By Jon Brown, Christian Post Reporter Monday, May 18, 2026
House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., speaks at the Rededicate 250 festival on the National Mall in Washington, D.C. on May 17, 2026. | The Christian Post
WASHINGTON — House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., dismissed the term “Christian nationalism” on Sunday as a pejorative intended to silence Christians in the public square.
Speaking with Fox News anchor Shannon Bream during an interview ahead of the Rededicate 250: A National Jubilee of Prayer, Praise & Thanksgiving event on the National Mall, Johnson was asked to respond to criticism from Americans United for Separation of Church and State President Rachel Laser, who on Saturday denounced the all-day prayer festival as “a Christian Nationalist crusade to impose one narrow version of Christianity on all Americans.”
Johnson, a Southern Baptist, dismissed Laser’s comment and those who would agree with it, noting that Rededicate 250 was intended as “a recognition of the deeply embedded history and the religious and moral tradition of the country.”
“This is an appropriate thing for us to do on the 250th anniversary. The people who are upset about it oppose that. They want to erase the history of America and pretend as if we’re not a nation that was dedicated originally to God,” he continued, adding that the national motto “In God We Trust” is inscribed above his dais in the House chamber.
Mike Johnson: “The naysayers who have created this new term ‘Christian nationalism’ as a pejorative, a derogatory term, are trying to silence the influence and voices of Christians, and I think that’s wildly inappropriate.” pic.twitter.com/KbCqDHHN2Q
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) May 17, 2026
Rededicate 250, which was held to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the Second Continental Congress designating “a day of humiliation, fasting, and prayers” during the Revolutionary War, was touted as a “rededication of our country as One Nation Under God” and a “once in a lifetime national moment.”
The event prompted widespread scorn from many mainstream and left-leaning media outlets that framed the event as government-sanctioned Christian nationalism on public land, though Johnson told Fox News that an event honoring the role of God in the nation’s history while looking to Him for the future “is a healthy and appropriate thing.”
“The people who are the naysayers who have created this new term ‘Christian nationalism’ as a pejorative, a derogatory term, are trying to silence the influence and voices of Christians, and I think that’s wildly inappropriate,” he added.
Toward the end of the event on Sunday afternoon, Johnson offered a 10-minute prayer in the name of Jesus Christ, which served as the event’s keystone formal rededication of the United States as one nation under God.
Opening by acknowledging the hand of divine providence in American history since the beginning, Johnson noted extraordinary examples of courage throughout American history, but warned that the country faces “a new set of challenges in a new era” from forces that seek to undermine its spiritual foundations.
“In recent years, we’ve seen sinister ideologies sow confusion and discord among our people. We witnessed attacks on our history, on our heroes, and the cherished moral and spiritual identity of this great nation,” he said.
“These voices insist to the young and impressionable that our story, the American story, is one of oppression and hypocrisy, and that this story can only be understood through the lens of our sins.”
“Father, we reject that, we rebuke it in your name,” he said as the crowd applauded.
Johnson later invoked divine guidance and mercy on the nation, adding, “Lord, never let us be separated from your mercy and your love.”
“Today, here, Lord, in this 250th year of American independence, we hereby rededicate the United States of America as one nation under God. Look upon us with favor, upon your country as we celebrate this momentous anniversary, and let your Holy Spirit descend upon this land, so that future generations will look back at this day in this present age, and once again see your providential hand at work,” he added.
During an earlier address at the event, First Baptist Dallas Senior Pastor Robert Jeffress claimed the Founding Fathers “who loved our country and loved our God would be called Christian nationalists today, and it is a title they would have gladly embraced.”
“By the way, if being a Christian nationalist means loving Jesus Christ and loving America, count me in!” he said as the crowd roared in response.
“They were bold about their Christianity. They weren’t ashamed of it. They knew that it was their Christian faith that compelled them to love this great country and those who resided in it, and it was their Christian faith that made our forefathers realize that the fate of our nation did not rest alone in the strength of our armies, but in the power of our God,” he added.
Jon Brown is a reporter for The Christian Post. Send news tips to jon.brown@christianpost.com