President Obama and Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. will go to the Washington National Cathedral on Jan. 22, the day after their second inaugural ceremony, to participate in the National Prayer Service, held every four years to commemorate the inauguration of the president.
Mr. Obama's inaugural committee will issue a formal announcement about the event later Tuesday morning, and the official said details about the other participants would become available in the coming weeks.
The issue of religion has often bedeviled Mr. Obama during his presidency; during his 2008 presidential campaign, his longtime rel ationship with the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, a black pastor prone to provocative comments, stirred controversy. And Mr. Obama offended gay rights activists at his second inaugural by inviting the Rev. Rick Warren, an outspoken opponent of abortion and same-sex marriage, to deliver the invocation.
The National Prayer Service, a tradition that dates back to the presidency of George Was hington, will include prayers, readings, blessing and hymns delivered by religious leaders from across the United States, the official said, adding that it will represent “America's diversity of faith and belief.â€
