representatives American religious leaders American clergy