Conservative Christian rally will converge on Independence Mall this weekend

Right-wing Christian prayer assembly “America for Jesus 2012” will be held on Independence Mall this Friday and Saturday.

The rally’s website states that “America is in a state of emergency evidenced by the symptoms of widespread moral depravity” and says the bible is calling the church to head “where the foundation of our American liberty was birthed in Philadelphia and to intercede for God to heal the land.”

Friday will kick off at 5 p.m. with the “Awake Youth Rally” featuring Christian musical performers and prayer leaders. The event’s centerpiece, the “National Solemn Assembly,” will start at 9 a.m. Saturday. It is described on the site as the “moment in history where the Church of America gathers together to cry out to God for an awakening in our land!”

Scheduled speakers for the two-day assembly include Pat Robertson of the 700 Club and Family Research Council president Tony Perkins, plus messages of support from televangelists Joel Osteen and Billy Graham will be read.

The website recommends that attendees bring a “Bible, water, walking shoes, sunblock, lawn chair, sunglasses, umbrella (for shade), a blanket, camera, cellphone, and anything you may need for a nine hour long prayer event.”