[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 40, Number 53 (Monday, January 3, 2005)]
[Page 3017]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
The President's Radio Address

December 25, 2004

    Good morning. On this Christmas Day, as families across the Nation 
gather in our homes to celebrate, Laura and I extend to all Americans 
our best wishes for the holidays. We hope this Christmas is a time of 
joy and peace for each of you, and we hope it offers you a chance for 
rest and reflection as you look forward to the new year ahead.
    The Christmas season fills our hearts with gratitude for the many 
blessings in our lives, and with those blessings comes a responsibility 
to reach out to others. Many of our fellow Americans still suffer from 
the effects of illness or poverty. Others fight cruel addictions or cope 
with division in their families or grieve the loss of a loved one.
    Christmastime reminds each of us that we have a duty to our fellow 
citizens, that we are called to love our neighbor just as we would like 
to be loved ourselves. By volunteering our time and talents where they 
are needed most, we help heal the sick, comfort those who suffer, and 
bring hope to those who despair, one heart and one soul at a time.
    During the holidays, we also keep in our thoughts and prayers the 
men and women of our Armed Forces, especially those far from home, 
separated from family and friends by the call of duty. In Afghanistan, 
Iraq, and elsewhere, these skilled and courageous Americans are fighting 
the enemies of freedom and protecting our country from danger. By 
bringing liberty to the oppressed, our troops are helping to win the war 
on terror, and they are defending the freedom and security of us all. 
They and their families are making many sacrifices for our Nation, and 
for that, all Americans are deeply grateful.
    The times we live in have brought many challenges to our country. 
And in such times, the story of Christmas brings special comfort and 
confidence. For 2,000 years, Christmas has proclaimed a message of hope, 
the patient hope of men and women across centuries who listened to the 
words of prophets and lived in joyful expectation, the hope of Mary who 
welcomed God's plan with great faith, and the hope of Wise Men who set 
out on a long journey, guided only by a promise traced in the stars.
    Christmas reminds us that the grandest purposes of God can be found 
in the humblest places, and it gives us hope that all the love and gifts 
that come to us in this life are the signs and symbols of an even 
greater love and gift that came on a holy night.
    Thank you for listening, and Merry Christmas.

Note: The address was recorded at 7:50 a.m. on December 23 at Camp 
David, MD, for broadcast at 10:06 a.m. on December 25. The transcript 
was made available by the Office of the Press Secretary on December 23 
but was embargoed for release until the broadcast. The Office of the 
Press Secretary also released a Spanish language transcript of this 
address.