THE PRESIDENT: Mr. Mayor, thank you
very much. I appreciate so much your
hospitality. Laura and I are honored to be here in
Philadelphia. It's the perfect place to celebrate our nation's
birthday. (Applause.)
I told the
Mayor in front of the country when I addressed the Congress that I was
coming to Philadelphia to celebrate the wonderful missions that take
place in this grand city. Mr. Mayor, thank you for allowing
me to come, and thank you for your gracious
hospitality. Same to the Governor of this great state, our
close friend, Tom Ridge, and his wife, Michelle. Thank you all very
much for your hospitality.
It's an honor to
be on the stage with the senior Senator, who married quite well,
himself. (Laughter.) I appreciate you being here,
Senator, and the honorable. It's an honor to be on the stage
with leaders of the faith community in Philadelphia.
Distinguished guests, my fellow citizens,
thank you for your warm welcome. (Applause.)
And thank you, Mr. Mayor, for your lovely
gift. Laura and I will make a special place for it at the
White House.
Today we celebrate American
independence, in the place of America's birth, close to a symbol of
American liberty. As millions know, to see the Liberty Bell
is a moving experience. In America we set aside certain
places and treasures like this to protect them from the passing of the
years. We grant them special care to mark a moment in
time. Here in Philadelphia, these markers are all around us,
reminders of our history.
This is a dynamic
and modern city. Yet, if the founders, themselves were here,
they would know the place. Benjamin Franklin and his wife
could still find their way from here to the corner where they first saw
each other, at Market and 4th. John Adams could make his way
to City Tavern and show us the spot where he first shook the hand of
George Washington. Thomas Jefferson would still find waiting for him
the room where he drafted the Declaration of Independence.
And each of the founders, coming here, would
know the ring of the Liberty Bell. It rang to announce the
first public reading of the Declaration of Independence, 225 years
ago. Those new citizens of a nation just four days old heard
inspiring words, but not original thoughts. Our founders
considered themselves heirs to principles that were timeless and truths
that were self-evident.
When Jefferson sat
down to write, he was trying, he said, to place before mankind "the
common sense of the subject." The common sense of the
subject was that we should be free. And though great evils
would linger, the world would never be the same after July 4, 1776.
A wonderful country was born, and a
revolutionary idea sent forth to all mankind: Freedom, not
by the good graces of government, but as the birthright of every
individual. Equality, not as a theory of philosophers, but
by the design of our Creator. Natural rights, not for the
few, not even for a fortunate many, but for all people in all place, in
all times.
The world still echoes with the
ideals of America's Declaration. Our ideals have been
accepted in many countries, and bitterly opposed by
tyrants. They are the mighty rock on which we have built our
nation. They are the hope of all who are
oppressed. They are the standard to which we hold others,
and the standard by which we measure ourselves.
Our greatest achievements have come when we
have lived up to these ideals. Our greatest tragedies have
come when we have failed to uphold them.
When
Abraham Lincoln wondered whether civil war was preferable to permanent
slavery, he knew where to seek guidance. Speaking in
Independence Hall he said, "I have never had a feeling, politically,
that did not spring from the sentiments embodied in the Declaration of
Independence." The Declaration, Lincoln said, gave promise
that in due time the weight would be lifted from the shoulders of all
men and all should have an equal chance.
From
the ideals in the Declaration came the laws and the Constitution,
including the free exercise of religion. The Liberty Bell
was originally cast to mark the 50th anniversary of William Penn's
Charter of Privileges, the first guarantee of religious freedom in this
commonwealth. Now, exactly three centuries after William
Penn's charter, the founders would be pleased to see that we have
respected this right of the people and the limitation on the
government. They knew what dangers can follow when
government either dictates or frustrates the exercise of religion.
Our founders would also be pleased to walk
these streets again and to find, amid the problems of modern life, a
familiar American spirit of faith and good works. They would
see the signs of poverty and want, but also acts of great kindness and
charity. They would see addiction and the wreckage it
brings. But they would also see in the works of the religious groups
and charities throughout this city the power that can rescue abandoned
hopes and repair a broken life.
In a world
very different from theirs they would see different kinds of hardships,
fears, and suffering. Yet, they would also recognize the
brotherly love that gave this city its name.
