[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 32, Number 49 (Monday, December 9, 1996)]
[Pages 2463-2464]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks on Lighting the National Christmas Tree

December 5, 1996

    Thank you very much. Chairman Betchkal, Reverend Smith, my friend 
Patti LaBelle--you did well with and without your singers. [Laughter] To 
the Richmond College Children's Concert Choir and LeAnn Rimes, welcome, 
to the Mannheim Steamroller Band, the Washington Ballet, the Boy and 
Girl Scouts. Let me join Santa Claus in also saying that we miss two 
important members the Pageant of Peace lost in the last year, Joe Reilly 
and Bill Harris. The spirit of Christmas was alive in them every day, 
and we remember them.
    Hillary and I look forward to being here every year. I told Hillary 
when we were sitting here that I never quite get into the spirit of 
Christmas until I come here to the Pageant of Peace.
    America's Christmas tree is famous all over the world. Believe it or 
not, there's even a new movie in Japan about two people who came to 
Washington and fell in love under this Christmas tree. It isn't hard to 
see how that would happen, for this is a magic time.
    We come here tonight to celebrate that magic, to rejoice in the 
spirit of the holiday season, no matter what our faith, a spirit of 
sharing and giving, of gathering with family and friends and coming 
together as one com

[[Page 2464]]

munity. You can see it everywhere at this time of year.
    And of course, at Christmas we come together especially to celebrate 
the birth of a child who came into the world without a home, only a 
stable's roof to shelter him, who grew to teach the lesson of love and 
peace that has truly changed the world. ``Blessed are the peacemakers,'' 
he said, and those words still call us to action.
    As we look around the world tonight we know the spirit of peace is 
strong enough to triumph over the forces that still threaten it. Let us 
be grateful that our Nation is at peace and rejoice in the progress we 
have made to bring about peace on Earth. And let us not forget the work 
still to be done, from Bosnia to the Middle East to the Korean 
Peninsula.
    Today our brave men and women in uniform are helping other people in 
other lands to make their peace. And across our country this holiday 
season people are joining in peace to feed the hungry, to bring toys to 
poor children who otherwise would not have them, and to reconcile our 
own differences. At Christmas and throughout the year the greatest gift 
of all we can give our own children is to make their world more safe, 
more peaceful, and more possible for them to make the most of their God-
given potential. It is for our children that we must dedicate ourselves 
to making peace wherever we can, around the world, in every community, 
in our own homes, and perhaps most important, in our own hearts.
    So as we light this wonderful tree let us remember to let our own 
light shine all year long, to make the future of our children bright, to 
honor the spirit of peace at Christmas time.
    Merry Christmas, and God bless you all.

Note: The President spoke at 5:55 p.m. on the Ellipse during the annual 
Christmas Pageant of Peace. In his remarks, he referred to John J. 
Betchkal, president, Christmas Pageant of Peace; Rev. Perry Smith, 
pastor, First Baptist Church of Brentwood, MD; entertainers Patty 
LaBelle and LeAnn Rimes; and television weatherman Willard Scott, and 
Joe Reilly, and Bill Harris, former presidents, Christmas Pageant of 
Peace.