"Faith In America"
Remarks As Prepared For Delivery
The George Bush Presidential Library
College Station, Texas
December 6, 2007
"Thank you, Mr. President, for your kind introduction.
"It is an honor to be here today. This is an inspiring
place because of you and the First Lady and because of the
film exhibited across the way in the Presidential library.
For those who have not seen it, it shows the President as
a young pilot, shot down during the Second World War,
being rescued from his life-raft by the crew of an
American submarine. It is a moving reminder that when
America has faced challenge and peril, Americans rise to
the occasion, willing to risk their very lives to defend
freedom and preserve our nation. We are in your debt.
Thank you, Mr. President.
"Mr. President, your generation rose to the occasion,
first to defeat Fascism and then to vanquish the Soviet
Union. You left us, your children, a free and strong
America. It is why we call yours the greatest generation.
It is now my generation's turn. How we respond to today's
challenges will define our generation. And it will
determine what kind of America we will leave our children,
and theirs.
"America faces a new generation of challenges. Radical
violent Islam seeks to destroy us. An emerging China
endeavors to surpass our economic leadership. And we are
troubled at home by government overspending, overuse of
foreign oil, and the breakdown of the family.
"Over the last year, we have embarked on a national debate
on how best to preserve American leadership. Today, I wish
to address a topic which I believe is fundamental to
America's greatness: our religious liberty. I will also
offer perspectives on how my own faith would inform my
Presidency, if I were elected.
"There are some who may feel that religion is not a matter
to be seriously considered in the context of the weighty
threats that face us. If so, they are at odds with the
nation's founders, for they, when our nation faced its
greatest peril, sought the blessings of the Creator. And
further, they discovered the essential connection between
the survival of a free land and the protection of
religious freedom. In John Adams' words: 'We have no
government armed with power capable of contending with
human passions unbridled by morality and religion... Our
constitution was made for a moral and religious people.'
"Freedom requires religion just as religion requires
freedom. Freedom opens the windows of the soul so that man
can discover his most profound beliefs and commune with
God. Freedom and religion endure together, or perish
alone.
"Given our grand tradition of religious tolerance and
liberty, some wonder whether there are any questions
regarding an aspiring candidate's religion that are
appropriate. I believe there are. And I will answer them
today.
"Almost 50 years ago another candidate from Massachusetts
explained that he was an American running for President,
not a Catholic running for President. Like him, I am an
American running for President. I do not define my
candidacy by my religion. A person should not be elected
because of his faith nor should he be rejected because of
his faith.
"Let me assure you that no authorities of my church, or of
any other church for that matter, will ever exert
influence on presidential decisions. Their authority is
theirs, within the province of church affairs, and it ends
where the affairs of the nation begin.
"As Governor, I tried to do the right as best I knew it,
serving the law and answering to the Constitution. I did
not confuse the particular teachings of my church with the
obligations of the office and of the Constitution – and of
course, I would not do so as President. I will put no
doctrine of any church above the plain duties of the
office and the sovereign authority of the law.
"As a young man, Lincoln described what he called
America's 'political religion' – the commitment to defend
the rule of law and the Constitution. When I place my hand
on the Bible and take the oath of office, that oath
becomes my highest promise to God. If I am fortunate to
become your President, I will serve no one religion, no
one group, no one cause, and no one interest. A President
must serve only the common cause of the people of the
United States.
"There are some for whom these commitments are not enough.
They would prefer it if I would simply distance myself
from my religion, say that it is more a tradition than my
personal conviction, or disavow one or another of its
precepts. That I will not do. I believe in my Mormon faith
and I endeavor to live by it. My faith is the faith of my
fathers – I will be true to them and to my beliefs.
"Some believe that such a confession of my faith will sink
my candidacy. If they are right, so be it. But I think
they underestimate the American people. Americans do not
respect believers of convenience. Americans tire of those
who would jettison their beliefs, even to gain the world.
