The paper discusses the attitude of US presidents toward religion. Personal and public religiosity of several Founding Fathers, Abraham Lincoln and a few 20. century presidents – with particular emphasis on Bill Clinton and George W. Bush – is outlined to show the continuity of the civil religion tradition. Examples of prophetic and priestly roles of the presidents are presented. It is argued that religious references in presidential speeches are not merely a way to cater to the religious electorate, but also an effort to live up to the standards set by the previous Chief Executives. The persistence of American civil religion suggests that legal-rational authority – in Max Weber’s sense – is seen as insufficient in the world’s greatest democracy and thus in need to be complemented by traditional and charismatic sources of legitimacy.
