    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2005, Book I)]
    [June 21, 2005]
    [Pages 1035-1037]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Satellite Remarks to the Southern Baptist Convention Annual Meeting
     June 21, 2005

        Bobby, thank you very much for your kind
    introduction. And thank you for letting me address this convention. I'm
    so honored to be able to speak to you from Washington, DC. And Bobby, I
    appreciate you. I appreciate you for wearing our Nation's uniform and
    for earning the Bronze Star and the Purple Heart as an Army officer. I
    know you share in my sentiments when I say that we are grateful for the
    goodness and courage of the men and women of our military. We're
    grateful for the support and sacrifices of our military families. And I
    want to thank the Southern Baptists' campaign to send out postcards to
    our troops in the field. I appreciate what you're doing. Our men and
    women appreciate even more; they appreciate your prayerful support as
    they protect our liberty.
        Laura and I also want to--at least I want to
    tell you, on behalf of Laura, that we really appreciate your prayers,
    the prayers of our Baptist friends that have sustained us and uplifted
    us. I cannot tell you the number of times Americans have said to me,
    ``Mr. President, I pray for you and your family.'' And I tell them the
    same thing I'm telling you now, that is the greatest gift anyone can
    give to me and Laura, and thank you for your prayers.
        From the landing of the pilgrims at Plymouth Rock, the men and women
    who founded this Nation in freedom relied on prayer to protect it and
    preserve it. In 1789, President George Washington called America's
    Baptists the firm friends of liberty. Today, another President, George
    W., thanks you, because more than two centuries later, you remain firm
    in your dedication to God and country.
        You believe that the ideal of religious liberty is a free church in
    a free state. And you know that freedom is a divine gift that carries
    serious responsibilities. We are called by our Creator to use this gift
    of freedom to build a more compassionate society, where families are
    strong, life is valued, and the poor and the sick can count on the love
    and help of their neighbors.
        Building a more compassionate society starts with preserving the
    source of compassion, the family. Strong families teach children to live
    moral lives and help us pass

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    down the values that define a caring society. And Southern Baptists are
    practicing compassion by defending the family and the sacred institution
    of marriage. Because marriage is a sacred institution and the foundation
    of society, it should not be redefined by local officials and activist
    judges. For the good of families, children, and society, I support a
    constitutional amendment to protect the institution of marriage.
        And for the good of our legal system, I will also continue to
    nominate Federal judges who faithfully interpret the law and do not
    legislate from the bench. Every judicial nominee deserves an up-or-down
    vote on the floor of the United States Senate, and I thank you for your
    strong support of the fairminded jurists I have named to the Federal
    courts.
        Building a more compassionate society also depends on building a
    culture of life. A compassionate society protects and defends its most
    vulnerable members at every stage of life. A compassionate society
    supports the principles of ethical science. When we seek to improve
    human life, we must always preserve human dignity, so that's why we
    stand against cloning. A compassionate society rejects partial-birth
    abortion. And I signed a law to end that brutal practice, and my
    administration will continue working to defend that law. To advance a
    culture of life, I was proud to sign the Born-Alive Infants Protection
    Act and the Unborn Victims of Violence Act.
        A compassionate society will not sanction the creation of life only
    to destroy it. At the White House, I recently met with 21 remarkable
    families, each of whom either adopted or gave up for adoption frozen
    embryos that remained after fertility treatments. The children I met
    confirm our shared belief that America can pursue the tremendous
    possibilities of science and, at the same time, remain an ethical and
    compassionate society. With your continued dedication and work, we will
    continue to build a culture of life in America, and America will be
    better off for it.
        Finally, building a more compassionate society requires that we
    mobilize our Nation's armies of compassion to help the poor, the sick,
    and those who hurt. America's faith-based institutions change hearts
    every day. And we depend on the work of these organizations to bring
    hope to harsh places. Yet for too long, the Governments have
    discriminated against faith-based programs, just because they have a
    cross or a Star of David or a crescent on the wall. And that's why I
    signed an Executive order that said that faith-based groups providing
    social services are entitled to the same access to Federal money as
    other groups. I am proud that we have now opened billions of dollars in
    grant money to competition that includes our faith-based charities. For
    example, my administration awarded College Park Baptist Church in
    Orlando, Florida, $5.8 million to build 68 homes for low-income seniors.
        Because faith-based groups should never have to forfeit their
    religious liberty to get Federal dollars--and that's an important
    concept--we want your help. We want your love, but at the same time, you
    do not have to forget the mission of faith or ignore the mission of
    faith that calls you to action in the first place. And that's why the
    Executive order I signed should be codified into Federal law. Congress
    needs to pass charitable choice legislation to forever guarantee equal
    treatment for our faith-based organizations when they compete for
    Federal funds.
        Southern Baptists are the soldiers in the armies of compassion at
    home and abroad. You're bringing hope to the continent of Africa, and I
    thank you for that. In Uganda, Southern Baptists have emphasized
    abstinence and helped as that country reduced the percentage of people
    infected with HIV by more than two-thirds in less than a decade and a
    half. In Sudan and other countries across Africa, the Samaritan's Purse
    ministry provides food and water and medical care and education to
    suffering people.

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        Helping Africa is a mission we share. I recently announced $674
    million in emergency humanitarian aid to Africa. We and our African
    partners have together brought life-saving AIDS treatment to more than
    200,000 people in sub-Sahara Africa. We're on track to meeting a 5-year
    goal of treating nearly 2 million African adults and children for HIV/
    AIDS.
        Service to others is a long Baptist tradition. One of the most
    popular hymns in the Baptist hymnal cries out to the Lord, ``Thy
    compassions, they fail not.'' The compassion of Southern Baptists toward
    your neighbors in America and around the world has helped heal broken
    hearts. Where there is despair, you provide hope, and you help those who
    need love find love. As you work to feed the hungry and provide shelter
    for the homeless, you are changing America and the world for the
    better--one heart, one soul, and one conscience at a time.
        I've come to your convention via video to thank you for all you do.
    Thank you for your love for your country. Thank you for your love for
    your neighbor.
        May God bless you all, and may God continue to bless the United
    States of America.

    Note: The President spoke by satellite at 11:55 a.m. from the Map Room
    at the White House to the convention meeting in Nashville, TN. In his
    remarks, he referred to Bobby Welch, president, Southern Baptist
    Convention.