At the National Prayer Breakfast on the first Thursday of every February, the president of the United States and a guest — whose identity is kept confidential until the morning of — speak at the event, which is attended by 3,500 guests from more than 100 countries.
On Thursday, Feb. 3, 2022, President Joe Biden is set to address the faith-filled gathering — the 70th annual Prayer Breakfast — from the National Capitol Visitor Center, although the event on Thursday also broadly includes a series of meetings, luncheons and dinners.
President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris will be in attendance at the 70th annual National Prayer Breakfast on Feb. 3, 2022. (Getty Images)
The event on Feb. 3 is scheduled to begin at 8:30 a.m. on Capitol Hill.
Vice President Kamala Harris will be in attendance.
The event this year is co-chaired by Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., and Mike Rounds, R-S.D.
Established in 1953 by President Dwight Eisenhower at the urging of the late Rev. Billy Graham, the prayer breakfast has been hosted by members of Congress and is organized on their behalf by the Fellowship Foundation.
President Dwight Eisenhower in 1953 began the event that's known today as the National Prayer Breakfast. (AP)
The Christian nonprofit was founded by Abraham Vereide, a Methodist pastor based in Seattle.
The event was initially called the Presidential Prayer Breakfast.
In 1970, the name was changed to the National Prayer Breakfast.
Every American president since Eisenhower has taken part in the annual event.
Speaking in 2017 at the event, then-President Donald Trump said, "As long as we have God, we are never, ever alone."
In this Thursday, Dec. 31, 2020, file photo, President Donald Trump arrives on the South Lawn of the White House, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
Past speakers at the National Prayer Breakfast over the years include Mother Teresa, Bono, Tony Blair, Dr. Ben Carson, Max Lucado, Arthur Brooks, and Gary Haugen, the CEO of the International Justice Mission.
Since its inception in the U.S. capital, several states and cities, as well as other countries including Australia and the United Kingdom, started their own annual prayer breakfast events.
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