PRESIDENT Donald Trump has given a bible reading to thousands of Christians via a video link.
Trump and several top White House aids are joining members of the Christian clergy and the public on the National Mall in Washington DC for the Rededicate 250 national prayer service.
The daylong Government-sponsored event is marked as a “rededication of our country as One Nation Under God” as America marks it’s 250th birthday.
Exactly that many years ago today, Congress declared May 17, 1776, a “day of Humiliation, Fasting and Prayer” for the Revolutionary cause.
It was arranged by the nonprofit Freedom 250 and is expected to be attended by thousands of people including special guests and speakers who include members of the Cabinet.
President Trump and other officials like Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and House Speaker Mike Johnson, will address the nation via video.
In his remarks, Hegseth invoked George Washington, saying, “Let us pray as he did. Let us pray without ceasing. Let us pray for our nation on bended knee.”
Meanwhile, Rubio said Christianity was “the engine of westward expansion” and “this is who we are.”
The event also featured prayers and addresses by evangelical Christian leaders and Catholic figures, as well as worship music including from Grammy-winning contemporary Christian artist Chris Tomlin.
In a promotional video for the event, the Secretary of War said, “Our founders knew two simple truths, our rights don’t come from government, they come from God.
“And a nation is only as strong as its faith.”
Critics have warned that the event dangerously conflates the church and the state while merging American and Christian identities with a false Christian nationalist narrative.
“This government-sponsored prayer fest is the epitome of exactly what our secular Constitution forbids our government from doing,” said Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, which advocates for the separation of church and state.
“It is a fusion not only of church and state, but also of our federal government with Christian nationalism.”
Some critics have pointed to the absence of religious groups such as mainline Protestant churches including Lutherans, Methodists and Episcopalians. Also not represented are the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Orthodox Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Buddhism.
Only one name on the Rededicate 250 program was not Christian. Most were among Trumps longtime evangelical supporters, including Paula White-Cain of the White House Faith Office and evangelist Franklin Graham of Samaritans Purse.
Most speakers at the event celebrated Christianities ties to American history, merging supporting Christianity with nationalism.
The Rev. Robert Jeffress told the crowd: “If being a Christian nationalist means loving Jesus Christ and loving America, count me in.”
Many of the thousands of attendees donned Trump and MAGA hats, as well as patriotic colors and flags as they joined the festivities.
More to follow…