"There is one fundamental question about which I often am
asked. What do I believe about Jesus Christ? I believe
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Savior of
mankind. My church's beliefs about Christ may not all be
the same as those of other faiths. Each religion has its
own unique doctrines and history. These are not bases for
criticism but rather a test of our tolerance. Religious
tolerance would be a shallow principle indeed if it were
reserved only for faiths with which we agree.
"There are some who would have a presidential candidate
describe and explain his church's distinctive doctrines.
To do so would enable the very religious test the founders
prohibited in the Constitution. No candidate should become
the spokesman for his faith. For if he becomes President
he will need the prayers of the people of all faiths.
"I believe that every faith I have encountered draws its
adherents closer to God. And in every faith I have come to
know, there are features I wish were in my own: I love the
profound ceremony of the Catholic Mass, the
approachability of God in the prayers of the Evangelicals,
the tenderness of spirit among the Pentecostals, the
confident independence of the Lutherans, the ancient
traditions of the Jews, unchanged through the ages, and
the commitment to frequent prayer of the Muslims. As I
travel across the country and see our towns and cities, I
am always moved by the many houses of worship with their
steeples, all pointing to heaven, reminding us of the
source of life's blessings.
"It is important to recognize that while differences in
theology exist between the churches in America, we share a
common creed of moral convictions. And where the affairs
of our nation are concerned, it's usually a sound rule to
focus on the latter – on the great moral principles that
urge us all on a common course. Whether it was the cause
of abolition, or civil rights, or the right to life
itself, no movement of conscience can succeed in America
that cannot speak to the convictions of religious people.
"We separate church and state affairs in this country, and
for good reason. No religion should dictate to the state
nor should the state interfere with the free practice of
religion. But in recent years, the notion of the
separation of church and state has been taken by some well
beyond its original meaning. They seek to remove from the
public domain any acknowledgment of God. Religion is seen
as merely a private affair with no place in public life.
It is as if they are intent on establishing a new religion
in America – the religion of secularism. They are wrong.
"The founders proscribed the establishment of a state
religion, but they did not countenance the elimination of
religion from the public square. We are a nation 'Under
God' and in God, we do indeed trust.
"We should acknowledge the Creator as did the Founders –
in ceremony and word. He should remain on our currency, in
our pledge, in the teaching of our history, and during the
holiday season, nativity scenes and menorahs should be
welcome in our public places. Our greatness would not long
endure without judges who respect the foundation of faith
upon which our constitution rests. I will take care to
separate the affairs of government from any religion, but
I will not separate us from 'the God who gave us liberty.'
"Nor would I separate us from our religious heritage.
Perhaps the most important question to ask a person of
faith who seeks a political office, is this: does he share
these American values: the equality of human kind, the
obligation to serve one another, and a steadfast
commitment to liberty?
"They are not unique to any one denomination. They belong
to the great moral inheritance we hold in common. They are
the firm ground on which Americans of different faiths
meet and stand as a nation, united.
"We believe that every single human being is a child of
God – we are all part of the human family. The conviction
of the inherent and inalienable worth of every life is
still the most revolutionary political proposition ever
advanced. John Adams put it that we are 'thrown into the
world all equal and alike.'
"The consequence of our common humanity is our
responsibility to one another, to our fellow Americans
foremost, but also to every child of God. It is an
obligation which is fulfilled by Americans every day, here
and across the globe, without regard to creed or race or
nationality.
"Americans acknowledge that liberty is a gift of God, not
an indulgence of government. No people in the history of
the world have sacrificed as much for liberty. The lives
of hundreds of thousands of America's sons and daughters
were laid down during the last century to preserve
freedom, for us and for freedom loving people throughout
the world. America took nothing from that Century's
terrible wars – no land from Germany or Japan or Korea; no
treasure; no oath of fealty. America's resolve in the
defense of liberty has been tested time and again. It has
not been found wanting, nor must it ever be. America must
never falter in holding high the banner of freedom.
