(RNS) — What to make of a Christian prayer service “rededicating” America to God at the National Mall? What about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth referring to journalists as “Pharisees”?

Such questions were the focus of “One Nation Under God?,” a special live broadcast of NPR’s “1A” show in partnership with Religion News Service on Tuesday (May 19), that examined the Christian faith of America’s founders and what freedom of religion looks like in the country 250 years later.

For the discussion, journalist and host Niala Boodhoo was joined at the American University in Washington, D.C., by RNS national reporter Jack Jenkins, religious liberty lawyer and Muslim identity scholar Asma T. Uddin, Mark D. Hall of Regent University and Jeffrey Rosen of the National Constitution Center.

Here are five takeaways from the event.

1. The National Mall prayer service showed history and Christian nationalism colliding.

“Rededicate 250,” the prayer service at the National Mall on Sunday, was funded by a public-private partnership and struck Jenkins as an effort to link the story of America’s founding to conservative Christian values.

For many participants, who came by the thousands, attending the event was also a way to reaffirm their support for President Donald Trump, who addressed the crowd via video and read from 2 Corinthians.

“There was a lot of MAGA hats and things like that, that were also sprinkled through the crowd, and that was happening alongside folks who had very emotional religious responses to this,” Jenkins said.

But despite emphasizing the Christian identity of the U.S. founders and linking it to the nation’s future, the event featured mostly speakers who hailed from conservative evangelical circles — not the mainline denominations of America’s founders, the “1A” speakers noted.

Notably, Jenkins said, Rededicate 250 featured few non-Christian speakers — only Rabbi Meir Soloveichik and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, though she did not mention her Hindu faith.

During the “1A” broadcast, one attendee commented via email that, despite the president touting the event, his physical absence raised questions about how he benefited from leveraging Christian support without meaningfully engaging with the faith.

2. Christian founders? Yes. A Christian nation? No.

Rosen noted that while most founders were Christians, they never intended to found a Christian nation. The establishment clause in the Constitution is one example of that, he said, as it prohibits Congress from making any laws establishing an official religion or favoring one religion over another.

James Madison, the country’s fourth president, “insisted that the government should be noncognizant of religion, and he developed this view during the central battle of his early career against religious establishments in Virginia,” Rosen added.

Still, Hall said it was important to consider that America’s founders developed their vision of a nation in a mostly Christian environment, as most were Protestants of European descent and lived among a few religious minorities. This, he said, helps explain how Christianity played into the American story.

“In their imagination, religion equaled Christianity. … We’re obviously a far different country today, and it’s very reasonable to ask, ‘Is it not possible that other religions, other faith traditions can generate a sort of morality necessary for a republican form of government?’ I think that it certainly is,” he said, adding that founders had an extended vision of religious liberty that would protect all Americans.

“I think they consciously built a nation that would be open to all people of all faiths and no faith at all,” he said.

One member of the audience, reflecting on whether the founders intended to create a Christian nation, said, “We inherited a framework from the founders, but much like a story, it no longer belongs to the authors. Governance happens only at the consent of the governed, and the founders are not here anymore to consent.”

3. Christian language is used regularly by the Trump administration.

RNS reporter Jenkins noted that the Christian language at the center of Sunday’s event has found its way into the various ranks of government and even into the administration’s messaging on its policies.

He pointed to Hegseth referring to members of the press as “Pharisees” during a recent Pentagon press conference. Jenkins, who was present at the press conference, said Hegseth was referring to a sermon at D.C.’s Christ Church, during a service led by Doug Wilson, a self-described Christian nationalist pastor whose main church is based in Moscow, Idaho.

“They had made reference to the Pharisees, these biblical figures that are often in opposition to Jesus in the biblical narrative, and he looked up at the reporters, which included me, and said, ‘The press are just like these Pharisees,’” he said.

Jenkins noted that Hegseth has since doubled down on the idea on his social media.

4. Christian nationalistic discourse has galvanized the religious left

But the Trump administration, heavily leaning on Christian nationalist discourse, has also fired up coalitions of religious progressives across the country, panelists said.

From Trump’s first day in office, progressive religious leaders have sought to counter the administration’s Christian-infused political messaging, Jenkins said. He pointed to the Rt. Rev. Mariann Budde, the Episcopal bishop of Washington, who urged Trump to show mercy toward immigrants during his inauguration service. Jenkins also noted the clergy who have been leading anti-ICE protests in Minnesota and Michigan.

“It has actually significantly galvanized the religious left in terms of the activism space,” Jenkins said. ” … I’ve seen significant activism bubbling up among Muslim American and Jewish American communities as well.”

The discourse has also inspired political ambitions among members of the religious left, with some receiving significant attention, such as Texas Rep. James Talarico, the state’s Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate.

“In some ways, it’s really interesting how much attention he’s getting, given that he’s kind of a rank-and-file mainliner in a lot of ways,” Jenkins said.

Other clergy, including some white mainliners and Black Protestant pastors, have also been inspired to run for office. 

5. Who belongs and who doesn’t?

Reacting to Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Speaker of the House Mike Johnson emphasizing the celebration of America as “One Nation Under God” at Sunday’s event, Uddin said it sent a clear message about what religious groups belong in the American story.

Uddin said she has seen people in government — and through legislation — try to argue that Islam isn’t a religion, in an attempt to strip Muslim Americans of their religious freedom rights. She said the Christian nationalism discourse from the government ultimately seeks to limit who gets to claim rights in America.

“When I hear this clip, that’s exactly what I’m thinking about, like very sort of obvious attempts to carve out who gets protections and who doesn’t,” Uddin said of the political addresses on Sunday.

Such messages create two classes of Americans, she said, those “who belong, and everyone else is just a guest.”

Uddin, who mentioned Monday’s deadly shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego, added that non-Christians are often made to feel like “not a very welcome guest.”

Find the recording of the event here.