faith250 is an opportunity for multifaith communities to come together in fellowship, meaningful conversation, and local rituals that celebrate our shared civic story. The project aims to seed clusters of congregations around the country that:
Engage members of various faiths to think about our shared values as Americans.
Enable clergy leaders to take on the role of caretakers of our civic health.
Give citizens the experience of spiritual and moral thinking and civic (vs. political) commitment.
Make the 250th a time of general civic renewal (vs. partisan division and animosity).
Form the basis of long-term collaborations between local institutions and leaders dedicated to our national future with pride, patriotism, empathy, and a desire for unity.
The project is unique in being clergy led and locally based. It utilizes key American texts as the basis of engaged discussion and culminates with a public celebration of America’s 250th sometime around July 4, 2026.
Every local community has its clergy and houses of worship which, through formal and informal networks, constitute an invisible civic backbone of society. Clergy of different faiths may disagree with points of theology and practice but recognize a common emphasis on elevating character and improving the world. Clergy can apply the deep wisdom and transcendent principles of their different faiths to unify their communities in shared civic values.
The project has three main components (see timeline below):
Clergy-only conversations (Recruitment: July -August 2025, Sessions: August 2025-January 2026) around four key American texts that help us explore what this country means in our souls: The New Colossus, America the Beautiful, The Declaration of Independence, and What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?. Conversations about the texts will help clergy groups collectively rediscover America’s big ideas and narratives while inspiring patriotism through their beauty, ideas, and paradoxes. Through text study, we deepen trust in each other, talk honestly about our beliefs, and establish the holiness of our covenantal relationship.
Clergy-led multifaith congregational gatherings (Promotion: November 2025, Sessions: January-June 2026) to break bread, discuss the texts, and build fellowship, illustrating how an array of local institutions can form the basis of America’s positive civic health. During the fall sessions, clergy will discuss how they want to adapt faith250 materials to suit their local communities and facilitation styles. Local ownership, collaboration, and creativity are key to the success of the congregational gatherings.
Planning and hosting a public celebration. (Planning: March-June 2026, Event: around July 4, 2026) From the congregational sessions, a group will form to prepare a public celebration sometime around July 4, 2026. Each cluster of congregations will create something unique – a mix of music, words, and activities that best communicate the vision of that group of people. Our faith250 website will offer best practices for civic rituals, serve as a brainstorming hub, and resource library (based on ideas uploaded by participating clergy). The eventual July 4th celebrations will be public, affirming our shared belief in America.
Hopefully, these experiences will spark a desire for ongoing fellowship, for greater exploration of our nation’s key documents, and for commitment that our institutions, leaders, and members will uplift local civic health.
Timeline
