Posted on Sat, Jan. 06, 2007

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Senate panel picks new chaplain

The Rev. James St. John will replace George Meetze, who died in November

By JOHN O’CONNOR

johnoconnor@thestate.com

A Senate committee has chosen a Columbia minister to become its new chaplain, replacing its long-serving chaplain who died on Thanksgiving Day.

The Rev. James I. St. John, 67, has served as pastor at Forest Lake Presbyterian Church for 15 years and has counseled at Seven Oaks Presbyterian Church since 2005. If confirmed by the Senate, St. John would be the first new chaplain since the late the Rev. George Meetze was appointed in 1950.

“We had to start from scratch,” said Sen. John Courson, who led the six-member selection committee made up of Protestants, Catholics and Jews. Nine people applied, though three later withdrew.

“I think we were looking for someone like” Meetze, said Courson, R-Richland. “Someone with communication skills and the ability to work with the body ... The consensus was reached very quickly.”

St. John, because he has yet to be confirmed, declined to comment.

While most pastors are primarily concerned with the needs of their congregations, the Senate chaplain must serve a broader group. Members, staff and their families may seek the chaplain’s counsel, and pushing policy or political opinions is discouraged.

For instance, the chaplain has offered prayers on Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as well as Robert E. Lee’s birthday.

Sen. Darrell Jackson, who is also a minister, said that Meetze set a template for chaplain professionalism.

In his final speech from the Senate floor before retiring in June, Meetze said he was careful to offer a prayer each morning — not a sermon.

During tense Senate debate over the placement of the Confederate battle flag in 2000, Jackson remembered Meetze laying his hand on the senator’s shoulder and saying he was there to listen, if needed.

“I think they understand that is their role: to respond to people as they come to them,” said Jackson, D-Richland. “You don’t have an agenda to set for the congregation.”

Jackson and Sen. Vincent Sheheen, another member of the search committee, said that while the new chaplain has a precedent to follow, he could also make the job his own.

“I do think there is room for new directions,” said Sheheen, D-Kershaw. The committee wanted “an open mind about how to approach the job.”

The senators said it was difficult at best to replace Meetze, the only chaplain they’ve ever known.

“It was like God was talking,” Courson said. “How do you replace someone like that? You don’t.”

The Senate is scheduled to vote on St. John’s confirmation on Tuesday.

Reach O’Connor at (803) 771-8358.