By Michael Gryboski, Editor Thursday, May 07, 2026

House Speaker Mike Johnson declared Thursday that Americans’ rights “do not come from government” but from God, describing the Declaration of Independence as “our national statement of faith” during a National Day of Prayer observance at the U.S. Capitol.

The 75th annual National Day of Prayer observance was held in Statuary Hall on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., drawing dozens of lawmakers and religious leaders.

During his remarks, Johnson stressed that “prayer has been a part of our DNA since the very beginning,” saying that “we are a praying nation.”

“From the first harvest at Plymouth to the blood-stained battlefield at Bunker Hill, to the whispered prayers of pioneers who were moving westward, the long arc of American history has been charted by the prayers of God-fearing people,” Johnson said.

After referencing examples of religious imagery displayed throughout the Capitol, Johnson turned to the upcoming 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence — when the U.S. declared its independence from the British Empire — calling it an opportunity for Americans to reflect on the nation’s founding principles.

Johnson said it was “a time to reflect on the great moral inheritance of which every American citizen across every generation has been the humble recipient.”

“We boldly proclaimed the self-evident truth that our rights do not come from government, they come from God Himself,” Johnson said. “He is the One that has endowed us with our inalienable rights, that among those the rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”

“Right there in the second paragraph of the nation’s birth certificate, it summarizes our national statement of faith. The founders made that bold declaration and that was the foundation that made us become the most free, most successful, most powerful and most benevolent nation in the history of the planet.”

Johnson’s remarks came as part of the National Day of Prayer, an annual observance held on the first Thursday in May in which Americans gather across the country to pray for the nation.

According to the National Day of Prayer Task Force, this year’s theme is “Glorify God Among the Nations, Seeking Him in All Generations.” The theme is inspired by 1 Chronicles 16:24, which says, “Tell of His glory among the nations, His wonderful deeds among all the peoples.”

“In 2026, our theme is inspired by a passionate prayer of Thanksgiving, prayed by King David in 1 Chronicles 16 after bringing the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. This chapter records Israel celebrating the return of the Ark after being separated for 70 years earlier,” stated National Day of Prayer Task Force President Kathy Branzell.

“While God was always watching over Israel and just a prayer away from them and King David, the Ark of the Covenant represented the presence of God having been constructed at the command of God and carried by the Levites with Moses as they wandered and waited to enter the Promised Land and eventually stolen from the tabernacle in Shiloh at their defeat in the battle in Ebenezer.”

Last year, U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., garnered controversy when, during a Senate hearing, the former Catholic missionary claimed that rights came from the government, not God.

"The notion that rights don't come from laws and don't come from the government, but come from the Creator — that's what the Iranian government believes," Kaine stated at the time.

"It's a theocratic regime that bases its rule on Sharia law and targets Sunnis, Bahá'ís, Jews, Christians and other religious minorities."

"And they do it because they believe that they understand what natural rights are from their Creator. So the statement that our rights do not come from our laws or our governments is extremely troubling."

Among Kaine's critics was Jonathan Turley, professor of public interest law at George Washington University, who wrote in a column that Kaine is “hopelessly confused” and warned that “what government giveth, government can take away.”

“Our prized unalienable rights become entirely alienable if they are merely the product of legislatures and courts,” wrote Turley.

“Kaine’s view — that advocates of natural law are no different from mullahs applying Sharia law — is not just ill-informed but would have been considered by the founders as constitutionally blasphemous.”

News Source : https://www.christianpost.com/news/mike-johnson-says-our-rights-come-from-god-not-government.html