Adventist US Senate Chaplain Barry Black Recovering after a Brain Bleed

United States Senate Chaplain Barry Black, a Seventh-day Adventist pastor and retired US Navy rear admiral, was recently hospitalized after suffering a brain bleed, news agencies reported on Thursday, December 12.

According to the Associated Press, Black, 76, had suffered a subdural hematoma a few days earlier and was sent to a local hospital in Washington, DC. Sources from his office at the Senate reported that he is expected to have a “smooth recovery.”

According to medical experts, a subdural hematoma occurs when a blood vessel in the space between the skull and the brain is damaged. Blood then escapes and leads to the formation of a blood clot that places pressure on the brain and may damage it.

On Friday evening, December 13, General Conference president Ted N. C. Wilson shared about his interaction with Black. On his Facebook page, Wilson wrote that he called Black and left a message telling him that he had prayed for his swift recovery. Wilson then added that he was surprised to receive a call from Black himself from the hospital.

Black “shared how God had miraculously intervened in his life to spare him from a potentially much more difficult health situation,” Wilson wrote. “His physician, Dr. Brian Monahan, who is the attending physician of the United States Congress, had a distinct impression to call Chaplain Black to tell him to call an emergency number and get to the hospital, where Dr. Monahan would meet him. Upon arrival, complete arrangements were made to care for Chaplain Black, and he is now on the road to recovery.”

Wilson explained that Monahan’s call might have saved Black from a much worse scenario. “Praise be to God for His saving power and protection and for using Dr. Monahan,” Wilson wrote, adding Black may be able to join his family for the Christmas season in a few days.

Black has served as Senate chaplain since 2003. The first-ever Seventh-day Adventist and African-American Senate chaplain, he is the spiritual advisor for not only 100 of the most powerful lawmakers in the nation but also their staff and families — a combined constituency of more than 7,000 people. Each morning as he opens the Senate with a prayer, Black sets the tone of discourse for the day in one of the highest government chambers in the nation, in turn setting the spiritual tone of the country.

Before serving on Capitol Hill, Black served in the US Navy for more than 27 years, ending his career as the Chief of Navy Chaplains. Affectionately known for sporting his signature bowtie on the Senate floor, Black is a sought-after spiritual guide and source of encouraging words of faith and unity. His books on those themes include The Blessing of Adversity, Nothing to Fear, Make Your Voice Heard in Heaven, and his autobiography of overcoming personal adversity, From the Hood to the Hill.