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Top U.S. leaders, including President Joe Biden, gathered Thursday for the National Prayer Breakfast, held in Washington.
President Biden was joined by U.S. officials including House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, as well as the event's chair, former Senator Heidi Heitkamp, and co-chairs, Representatives Tracey Mann and Frank Mrvan.
Musical guest Andrea Bocelli performed at the event, and Senate Chaplain Barry Black spoke about the historic importance of the event and read Scripture from the Bible.
Black discussed the significance of religion in Congress, saying that since Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, members of Congress have been fasting and praying.
One theme of his remarks was turning "crisis into conquest," and he said that people's ability to come together and "lift our hearts across the religious spectrum in prayer and praise" is proof of the ability to do so.
Biden also spoke during the event; in his remarks at last year's event, he promoted unity, referencing the lives taken by the pandemic, gun violence, police brutality and climate change.
This year, Biden talked about the recent attacks on U.S. soldiers in Jordan, which killed three and injured dozens of others, as well as the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza.
"I ... see the trauma, the death and destruction in Israel and Gaza and understand the pain and passion felt by so many here in America and around the world," he said, adding that he is "engaged in this day and night ... to find the means to bring our hostages home, to ease the humanitarian crisis [and] to bring peace to Gaza and Israel - an enduring peace, with two states for two peoples."
He spoke about the war in Ukraine, saying that the Ukrainian people have "showed incredible resolve and resilience against Putin's aggression," and that we "must continue to help them."
After Biden's speech, Senators Kirstin Gillibrand and Marsha Blackburn prayed for the president. The breakfast ended with a prayer from House Chaplain Reverend Dr. Margaret Kibben and a group prayer led by Mann and Mrvan.
The event was organized by the nonprofit National Prayer Breakfast Foundation, which says that all faiths are welcome. Before 2023, it was run by the Fellowship Foundation, a religious group.
Every U.S. president since Dwight Eisenhower in 1953 has attended the annual breakfast.
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