St. John’’s Episcopal Church gets a facelift before Obama’s visit

The St. John’’s Episcopal Church has recently undergone an extensive renovation in anticipation of Barack Obama making a visit to it after being inaugurated as the United States 44th President.

According to the Washington Post, the 193-year-old church now has gleaming plank floors and shimmering stained-glass windows to repositioned pews that better accommodate longer-limbed modern Americans.

Since James Madison, every American president has worshiped at the church, located across Lafayette Square from the White House, at some point in his or her administrations. Some made it over only once, while others became regulars.

Obama’’s worship service will be private, but church members have no doubt that he will be seated in pew 54, the “president’’s pew,” in the middle of the congregation. That was Madison’’s seat and has been the seat of every president since then.

Madison “wanted to feel part of the congregation,” Danello said.

Last Wednesday, workers were putting the finishing touches on the sanctuary, which will be the scene for what could be the president-elect’’s last quiet moments before he plunges into a history-making day.

Church leaders say 6.5 million dollars have been spent on the renovation.