Happy 4th of July! Independence Day Explained - with Special Prayers for America to Share!

Independence Day, known as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States celebrating adoption of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776, declaring independence from the Kingdom of Great Britain.  Just over 150 years ago – July 1-3, 1863 – the bloodiest battle of the American Civil War was fought at Gettysburg, Pa. It is estimated that in that three day period, the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the opposing Union Army of the Potomac suffered over 43,000 combined casualties. PLEASE PRAY FOR AMERICA TODAY! Prayer for the Protection of Religious Liberty O God our Creator, from your provident hand we have received our right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. You have called us as your people and given us the right and the duty to worship you, the only true God, and your Son, Jesus Christ. Through the power and working of your Holy Spirit, you call us to live out our faith in the midst of the world, bringing the light and the saving truth of the Gospel to every corner of society. We ask you to bless us in our vigilance for the gift of religious liberty. Give us the strength of mind and heart to readily defend our freedoms when they are threatened; give us courage in making our voices heard on behalf of the rights of your Church and the freedom of conscience of all people of faith. Grant, we pray, O heavenly Father, a clear and united voice to all your sons and daughters gathered in your Church in this decisive hour in the history of our nation, so that, with every trial withstood and every danger overcome— for the sake of our children, our grandchildren, and all who come after us— this great land will always be "one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. (Source: USCCB)