Right now, the National Mall is filling with Americans from every state in the Union.
President Donald Trump’s Rededicate 250: A National Jubilee of Prayer, Praise, and Thanksgiving is underway today, May 17, 2026, marking the run-up to America’s 250th birthday. The all-day event is organized by Freedom 250 in partnership with the White House, with gates opening at 9:00 AM and the full program running until 6:00 PM at the main stage on 12th Street.
For families across the country who could not make the trip to D.C., partner churches and ministries are carrying the event by livestream. That decision alone tells you the scale of what is happening today. This is a coast-to-coast moment of national reflection.
Speakers taking the stage include Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, House Speaker Mike Johnson, and Paula White-Cain of the White House Faith Office. President Trump is addressing the crowd by recorded video. Cardinal Timothy Dolan, Bishop Robert Barron, Rabbi Meir Soloveichik, and actor Jonathan Roumie of The Chosen are also listed to speak.
The date was chosen on purpose. In 1776, the Continental Congress called the colonies to a day of fasting and prayer in the same May window, asking God for guidance as the founders prepared to declare independence. Today’s organizers are tying that founding moment directly to this generation.
2 Chronicles 7:14 says, “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.”
Whatever your politics, a country pausing on a Sunday to gather, give thanks, and pray is a moment worth paying attention to. Faith in the public square has always been part of the American story, from Washington at Valley Forge to Lincoln in the Civil War to this very afternoon on the Mall.
What do you think today’s gathering will mean for the country as we head into America’s 250th year?
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