COLUMBIA, South Carolina (CNN) - Sen. Barack Obama, who has been emphasizing his faith as a way to reach out to black voters in South Carolina, attended two Baptist churches here on Sunday morning, one predominantly black and one predominantly white. Obama attended both services, but did not speak.
At 8 a.m., Obama was in West Columbia attending services at Brookland, which has one of the largest African-American congregations in the state. His wife Michelle Obama has previously spoken at the church. At 10:30 a.m., Obama took a more unexpected turn and headed downtown accompanied by his Secret Service entourage to visit First Baptist Church in Columbia, which is mostly white and conservative.
His campaign said the church visits were "an opportunity for the Senator to have a morning of fellowship with South Carolinians."
Obama's staff in South Carolina is in the midst of a grassroots effort called "40 Days of Faith and Family," which is promoting the candidate's faith through Bible study groups, house meetings and Gospel concerts across the state.
- CNN South Carolina Producer Peter Hamby