Thursday, December 6, 2007

Excerpts from Mitt Romney's speech on religion

"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.'"

"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 selfsame as those from the other faiths that stand upon this common foundation. And these convictions will indeed inform my presidency."

"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."

3 comments:

Unknown said...

I'll admit it was a good speech but not enough to give him the nomination. Regardless of whether or not it's right or wrong, most conservative Christians view mormonism as a cult (they make up the majority of Romney's base) and while they may vote for a mormon in the general in the primary they will not. Huckabee looks strong enough to be a player just long enough to end Romney.

Chuck Darrell said...

How so considering Romney's huge lead in New Hampshire?

Unknown said...

Romney more than any other candidate has spent his time and money on the early states, and the polling rewards him accordingly. Yet his base is at it's core, shallow. Not themselves per say but they aren't a loyal group and before it gets said, I know many loyal Romney supporters. He astronumical spending with a very low win in the Iowa straw poll bare that out.