Worshiping Faithfully in a Fraught National Moment

In July 2026, the United States will mark the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence. For many congregations, this semiquincentennial will raise important questions: How do we give thanks for the gifts of civic life without turning the church’s worship into a national celebration? How do we honor the best promises of democracy while lamenting the ways our nation has fallen short? How do Christians speak clearly against Christian nationalism while still praying for our country, our leaders, and our neighbors?

The ELCA has prepared a new worship resource to help congregations navigate these questions with theological care and pastoral courage. The resource acknowledges that the 2026 anniversary arrives at “a fraught time in the nation’s history” and offers liturgical materials that both “celebrate and lament” our national story while grounding the church in Christ’s call to seek the life of the world.

That balance matters. Lutherans do not worship a nation. We worship the God made known in Jesus Christ—the One who welcomes the weary, sets prisoners free, calls us to love our neighbors, and sends us into public life to work for justice and peace. Civic life is part of Christian vocation, but it must never replace the gospel.

The resource includes prayers, confession and forgiveness, intercessions, communion texts, music suggestions, and an “Affirmation of Christian Vocation in Civic Life.” That affirmation invites Christians to pursue the common good, nurture mutual care among neighbors near and far, bear witness to what is true and right, renounce what is unjust and harmful, and work to mend what is flawed.

For Arizona Lutherans, this is a timely and practical resource. Our public life is marked by deep division, fear, and real suffering among vulnerable neighbors—people experiencing homelessness, migrants and refugees, families living in poverty, people facing extreme heat, and communities whose voices are too often ignored. The church’s calling is not to withdraw from civic life, nor to baptize any political party or nation. Our calling is to enter public life as disciples of Jesus: humble, truthful, courageous, and rooted in love.

The preaching guidance in the resource is especially direct. It urges Lutheran preachers to reject the temptations of Christian nationalism and to resist any distortion of Jesus’ teachings that confuses Christianity with authoritarianism, exclusion, or fear. Instead, the appointed scriptures point to a liberating God, a humble and peaceable ruler, and a Savior who says, “Come to me, all you that are weary.”

That is good news for 2026. It is also a challenge. The semiquincentennial can be an opportunity not for triumphalism, but for honest prayer: thanksgiving for what is life-giving, repentance for what is sinful, lament for what is broken, and renewed commitment to the common good.

LAMA encourages congregations and worship leaders to review these ELCA resources as they plan for July 2026. They may help communities hold together gratitude and lament, patriotism and humility, civic responsibility and gospel clarity. Above all, they remind us that Christian public witness begins at the font and table, where we are formed not for domination or fear, but for service, mercy, truth, and love of neighbor.

As the resource’s dismissal says: “Go in peace. Seek liberty and justice for all.”