Your Mayor and I have just come from an Independence Day celebration in
North Philadelphia, organized by a great American named Herbert Lusk.
(Applause.) Herb first came into prominence as an
athlete. Today he is pastor of Greater Exodus Baptist
Church. (Applause.) And its parishioners still
like him. (Laughter and applause.) Herb's church
is one of the hundreds of churches and synagogues and mosques in this
city where worship of the Almighty is expressed in service to neighbors
in need.
In every part of Philadelphia,
caring people are doing the work of compassion. They teach
boys and girls to read, as in a program called Youth Education for
Tomorrow, where more than 20 faith-based literacy centers are producing
great results for your city's children.
At
the Jesus School in North Philadelphia, little Aneeisha Graham came a
year ago, not knowing any letters of the alphabet. Today, at
age 7, she reads at the 4th grade
level. (Applause.) Aneeisha is with us today.
It's great to see you, darling. Thank you for
coming. (Applause.)
Other
faith-based groups in this city operate shelters for the destitute and
the homeless. They bring kindness and understanding to young
women facing domestic violence or crisis pregnancies. They
give time and attention to the children of prisoners. These
are the kinds of citizens every society needs --
citizens who speak for the voiceless and feed the hungry and protect
the weak and comfort the afflicted.
America's
founding documents give us religious liberty in principle; these
Americans show us religious liberty in action. Religious
liberty is more than the right to believe in God's love; it is the
right to be an instrument of God's love. (Applause.)
Such work is beyond the reach of government,
and beyond the role of government. And those who hold
positions of power should not be wary or hostile toward faith-based
charities, or other community groups which perform important and good
works. We should welcome their conviction and contribution
in all its diversity.
So today I call on the
United States Congress to pass laws promoting and encouraging
faith-based and community groups in their important public work, and to
never discriminate against them. (Applause.)
These soldiers in the armies of compassion
deserve our support. They often need our support, and by
taking their side we act in the best interests and tradition of our
country. Without churches and charities, many of our
citizens who have lost hope would be left to their own struggles and
their own faith. And as I well know, they are not the only
ones whose lives can be changed and uplifted by the influence of faith
in God.
The founding generation discerned in
that faith the source of our own rights -- a divine gift of dignity,
found equally in every human life. Our nation has always
been guided by a moral compass. In every generation men and
women have protested terrible wrongs and worked for justice -- for the
abolition of slavery, the triumph of civil rights; for the end of child
labor, the equal treatment of women, and the protection of innocent
life.
Not every reformer in our history has
been religious, but many have been motivated by a scriptural vision in
which "justice rolls down like waters and righteousness like an
ever-flowing stream."
We welcome religion in
our common life because it leads millions of Americans to serve their
neighbor, and because it leads countless others to speak for justice --
from African American churches to Catholic bishops. Religious people
said Dr. Martin Luther King should not be the servant of the state, nor
the master of the state, but the conscience of the state.
In my inaugural address, I asked Americans to
seek a common good beyond their comfort; to serve their nation,
beginning with their neighbor. Today I urge Americans to consider what
contributions we all can make -- and there's plenty work for us
all. Every person can find another to help. Nearly every
community of conscience and faith has more to share, and corporate and
foundation America can give more and give wiser.
In this way, we all become more responsible
citizens. And by extending to all the promise of America, we
show an important kind of patriotism. Seventy-five years
ago, our 30th President, the only President born on Independence Day,
spoke words that apply to our time. Calvin Coolidge said,
"We live in an age of science and of abounding accumulation of material
things. These did not create our Declaration. Our
Declaration created them. The things of the spirit come
first." (Applause.)
On this 4th of
July, 2001, a great anniversary of our nation's birth, and a great
anniversary of religious liberty, we remember the ideals of America and
the things of the spirit that sustain them.
The Liberty Bell has been mostly silent for two
centuries. And during the Revolution, it was unseen, hidden
under the floorboards of a church in Allentown. Yet, even in
silence, it has always borne one message, cast for the ages with the
words of the Old Testament: Proclaim liberty throughout all
the land, unto all the inhabitants thereof."
In this place of history, we honor the first generation of Americans
who followed those words. And we give thanks to the God who
watched over our country then, and who watches to this very day.
Thank you, all. And may God bless
America. (Applause.)
END 4:45
P.M. EDT