As devout Christians throughout the country prepare their hearts and minds to share in Jesus Christ’s passion on the cross and celebrate his glory in the resurrection, one Missouri senator is hoping to make the biggest day on the church’s liturgical calendar a federal holiday.

“This isn’t a radical idea,” Senator Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.) wrote on X. “It’s a federal recognition of a tradition that is central to Western civilization — a tradition that’s already recognized as a public holiday in nations across (and beyond!) the West, including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and most of Western Europe.”

Last week, Schmitt introduced a bill that would designate Easter Monday as a national public holiday. He says our current schedule makes it “way too difficult” for families to celebrate Easter together as everyone must go back to work on Monday, meaning Americans must either take work off to be with loved ones or forgo time with them, especially if they live far apart.

Making Easter Monday a national public holiday is long overdue. Christian countries around the world all recognize the importance of instituting Easter Monday as a day of rest and celebration, often with their own unique traditions and customs. Why doesn’t the United States, a nation whose heritage is steeped in Christianity, do the same?

A country’s holidays remind its citizens of its values and provide a common cultural script to live by. Public holidays symbolize a nation’s history and shared sense of identity, fostering unity among its populace. If the United States was founded and formulated by Christians and their ideals, why do we not commemorate the most important day of the year for the Christian faith? America owes its core to Christianity — let’s reflect this by instituting a federal holiday in its honor.

“Our holidays and traditions are part of the story we tell about ourselves,” Schmitt wrote on X. “[Easter is] an American holiday, allowing a fuller celebration of the defining moment of the faith that shaped our nation and civilization.”

If Schmitt’s vision becomes law, Easter Monday would be the 13th federal holiday in the U.S. The most recently instituted federal holiday is Juneteenth, a public holiday commemorating when slaves in Galveston, Texas, first heard of the Emancipation Proclamation during the Civil War. It was recognized as a national holiday in 2021.

Schmitt’s campaign to make Easter Monday a federal holiday comes as the Trump administration is hosting a number of Holy Week events to give Easter “the observance it deserves.” President Trump and First Lady Melania Trump also released a “Presidential Message on Holy Week” commemorating the tremendous gravity of the week for Christians everywhere.

“This week, we pray for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon our beloved Nation,” the statement reads. “We pray that America will remain a beacon of faith, hope, and freedom for the entire world, and we pray to achieve a future that reflects the truth, beauty, and goodness of Christ’s eternal kingdom in Heaven.”

If the Trump administration is already focused on boosting Easter this year, why not partner with Congress and signal Easter’s ultimate importance by making it a federal holiday? Eighty-one percent of Americans already celebrate Easter. This is an easy political win for both President Trump and Congress.