This Sunday, May 17, 2026, thousands will gather on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., for Rededicate 250, a full day of prayer, praise, worship, and solemn rededication of our nation to God as we approach America’s 250th birthday.

The date is no accident. On May 17, 1776, the Continental Congress called for a national day of fasting, humiliation, and prayer, asking God to forgive the colonies’ sins and grant them success in their fight for independence. Just weeks later, they declared independence. Now, exactly 250 years later, we’re returning to that same spirit.

Why does this matter?

America was never meant to be a secular project. Our Founders openly acknowledged dependence on “Divine Providence.” They understood that liberty without virtue and self government under God eventually collapses. John Adams warned that our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people.

Today, many sense we’ve drifted. We’ve chased prosperity, power, and pleasure while quietly setting God aside in our public life. The results speak for themselves — division, moral confusion, and a growing sense that something essential is missing.

This is why Rededicate 250 on May 17th matters so deeply. It’s not just another gathering, it’s a solemn return to the spirit that birthed this nation. On that exact date in 1776, the Continental Congress called for a national day of fasting, humiliation, and prayer, asking God to forgive their sins and guide their cause for independence. Weeks later, they declared freedom. Now, exactly 250 years later, we’re being invited to do the same.

The event on the National Mall will bring Americans from all backgrounds together for prayer, worship, Scripture, and testimony, giving thanks for God’s providence over the last 250 years and asking for His blessing on the next 250. President Trump has called it a time to rededicate ourselves as “one nation under God.”

John Adams put it plainly: “Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” Freedom without virtue doesn’t last. Self government requires self restraint, and self restraint comes from something higher than ourselves.

This Sunday’s gathering is a chance to remember who we are, where we’ve come from, and who we’ve always depended on. Whether you’re on the Mall in D.C. or joining from home, May 17th is an invitation to pause, repent, give thanks, and rededicate our nation back to God, just as our Founders did at the very beginning.

At its core, this rededication is not about politics, it’s about humility. It’s a nation acknowledging that we cannot succeed on our own strength, just as the Founders did. It’s a public declaration that our rights come from our Creator, not from government, and that lasting liberty requires a people who fear God and love their neighbor.

This May 17th, as we gather in our nation’s capital, we have a rare opportunity to reset our course. Not through programs or policies, but through prayer and repentance. The same God who heard our Founders’ cries in 1776 still hears today.

Let May 17, 2026, be remembered not just as a day of celebration, but as the day America returned to her first love, and once again placed herself under the mercy and blessing of Almighty God.

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord.” Psalm 33:12

Anne Slagel

Executive Director Of The Dallas County Republican Party