36 USC § 119 - National Day of Prayer
---
identifier: "/us/usc/t36/s119"
source: "usc"
legal_status: "official_legal_evidence"
title: "36 USC § 119 - National Day of Prayer"
title_number: 36
title_name: "PATRIOTIC AND NATIONAL OBSERVANCES, CEREMONIES, AND ORGANIZATIONS"
section_number: "119"
section_name: "National Day of Prayer"
chapter_number: 1
chapter_name: "PATRIOTIC AND NATIONAL OBSERVANCES"
part_number: "A"
part_name: "Observances and Ceremonies"
positive_law: true
currency: "119-84"
last_updated: "2026-04-17"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
source_credit: "(Pub. L. 105–225, Aug. 12, 1998, 112 Stat. 1258.)"
---
# § 119. National Day of Prayer
The President shall issue each year a proclamation designating the first Thursday in May as a National Day of Prayer on which the people of the United States may turn to God in prayer and meditation at churches, in groups, and as individuals.
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**Source Credit**: (Pub. L. 105–225, Aug. 12, 1998, 112 Stat. 1258.)
| RevisedSection | Source (U.S. Code) | Source (Statutes at Large) |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 119 | 36:169h. | Apr. 17, 1952, ch. 216, 66 Stat. 64; May 5, 1988, Pub. L. 100–307, 102 Stat. 456. |