"These American values, this great moral heritage, is
shared and lived in my religion as it is in yours. I was
taught in my home to honor God and love my neighbor. I saw
my father march with Martin Luther King. I saw my parents
provide compassionate care to others, in personal ways to
people nearby, and in just as consequential ways in
leading national volunteer movements. I am moved by the
Lord's words: 'For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat:
I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: I was a stranger, and
ye took me in: naked, and ye clothed me...'
"My faith is grounded on these truths. You can witness
them in Ann and my marriage and in our family. We are a
long way from perfect and we have surely stumbled along
the way, but our aspirations, our values, are the
self-same as those from the other faiths that stand upon
this common foundation. And these convictions will indeed
inform my presidency.
"Today's generations of Americans have always known
religious liberty. Perhaps we forget the long and arduous
path our nation's forbearers took to achieve it. They came
here from England to seek freedom of religion. But upon
finding it for themselves, they at first denied it to
others. Because of their diverse beliefs, Ann Hutchinson
was exiled from Massachusetts Bay, a banished Roger
Williams founded Rhode Island, and two centuries later,
Brigham Young set out for the West. Americans were unable
to accommodate their commitment to their own faith with an
appreciation for the convictions of others to different
faiths. In this, they were very much like those of the
European nations they had left.
"It was in Philadelphia that our founding fathers defined
a revolutionary vision of liberty, grounded on self
evident truths about the equality of all, and the
inalienable rights with which each is endowed by his
Creator.
"We cherish these sacred rights, and secure them in our
Constitutional order. Foremost do we protect religious
liberty, not as a matter of policy but as a matter of
right. There will be no established church, and we are
guaranteed the free exercise of our religion.
"I'm not sure that we fully appreciate the profound
implications of our tradition of religious liberty. I have
visited many of the magnificent cathedrals in Europe. They
are so inspired ... so grand ... so empty. Raised up over
generations, long ago, so many of the cathedrals now stand
as the postcard backdrop to societies just too busy or too
'enlightened' to venture inside and kneel in prayer. The
establishment of state religions in Europe did no favor to
Europe's churches. And though you will find many people of
strong faith there, the churches themselves seem to be
withering away.
"Infinitely worse is the other extreme, the creed of
conversion by conquest: violent Jihad, murder as
martyrdom... killing Christians, Jews, and Muslims with
equal indifference. These radical Islamists do their
preaching not by reason or example, but in the coercion of
minds and the shedding of blood. We face no greater danger
today than theocratic tyranny, and the boundless suffering
these states and groups could inflict if given the chance.
"The diversity of our cultural expression, and the
vibrancy of our religious dialogue, has kept America in
the forefront of civilized nations even as others regard
religious freedom as something to be destroyed.
"In such a world, we can be deeply thankful that we live
in a land where reason and religion are friends and allies
in the cause of liberty, joined against the evils and
dangers of the day. And you can be certain of this: Any
believer in religious freedom, any person who has knelt in
prayer to the Almighty, has a friend and ally in me. And
so it is for hundreds of millions of our countrymen: we do
not insist on a single strain of religion – rather, we
welcome our nation's symphony of faith.
"Recall the early days of the First Continental Congress
in Philadelphia, during the fall of 1774. With Boston
occupied by British troops, there were rumors of imminent
hostilities and fears of an impending war. In this time of
peril, someone suggested that they pray. But there were
objections. 'They were too divided in religious
sentiments', what with Episcopalians and Quakers,
Anabaptists and Congregationalists, Presbyterians and
Catholics.
"Then Sam Adams rose, and said he would hear a prayer from
anyone of piety and good character, as long as they were a
patriot.
"And so together they prayed, and together they fought,
and together, by the grace of God ... they founded this
great nation.
"In that spirit, let us give thanks to the divine 'author
of liberty.' And together, let us pray that this land may
always be blessed, 'with freedom's holy light.'
"God bless the United States of America."
Thursday, Dec 06, 2007