Read the full stored bill text
26.676.11 101st Legislative Session SCR604
2026 South Dakota Legislature
Senate Concurrent Resolution 604
ENROLLED
AN ACT
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTION urging the people of the state of South Dakota to seek
the Lord Most High for His healing presence and mercy upon South Dakota.
WHEREAS, we know that from the earliest days of the United States, the men and women
who worked to build up our nation trusted in the all -powerful and most merciful hand of
Providence to bless our land and guide their work with His wisdom; and
WHEREAS, we know that these men and women founded the United States upon the
Judeo-Christian values articulated by Sacred Scripture, among which are the beliefs that
government is established by God to safeguard the rights of the members of the community
over which it watches, that we are to love our neighbors as we ourselves have each been
loved by God, and that each human person has been created in the image and likeness of
God; and
WHEREAS, we hold, as John Adams wrote to the Massachusetts Militia on October 11,
1798, "Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious People. It is wholly
inadequate to the government of any other"; and
WHEREAS, Article VIII, § 1 of the South Dakota Constitution affirms that the health of a
state depends on the virtue of its people; and
WHEREAS, the official motto of the State of South Dakota is "Under God, the People Rule";
and
WHEREAS, we hold that only a continual submission to the sovereignty of the Almighty
and wholly Righteous God, joined with an unyielding commitment to uphold the principles of
the Constitutions of the United States and the State of South Dakota, will allo w us to protect
the liberties that have been given to us by the Almighty, from all forces that are intent on
advancing an agenda that seeks to turn us away from rightly loving God and our neighbors;
and
26.676.11 2 SCR604
SCR604 ENROLLED
WHEREAS, we give thanks to the omnipotent Lord of all creation for the peace and
prosperity that He has bestowed upon us, for we confess that peace and prosperity are gifts
from Him and that true peace and prosperity is found only in Him; and
WHEREAS, we acknowledge that, because of our fallen nature, these blessings of peace
and prosperity are not experienced by everyone, and many people in this state continue to
face significant challenges; and
WHEREAS, decisions that have been made by the federal government concerning our
nation's borders, foreign relations, economic regulations, and national debt threaten our
institutions and our way of life; and
WHEREAS, exposing, resisting, and eliminating corruption from all levels of government
is essential to maintaining the God-given liberty of all citizens; and
WHEREAS, acts of criminal violence in our communities are an affront to the inherent
dignity of every individual; and
WHEREAS, human trafficking is an abhorrent evil perpetrated upon thousands of people
in our nation and state, depriving them of their God-given right to life, liberty, and the pursuit
of happiness; and
WHEREAS, addiction and mental illness overwhelm our state's financial resources and
healthcare and criminal justice systems and adversely affect our communities and families;
and
WHEREAS, divorce rates and the unending and extensive demand for foster care reveal a
fundamental brokenness in our society; and
WHEREAS, the foundation of a strong community begins with a commitment to strong,
loving families, in which is shown the profound and unconditional love of mother and father
towards each other, their children, and their communities; and
WHEREAS, cultural forces are inviting us to turn a blind eye towards growing tendencies
to embrace suicide, infanticide, and self-mutilation, each of which conflict with the truth that
all men have been created in the image and likeness of God, and that, having been fearfully
and wonderfully made by the Lord of Life, all men possess an inherent and inviolable dignity;
and
26.676.11 3 SCR604
SCR604 ENROLLED
WHEREAS, throughout the history of our nation, our leaders have repeatedly called upon
the people to return to Almighty God in a spirit of humility and penance, and beg the Father's
favor and mercy; and
WHEREAS, in a proclamation calling for a time of national fasting, John Adams wrote, "As
the safety and prosperity of nations ultimately and essentially depend on the protection and
the blessing of Almighty God; and the national acknowledgement of this tr uth is not only an
indispensable duty which the People owe to Him, but a duty whose natural influence is
favorable to the promotion of that Morality and Piety, without which social Happiness cannot
exist nor the Blessings of a Free Government be enjoyed; a nd as this Duty, at all times
incumbent, is so especially in seasons of Difficulty or of Danger, when existing or threatening
Calamities, the just Judgements of God against prevalent Iniquity, are a loud call to
Repentance and Reformation…Under these considerations it has appeared to me that the Duty
of imploring the Mercy and Benediction of Heaven on our Country demands, at this time, a
special attention from its inhabitants”; and
WHEREAS, without abdicating any responsibility for the actions that we take and
acknowledging that the government of our state and nation have the responsibility to govern
justly, we understand that none of our actions have the ability to come to a good e nd if the
Lord does not favor and bless our undertaking; and
WHEREAS, we hold that "Vain is the builder’s toil, if the house is not of the Lord’s building;
vainly the guard keeps watch, if the city has not the Lord for its guardian" (Ps. 127:1); and
WHEREAS, we join the psalmist's prayer to our own and say "Let the glorious majesty of
the Lord our God be upon us: prosper thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, prosper thou
the work of our hands" (Psalm 90:17);
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by the Senate of the One Hundred First Legislature
of the State of South Dakota, the House of Representatives concurring therein, that each
year, the month of July be recognized as a time of prayer and fasting in South Dakota; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that through our acts of prayer and fasting, we seek the
continued blessings of the Lord Most High upon South Dakota, and affirm that He, as our
Creator and God, the King of All Glory, holds all authority, both in Heaven and on earth, to
judge and bless nations, states, and peoples as He sees fit; and
26.676.11 4 SCR604
SCR604 ENROLLED
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that with a humble spirit and a contrite heart, we recognize
our sins and our weaknesses, both individually and as a people, and beg Him for His
forgiveness and His strength; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we ask the Lord Jesus to remove from us all corruption,
violence, and addiction, to heal all hearts and minds, to restore marriages and fortify families,
and to bring a righteous vision and a unity of purpose to all South Dakotans; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we ask the Holy Spirit, the Comforter and the Paraclete,
to move within the halls of government, classrooms, businesses, places of worship, and
homes of this state to bring to the people of the State of South Dakota a spirit o f healing,
love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and temperance;
and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that we call upon all those who are physically able and
spiritually inclined to join us annually during the month of July, for a time of prayer and
fasting, depriving ourselves of those temporary physical comforts so that we may be
awakened to our need and hunger for God, humbling ourselves before Him, prayerfully
seeking His face, asking for His forgiveness, forsaking all wickedness, and begging Him to
bestow His healing, blessing, grace, and mercy upon us, so that we, our communit ies, our
state, and our nation will be transformed into a people fit to be His own.
26.676.11 5 SCR604
SCR604 ENROLLED
Adopted by the Senate, January 27, 2026
Concurred in by the House of Representatives, January 29, 2026
_____________________ _____________________
Chris Karr Peggy Laurenz
President Pro Tempore Secretary of the Senate
of the Senate
_____________________ _____________________
Jon Hansen Patricia Miller
Speaker of the House Chief Clerk of the House