The Unnecessary Speech

My friends, some forty years ago, in a POW camp in North Viet Nam, a Christian prison guard demonstrated an incredible act of charity that has remained fixed in my mind to this day. This guard showed me a secret kindness by loosening my bonds so I might know even the smallest degree of comfort in that hell. He then traced a cross in the dirt of the prison ground so that I would know why he did what he did. When his superiors approached, he quickly destroyed any evidence of that cross, and life continued for me in that camp much as it had before. But I knew then that God was present.

My faith has been a personal source of stability and strength for all these years, though I've not been keen to wear my faith on my sleeve, as they say. And because of this, through this campaign some have criticized me as not being religious enough, while others have seen my reconciliation with the traditional Christian Republican base as selling out to those I once labeled as agents of intolerance.

Some may ask, given my personal history and values, why I would seek out the endorsements of men like John Hagee and Rod Parsley- one who has said the Catholic church is the great whore, that hurricane Katrina was God's judgment on New Orleans' hedonism, that Hitler was God's agent in bringing about the modern state of Israel, an other has declared America's divine mission to be the destruction of Islam. Well my friends, I confess that if all I knew of these men were their well-known stances and comments on these issues, I would not have sought them out and embraced them. But the truth of the matter is, these men represent an incredibly important part of America, sincere and faithful Americans for whom the week in and week out preaching of Reverends Hagee and Parsley are the core of faith.

My friends, I whole-heartedly reject the comments made by John Hagee and Rod Parsley, comments that correspond to a destructive and plainly insane religious expression, but I cannot, in any practical sense reject the people these pastors represent. They are America- an America in which people believe Adam and Eve walked hand in hand in claw with dinosaurs, an America that believes that many of you will literally spend eternity being poked with pitchforks by horned imps, an America that believes you can change the course of a tornado by thinking real hard at it, an America that believes a fortunate few will float away through the clouds like balloons to heaven, while the unbelievers are left behind to battle the forces of the anti-Christ, who is probably alive right now, and very likely a Jew- or possibly even, a light-skinned Muslim. They are my America. The America I love. The America that has sent my predecessors to the White House, and they are the America that will support and elect me to the highest office in the land.

Some will see this as an attempt to excuse or justify positions that are plainly beyond the pale of thoughtful, compassionate religion. All I can say to that is: it isn't. My friends I can no more justify those positions than I could justify saying the earth is flat or the moon is made of green cheese. The remarks of the Reverends Hagee and Parsley represent a deeply confused, bordering on insane, picture of the world. I want to make it clear that I disagree with the statements that a few have found offensive or controversial, but I am neither a theologian nor pastor and must state that there are many things in religion that are a matter of faith. It was faith that convinced me God was present in that horrible prison camp in North Viet Nam, it was faith that saw me through that time. It is faith that sustains us during tough economic times and our faith that will see us through. It is faith that will lead us to a victory in the global war on terrorism and Islamist extremism and it is faith that keeps this nation strong and proud.

I'd like to leave you with a story. It's the story of Clara Jean Brown- while I was campaigning in Alabama she told me her story. During a thunder storm, Clara was concerned about the safety of her children, so she began to pray. She prayed that they would make it through the storm unharmed. As the storm grew ever closer, she prayed more earnestly for her family. At the moment she said "Amen" the storm was clearly overhead an no sooner was she done praying then lightning struck the street outside her home, travelled through the utility lines and engulfed her room in flames.

Now, Clara, struck by lightning, in the burned out shell of a home, says she feels blessed to be alive. And, my friends, we are as well. We're continuing on because of people like Clara- people who are struck by the lightning life has to offer but keep on. And together, we will continue on, through this campaign, on to the White House, on to a future where we will remain one nation under God.

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Wear! Wear! Wear!