[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 195 (Wednesday, December 19, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2616-E2617]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




    RECOGNIZING THE IMPORTANCE OF CHRISTMAS AND THE CHRISTIAN FAITH

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. STEVE KING

                                of iowa

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, December 11, 2007

  Mr. KING of Iowa. Mr. Speaker, I would like to begin by thanking the 
Ranking Member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, the gentlewoman from 
Florida, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, for her support and help in getting this 
important measure to the House floor for a vote.
  Mr. Speaker, it is a privilege to address the House today to discuss 
the importance and relevance of Christmas, the Christian holiday 
celebrating the birth of our savior Jesus Christ.
  As this resolution notes, there are approximately 225 million 
Christians in the United States, making Christianity the religion of 
over three-fourths of the American population. Beyond that, there are 
approximately 2 billion Christians throughout the world, making 
Christianity the largest religion in the world and the religion of 
about one-third of the world population.
  And yet, Mr. Speaker, in recent decades there have been some who have 
undertaken efforts to diminish the significance of this great religion, 
and these efforts are no more apparent than during this time of 
Christmas.
  It is not hard to look out over this great country of ours and find 
those who, for one reason or another, have engaged in a highly-
politicized and highly-publicized crusade to rid the public square of 
any reference to the religious underpinnings of the Christmas holiday. 
These are individuals who have subscribed to a radical interpretation 
of our Constitution's free exercise and establishment clauses and have 
sought to impose their secular views and beliefs on the nation as a 
whole.
  In many respects, it is this ongoing effort to bring about the 
secularization of Christmas--and all of our everyday lives for that 
matter--that motivated me to bring this resolution before the House 
today.
  Regardless of how others may define it, Mr. Speaker, Christmas is a 
religious holiday. It is the day on which Christians--those who 
identify themselves as believers in the salvation from sin offered to 
them through the death and resurrection of their savior, Jesus Christ, 
the Son of God, and who, out of gratitude for the gift of salvation, 
commit themselves to living their lives in accordance with the 
teachings of the Holy Bible--celebrate the birth of their savior. For 
Christians, the birth of Jesus is cause for great celebration. As the 
Son of God, Jesus was sent to earth, by our Heavenly Father, to become 
a human being, live a sinless life, be crucified on a cross for our 
sins, and rise from the dead three days later. The purpose of this, as 
you well know, Mr. Speaker, was to save sinners from eternal death--the 
price to be paid for their sin.

  And so, Mr. Speaker, the birth of Christ, as celebrated by Christians 
on Christmas is a truly important and significant day because it is 
celebrated as a recognition of God's redemption, mercy and Grace.
  The importance of Christmas, however, does not end with the tenets of 
Christianity. Because Christmas is one of the most important holidays 
on the Christian calendar, I believe that its annual passage should 
serve as an opportunity for all Americans, Christian or not, religious 
or not, to recognize the important role played by Christianity in the 
formation of our nation and in the founding of our civilization.
  It is no coincidence, Mr. Speaker, that courthouses throughout this 
country proudly display the Ten Commandments. It is no accident that, 
in this very chamber, it is the face of Moses, the human author of 
those divinely dictated commandments, that looks down upon you, keeping 
close watch on all that transpires in this chamber. Mr. Speaker the 
framework of our laws and the fabric of our society is heavily 
dependent upon the maxims of Christianity, and I believe that as we 
Christians begin our annual celebration of the birth of our savior, the 
one from whom Christianity derives its name, it is wholly appropriate 
for us, as a nation and as members of this House, to take the time to 
acknowledge the contributions that the Christian religion has made to 
our country and our way of life.
  Mr. Speaker, I think we all can agree that virtually any American, 
whether Christian,

[[Page E2617]]

atheist, agnostic, or otherwise, when confronted with the fact that he 
has in some way wronged his neighbor, will rightly respond in one 
universal way--knock on his door, confess to him, repent, and ask for 
forgiveness. The neighbor would then forgive them as Christ has taught 
us. True and simple as this may seem, it is important to ask why we as 
Americans naturally react in such a way. The answer of course is that 
in this ``conditioned behavior'' we see very clearly the positive 
effect that Christianity has had on the development of our country and 
culture.

