He’s preached across SC and Scotland. Now, he’ll make his debut in the U.S. Senate

A Greenville pastor will be preaching the word to the U.S. Senate this week after being invited to open the day’s session with a prayer.

Rev. Dr. Richard Gibbons, the senior pastor at the First Presbyterian Church of Greenville, will kick off the Senate’s day Thursday with words encouraging unity and a dedication to equality, according to a post on his church’s Facebook.

“To minister within the historical context of the U.S. Capitol is indeed the privilege of a lifetime,” Gibbons said in a statement. “I am deeply honored that the Senate would invite me to participate in this manner.”

Gibbons hopes his prayer will remind senators “of the spiritual, moral, religious, and ethical dynamics within the complex challenges which lie before them,” according to his statement.

During his time at the capital, Gibbons will also be meeting with the Senate’s chaplin Rev. Dr. Barry C. Black, as well as S.C. Sen. Tim Scott.

“To offer the opening invocation when the upper chamber has been called to order, and to prayerfully enter the presence of God and intercede for the Senate and the nation is an overwhelming responsibility, and one I will cherish for years to come,” Gibbons said in a statement.

Gibbons has been a pastor with the First Presbyterian Church of Greenville since 2007, according to the church’s website. A Scotland native, he studied in Glasgow and did missions with the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association across the area.

The prayer will be televised live on CSPAN and will be posted later to the church’s Facebook page, according to the statement.