WASHINGTON —  President Bush bowed his head Thursday to mark the National Day of Prayer (search), giving thanks for freedom and asking God's help in defending it.

The president, who says he prays every day, did so this time in front of an East Room filled with people of many different faiths. Bush said freedom is a gift from God meant for all people and he prays "for help in defending the gift of freedom from those who seek to destroy it."

"We know that a God who created us for freedom is not indifferent to injustice or cruelty or evil, so we ask that our hearts may be aligned with his and that we may be given the strength to do what is right and help those in need," Bush said. "We who ask for God's help for ourselves, have a particular obligation to care for the least of our brothers and sisters within our midst."

The speakers in the interfaith ceremony included a rabbi and a Catholic priest, and there was a heavy evangelical presence. National Day of Prayer Chairwoman Shirley Dobson and her husband, Focus on the Family head James Dobson, were there along with the Rev. Max Lucado (search), author of several popular Christian books.