Yesterday, the National Prayer Breakfast, sponsored by the National Prayer Breakfast Foundation, was held in Statuary Hall in the Capitol building in Washington D.C. President Biden delivered remarks (full text) at the Breakfast, saying in part:
I also see the trauma, the death, and destruction in Israel and Gaza. And I understand that the pain and passion felt by so many here in America and around the world.
We value and pray for the lives taken and for the families left behind, for all those who are living in dire circumstances — innocent men, women, and children held hostage or under bombardment or displaced, not knowing where their next meal will come from or if it will come at all.
Not only do we pray for peace, we are actively working for peace, security, dignity for the Israeli people and the Palestinian people.
Sponsorship of the National Prayer Breakfast-- which has been held annually since 1953-- has become more complicated, as explained in reporting on this year's event by Religion News Service:
The refashioned National Prayer Breakfast is a scaled-down version of an event that has drawn thousands to the Washington Hilton and was previously hosted by a group often known as “The Family,” but that called itself the International Foundation.
Since last year, there have been two events, one sponsored by the new National Prayer Breakfast Foundation, after years of controversy following the 2018 breakfast and accusations that the gathering of national and international political and religious leaders had become vulnerable to espionage.
The second event, dubbed the NPB Gathering, and held again this year at the Hilton, drew about 2,000 people from more than 125 countries, including heads of state, and featured a livestream of Biden’s remarks....