  There are few places in the United States--if any--that you can visit 
where the laws ``do not steal'' and ``do not murder'' do not apply. 
Likewise, there are few households in this great country in which moral 
character is developed in young children without the invocation of the 
ninth and tenth amendments regarding lying and coveting that which 
belongs to others.
  Mr. Speaker, we as Americans live in a moral society and in a country 
that is governed by moral laws. While many of these laws obviously 
cannot be found in any explicit sense within the pages of the Holy 
Bible, when we survey the content of that book--the document that 
outlines how it is the Christians are to live their lives here on 
earth--we do find much in the way of foundational principles that has 
come to guide not just the development of our laws, but also the 
foundation of our nation.
  It was from the Bible and the example of Jesus that Pilgrims first 
established government on this continent, from which the Founders 
outlined the political thought that shaped our nation, and by which 
Congress first intended to educate our children. Furthermore, as the 
scholar David Barton and others have tirelessly pointed out, it was 
from the Bible that early American leaders derived concepts like 
private ownership, the free-enterprise system, an industrious work 
ethic, and workfare rather than welfare. As a result, the life and 
teachings of Jesus Christ have permeated every aspect of life in 
America. He has shaped our culture and transformed every great leader 
to rise from our population. As a testament to this, each of our 
American Presidents has acknowledged God's hand on this Christian 
nation that is the United States. If there never had been a Jesus 
Christ, there would never have been an America.
  In an address to the nation President Truman once said that, ``In 
love, which is the very essence of the message of the Prince of Peace, 
the world would find a solution for all its ills. I do not believe 
there is one problem in this country or in the world today which could 
not be settled if approached through the teaching of the Sermon on the 
Mount. The poets' dream, the lesson of priest and patriarch and the 
prophets' vision of a new heaven and a new earth, all are summed up in 
the message delivered in the Judean hills beside the Sea of Galilee. 
Would that the world would accept that message in this time of its 
greatest need!''
  He went on to say that, ``This is a solemn hour. In the stillness of 
the Eve of the Nativity when the hopes of mankind hang on the peace 
that was offered to the world nineteen centuries ago, it is but 
natural, while we survey our destiny, that we give thought also to our 
past--to some of the things which have gone into the making of our 
Nation.''
  In 1940, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt said of Christmas, ``it 
is well for all humanity to remind itself that while this is in its 
name a Christian celebration, it is participated in reverently and 
happily by hundreds of millions of people who are members of other 
religions, or belong actively to no church at all. The reason is not 
far to seek. It is because the spirit of unselfish service personified 
by the life and the teachings of Christ makes appeal to the inner 
conscience and hope of every man and every woman in every part of the 
earth.''
  President Eisenhower called the nation to reflect during his remarks 
at the lighting of the Nation's Christmas Tree on December, 15th 1967 
when he said, ``In a few days we shall all celebrate the birth of His 
Holiness on earth. We shall recreate in our minds, once more, the 
ancient coming of that Spirit who remains alive for millions in our 
time. We shall acknowledge the Kingdom of a Child in a world of men.''
  He went on to say, ``That Child--we should remember--grew into 
manhood Himself, preached and moved men in many walks of life, and died 
in agony. But His death--so the Christian faith tells us--was not the 
end. For Him, and for millions of men and women ever since, it marked a 
time of triumph--when the spirit of life triumphed over death. So--if 
this Christmas season in a time of war is to have real meaning to us, 
it must celebrate more than the birth of a Baby.''
  During his Radio Address to the Nation on Christmas Eve, 1983 
President Reagan pointed out that ``It's been said that all the kings 
who ever reigned, that all the parliaments that ever sat have not done 
as much to advance the cause of peace on Earth and good will to men as 
the man from Galilee, Jesus of Nazareth.''
  As the words of these great men--these revered and honored presidents 
of the United States of America have clearly demonstrated, it is not a 
stretch to say that the precepts and principles of Jesus have so 
completely permeated the culture of this nation that even an American 
atheist would be hard pressed to separate his worldview from the impact 
of the first Christmas.
  Though we are not all Christians, Mr. Speaker, we are all Americans. 
By virtue of that simple fact, I will again reiterate my belief that it 
is not only appropriate but, more importantly, is necessary during this 
special time of year to remember not only the birth of Jesus Christ, 
the savior of the world, but also to recognize the important impact 
that the Christian faith has had on the foundation and development of 
our society, our nation, and our civilization.

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