THE
PRESIDENT: Thank you, President Byker; members of the Calvin faculty;
distinguished guests; parents, friends, family -- and, most importantly,
the Class of 2005. (Applause.)
Thanks for having me. I was excited to come back to Calvin, and
I was just telling Laura the other night about what fun it would be to
come to Calvin College. I said, you know, Laura, I love being around so
many young folks. You know, it gives me a chance to re-live my glory
days in academia. (Laughter.) She said, George, that's not exactly how I
would describe your college experience. (Laughter.) She also said one
other thing I think the graduates will appreciate hearing, a good piece
of advice. She said, the folks here are here to get their diploma, not
to hear from an old guy go on too long. (Laughter.) So with that sage
advice, here goes.
I bring a great message of hope and freedom to Calvin College Class
of 2005: There is life after Professor Vanden Bosch and English 101.
(Laughter.) Someday you will appreciate the grammar and verbal skills
you learned here. (Laughter and applause.) And if any of you wonder how
far a mastery of the English language can take you, just look what it
did for me. (Laughter and applause.)
I thank the moms and dads here for your sacrifice and for your love.
(Applause.) I want to thank the faculty for your hard work and
dedication. (Applause.) And, again, I congratulate the Class of 2005.
Soon you will collect your degrees and say goodbyes to a school that has
been your home -- and you will take your rightful place in a country
that offers you the greatest freedom and opportunity on Earth.
(Applause.) I ask that you use what you've learned to make your own
contributions to the story of American freedom.
The immigrants who founded Calvin College came to America for the
freedom to worship, and they built this great school on the sturdy
ground of liberty. They saw in the American "experiment" the world's
best hope for freedom -- and they weren't the only ones excited by what
they saw. In 1835, a young civil servant and aristocrat from France,
named Alexis de Tocqueville, would publish a book about America that
still resonates today.
The book is called "Democracy in America," and in it this young
Frenchman said that the secret to America's success was our talent for
bringing people together for the common good. De Tocqueville wrote that
tyrants maintained their power by "isolating" their citizens -- and that
Americans guaranteed their freedom by their remarkable ability to band
together without any direction from government. The America he described
offered the world something it had never seen before: a working model of
a thriving democracy where opportunity was unbounded, where virtue was
strong, and where citizens took responsibility for their neighbors.
Tocqueville's account is not just the observations of one man
-- it is the story of our founding. It is not just a description of
America at a point in time -- it is an agenda for our time. Our Founders
rejected both a radical individualism that makes no room for others, and
the dreary collectivism that crushes the individual. They gave us
instead a society where individual freedom is anchored in communities.
And in this hopeful new century, we have a great goal: to renew this
spirit of community and thereby renew the character and compassion of
our nation.
First, we must understand that the character of our citizens is
essential to society. In a free and compassionate society, the public
good depends on private character. That character is formed and shaped
in institutions like family, faith, and the many civil and -- social and
civic organizations, from the Boy Scouts to the local Rotary Clubs. The
future success of our nation depends on our ability to understand the
difference between right and wrong and to have the strength of character
to make the right choices. Government cannot create character, but it
can and should respect and support the institutions that do.
Second, we must understand the importance of keeping power close to
the people. Local people know local problems, they know the names and
faces of their neighbors. The heart and soul of America is in our local
communities; it is in the citizen school boards that determine how our
children are educated; it's in city councils and state legislators that
reflect the unique needs and priorities of the people they serve; it's
in the volunteer groups that transform towns and cities into caring
communities and neighborhoods. In the years to come, I hope that you'll
consider joining these associations or serving in government -- because
when you come together to serve a cause greater than yourself, you will
energize your communities and help build a more just and compassionate
America.
Finally, we must understand that it is by becoming active in our
communities that we move beyond our narrow interests. In today's complex
world, there are a lot of things that pull us apart. We need to support
and encourage the institutions and pursuits that bring us together. And
we learn how to come together by participating in our churches and
temples and mosques and synagogues; in civil rights associations; in our
PTAs and Jaycees; in our gardening and book clubs, interest groups and
chambers of commerce; in our service groups -- from soup kitchens to
homeless shelters.
All these organizations promote the spirit of community and
help us acquire the "habits of heart" that are so vital to a free
society. And because one of the deepest values of our country is
compassion, we must never turn away from any citizen who feels isolated
from the opportunities of America. Our faith-based and community groups
provide the armies of compassion that help people who wonder if the
American Dream is meant for them. These armies of compassion are the
great engines of social change, they serve individual and local needs,
and they have been found at the front of every great movement in
American history.
The history of forming associations dedicated to serving others is as
old as America, itself. From abolition societies and suffrage movements
to immigrant aid groups and prison reform ministries, America's social
entrepreneurs have often been far ahead of our government in identifying
and meeting the needs of our fellow countrymen. Because they are closer
to the people they serve, our faith-based and community organizations
deliver better results than government. And they have a human touch:
When a person in need knocks on the door of a faith-based or community
organization, he or she is welcomed as a brother or a sister.
No one understood this better than another 19th century visitor to
America whose name is well known to Calvin College: Abraham Kuyper.
Kuyper was a Dutchman who would be elected his nation's prime minister,
and he knew all about the importance of associations because he founded
so many of them -- including two newspapers, a political party, and a
university. Kuyper contrasted the humanizing influence of independent
social institutions with the "mechanical character of government." And
in a famous speech right here in Grand Rapids, he urged Dutch immigrants
to resist the temptation to retreat behind their own walls -- he told
them to go out into their adopted America and make a true difference as
true Christian citizens.
Our government is encouraging all Americans to make a difference
through our faith-based and community initiative; we're mobilizing
Americans to volunteer through the USA Freedom Corps. We'll do our part,
but, ultimately, service is up to you. It is your choice to make. As
your generation takes its place in the world, all of you must make this
decision: Will you be a spectator, or a citizen? To make a difference in
this world, you must be involved. By serving a higher calling here or
abroad, you'll make your lives richer and build a more hopeful future
for our world.
At Calvin College, you take this call to service to heart. You serve
as "agents of renewal" across the Earth. You volunteer for Big
Brothers/Big Sisters to mentor young people. You work at Bethany
Christian Services here in Grand Rapids, one of the best-known adoption
services in America. A former Calvin student and professor, Vern Ehlers,
serves in the halls of Congress. As the Class of 2005 goes out into the
world, I ask you to embrace this tradition of service and help set an
example for all Americans. As Americans we share an agenda that calls us
to action -- a great responsibility to serve and love others, a
responsibility that goes back to the greatest commandment.
This isn't a Democratic idea. This isn't a Republican idea. This is
an American idea. (Applause.) It has sustained our nation's liberty for
more than 200 years. The Founders knew that too much government leads to
oppression, but that too little government can leave us helpless and
alone. So they built a free society with many roots in community. And to
keep the tree of liberty standing tall in the century before us, you
must nourish those roots.
Today, the Calvin Class of 2005 looks out on an America that
continues to be defined by the promise of our Declaration of
Independence. We're still the nation our Founders imagined, where
individual freedom and opportunity is unbounded, where community is
vibrant, where compassion keeps us from resting until all our citizens
take their place at the banquet of freedom and equality. And with your
help, we'll all do our part to transform our great land one person and
one community at a time.
Thank you for having me and may God bless you, and may God continue
to bless our country. (Applause.)