What churches has Barack Obama attended and when did he stop attending regularly?

1. Trinity United Church of Christ: the long home and the break

Barack Obama became a member of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago in 1992 and worshipped there for many years; after public controversy over sermons by its longtime pastor Jeremiah Wright, Barack and Michelle Obama announced they had withdrawn their membership on May 31, 2008 ^{[1] [2]}. Reporting and later summaries underscore that the withdrawal was explicitly tied to Wright’s statements and to the campaign context in 2008 ^[2].

2. Churches the Obamas attended during and after the presidency

While living in Washington the Obamas did not join a local church and instead attended various congregations on particular occasions: St. John’s Episcopal Church near the White House, Shiloh Baptist Church for Easter services, the First Congregational United Church of Christ while on the campaign trail, and worship at the Evergreen Chapel at Camp David when at the presidential retreat ^{[1] [7] [5] [6]}. More recently, the family attended an Easter service at Alfred Street Baptist Church in Alexandria in 2023, showing occasional public worship after his presidency ^[4].

3. Why “not regular” attendance? Security, disruption, and choice

Multiple outlets report the Obamas chose not to join a Washington church because their presence would disrupt congregational life and require heavy Secret Service screening for worshippers; the White House and Obama himself cited these practical concerns as a reason for not being regular churchgoers while in office ^{[3] [8] [6]}. Reuters noted that Obama’s public worship in Washington was “one of just a handful of times” since taking office, underscoring the infrequency of attendance ^[6].

4. When did he stop attending “regularly”? What the record shows

Available reporting indicates a clear marker: the Obamas left formal membership at Trinity in May 2008 ^[2]. After moving to Washington in January 2009 they “largely chose not to attend public church services” regularly because of security and disruption concerns, making their attendance occasional rather than weekly ^{[3] [6]}. Some outlets noted stretches without public services — for example, the Sun Sentinel reported the president‑elect “had not attended a public church service since before being elected” in late 2008 ^[9].

5. Competing narratives and political weaponization

Coverage shows two competing frames: one emphasizes sincere faith and pragmatic restraint about disrupting congregations (as reported by the White House and some press coverage), while critics have used irregular attendance and the Trinity controversy to question Obama’s religious commitments or theological orthodoxy ^{[8] [10] [11]}. Media outlets from across the spectrum focused either on the personal choice and security rationale ^{[3] [8]} or on the political fallout from Reverend Wright and debates over the church’s theology ^{[10] [11]}.

6. Limitations and what’s not in these sources

The provided sources summarize public appearances, membership changes and broad reasons for infrequent attendance, but they do not give a complete, dated log of every service Obama attended, a precise date when he “stopped” attending weekly (because he appears to have transitioned to occasional attendance rather than a single stop date), nor an exhaustive list of every congregation the family visited post‑2008 (available sources do not mention a definitive final “stop” date beyond the May 2008 membership withdrawal and the general pattern in Washington) ^{[2] [6] [3]}.

7. Bottom line for readers

Factually: Obama’s long church affiliation was with Trinity United Church of Christ (member from 1992) until he and his wife withdrew membership in May 2008; after becoming president the family did not join a Washington church and attended services sporadically — a decision the White House tied to security and disruption concerns — so there is no single public date where reporting shows he “stopped attending” weekly other than the 2008 membership exit and the documented shift to occasional attendance thereafter ^{[1] [2] [6] [8]}.