[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 41, Number 20 (Monday, May 23, 2005)]
[Pages 843-844]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Remarks at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast

May 20, 2005

    Thank you for that warm reception, especially for a Methodist. 
[Laughter] It's an honor to be here at the Second Annual National 
Catholic Prayer Breakfast. This is a new tradition, yet its promises are 
timeless for Catholic Americans, to thank the Lord for the blessing of 
freedom, to renew our shared dedication to this great republic, and to 
pray that America uses the gift of freedom to build a culture of life.
    I am sorry that Laura is not here. You probably think she's 
preparing a couple of new one-liners. [Laughter] But in fact, she's 
winging her way to Jordan and Egypt and Israel to spread the freedom 
agenda. But I know if she were here, she would join me in thanking you 
and millions of others whom we'll never get to say thanks to in person 
for the countless prayers. It's an amazing experience to be the 
President of a nation where strangers from all religions pray for me and 
Laura. And I will tell you, it gives me such peace of mind and enables 
me to do my job much better when I'm lifted up in prayer. Thank you for 
your prayers.
    I want to thank Leonard Leo for his kind introduction. I want to 
thank Joe Cella, the president of the National Catholic Prayer 
Breakfast. I want to thank His Eminence Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. 
What a fine man; what a beacon of hope. His Eminence shines brightly in 
the Nation's Capital.
    I appreciate Archbishop Chaput of Denver. Thank you for being here, 
sir. I apologize to him for not being able to listen to his address. He 
said, ``We're paying you a lot of money. Get back to work.'' [Laughter] 
Fortunately, he didn't say, ``We're paying you too much money. Get back 
to work.'' [Laughter]
    I appreciate Archbishop Gomez from the great State of Texas. Sister, 
thank you very much. Admiral, thank you very much, sir.
    Carl Anderson, the Supreme--Knights of Columbus, is with us today. 
Carl, thank you for your friendship.
    The Catholic contribution to American freedom goes back to the 
founding of our country. In 1790, a newly inaugurated George Washington, 
the first George W.--[laughter]--addressed a letter to all Catholics in 
America. He assured them that ``your fellow citizens will not forget the 
patriotic part which you took in the accomplishment of their 
revolution.'' I'm honored to stand before you to offer my gratitude for 
the work American Catholic sons and daughters are doing for our Nation. 
This work includes the incredible acts of compassion through our faith-
based institutions that help Americans in need, especially the Catholic 
schools that educate millions of our fellow citizens and deliver hope to 
inner-city children of all faiths.

[[Page 844]]

    This morning we first thank God for the shared blessings of American 
liberty. Catholics have always known that a society built on respect for 
the religious beliefs of others would be a land where they could achieve 
and prosper.
    When the French writer de Tocqueville visited these shores back in 
the 1830s, he noted that the most democratic country in the world was 
also the one where the Catholic religion was making the most progress. 
He called Catholics the most faithful believers in our land, yet also 
the most independent of citizens--[laughter]--as I've learned from 
dealing with Senator Santorum. [Laughter]
    This morning we also reaffirm that freedom rests on the self-evident 
truths about human dignity. Pope Benedict XVI recently warned that when 
we forget these truths, we risk sliding into a dictatorship of 
relativism where we can no longer defend our values. Catholics and non-
Catholics alike can take heart in the man who sits on the chair of Saint 
Peter, because he speaks with affection about the American model of 
liberty rooted in moral conviction.
    This morning we pray for the many Catholics who serve America in the 
cause of freedom. One of them is an Army Chaplain named Tim Vakoc. He's 
a beloved priest who was seriously wounded in Iraq last May. We pray for 
his recovery; we're inspired by his sacrifice. In the finest tradition 
of American chaplains, he once told his sister, ``The safest place for 
me to be is in the center of God's will, and if that is in the line of 
fire, that's where I'll be.'' Father Tim's sister, Anita Brand, and her 
family are with us today, and a grateful nation expresses our gratitude 
to a brave reverend.
    Catholics have made sacrifices throughout American history because 
they understand that freedom is a divine gift that carries with it 
serious responsibilities. Among the greatest of these responsibilities 
is protecting the most vulnerable members of our society. That was the 
message that Pope John Paul II proclaimed so tirelessly throughout his 
own life, and it explains the remarkable outpouring of love for His 
Holiness at the funeral mass that Laura and I were privileged to attend 
in Rome. It explains why when the men were carrying his wooden casket up 
the stairs and they turned to show the casket to the millions that were 
there, that just as the casket crests, the sun shown for all to see.
    The best way to honor this great champion of human freedom is to 
continue to build a culture of life where the strong protect the weak. 
So today I ask the prayers of all Catholics for America's continued 
trust in God's purpose, for the wisdom to do what's right, and for the 
strength and the conviction that so long as America remains faithful to 
its founding truths, America will always be free.
    Thank you for allowing me to come. May God bless you all, and may 
God continue to bless America.

Note: The President spoke at 8:42 a.m. at the Washington Hilton Hotel. 
In his remarks, he referred to Leonard Leo, member of the board of 
directors, National Catholic Prayer Breakfast; Theodore E. Cardinal 
McCarrick, Archbishop of Washington; Charles J. Chaput, Archbishop of 
Denver; Jose H. Gomez, Archbishop of San Antonio; Rear Adm. Louis V. 
Iasiello, USN, chief of Navy chaplins; and Carl A. Anderson, supreme 
knight, Knights of Columbus. The Office of the Press Secretary also 
released a Spanish language transcript of these remarks.