Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP
Crowds of people gathered on the National Mall on Sunday for a conservative prayer gathering as part of a commemoration of America’s 250 birthday, which included praise and worship songs, prayers by religious leaders and speeches by members of the Trump administration.
The event was promoted as a gathering to “give thanks for God’s providence, reflect on our nation’s story, and rededicate America as One Nation under God.” It was organized by Freedom 250, a public-private group working with the White House to organize the celebration of America’s 250 birthday this summer.
Of the 19 faith leaders that were scheduled to speak, 18 are Christian, and most are evangelical. White House faith office senior adviser Paula White-Cain, the Rev. Franklin Graham and Bishop Robert Barron, who leads the Diocese of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, were among the leaders. Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, who leads Congregation Shearith Israel in New York City and serves on Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission, is the only non-Christian religious leader who spoke at the gathering.
President Trump, who was golfing on Sunday afternoon, did not attend the event. Trump delivered a video message reading the Biblical scripture 2 Chronicles 7:11-22, which details God’s response to King Solomon after he completed the temple in Jerusalem.
Trump administration officials including Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio also spoke in video messages.
Congressional lawmakers, including Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, also spoke at the gathering. House Speaker Mike Johnson led the crowd through a prayer, asking God for courage and favor to “preserve this republic” and saying “our rights do not derive from the government, they come from You, our Creator and heavenly Father.”
Chris Tomlin, a Grammy-winning Christian musician, performed at the event.
The event has been criticized as promoting Christian nationalism and obscuring the lines separating church and state. Interfaith Alliance, a national coalition of various faiths, on Thursday night projected messages supporting religious freedom onto the National Gallery of Art.
“Trump’s ‘Rededicate 250’ rally on the National Mall is an attempt to turn the United States into an authoritarian theocracy,” the group wrote in a social media post.
Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, said it is “less a ‘Jubilee of Prayer’ than a ‘Jubilee of Christian Nationalism.'”
“If President Trump and his allies truly cared about America’s legacy of religious freedom, they would be celebrating church-state separation as the unique American invention that has allowed religious diversity to flourish in our country,” Laser said in a statement. “Instead, they continue to threaten this foundational principle by advancing a Christian Nationalist crusade to impose one narrow version of Christianity on all Americans.”
Kathryn Post and Yonat Shimron contributed to this report.
Americans United for Separation of Church and State is a financial supporter of NPR.
