Let me first welcome you, Mr. Stewart, and all of you representing different faiths and creeds and beliefs. I thank you very, very much for this collection, which will be a significant part of the White House memorabilia.
I didn't realize until I talked to you and read some material on it, but there have been proclamations issued either by a congress or the Congress and by the President since June 12, 1775. I was delighted, of course, to issue the proclamation for July 24, 1975. The point that I think significant is the following: Our forefathers for almost 200 years have prayed, regardless of their beliefs or their faith, and this has helped them, and they are doing it today as they have in the past.
But equally significant, it has been the prayers of our forefathers, as it is the prayers of our fellow countrymen today, that have made America strong. And I am convinced, as we move ahead, individual prayer will help not only the person but the country, and prayer today means as much to Americans as it did on June 12, 1775.
And I thank you very, very much for this beautiful collection. This is a beautiful collection, and I thank you on behalf of the Presidency and thank you again, all the people who are here representing the various faiths in America.
Note: The President spoke at 12:55 p.m. in the Oval Office at the White House. Peter P. Stewart, president of the Thanksgiving Square Foundation, presented him with the first collection of 181 day-of-prayer proclamations issued by Presidents and Congresses since 1775, when the first National Day of Prayer was proclaimed by the Second Continental Congress.
On June 12, 1975, the President signed Proclamation 4379, proclaiming July 24 as National Day of Prayer, 1975.
Gerald R. Ford, Remarks on Receiving a Collection of Day-of-Prayer Proclamations Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/256216
