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Historical Documents |
This section includes key quotes from presidential speeches as well as a link to more speeches related to the FBCI.
"We will encourage community and faith-based programs, without changing their mission. We will eliminate barriers to charitable works, wherever they exist…."
Remarks by President Bush in the Announcement of the Faith-Based and Community Initiative
Indian Treaty Room
Dwight D. Eisenhower Executive Office Building
January 29, 2001
"Faith-based groups will never replace government when it comes to helping those in need. Yet government must recognize the power and unique contribution of faith-based groups in every part of our country. And when the federal government gives contracts to private groups to provide social services, religious groups should have an equal chance to compete. When decisions are made on public funding, we should not focus on the religion you practice; we should focus on the results you deliver."
President Bush Implements Key Elements of the Faith-Based and Community Initiative
Downtown Marriott Hotel
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
December 12, 2002
"I understand in the past, some in government have said government cannot stand side by side with people of faith. Let me put it more bluntly, government can't spend money on religious programs simply because there's a rabbi on the board, cross on the wall, or a crescent on the door. I viewed this as not only bad social policy—because policy bypassed the great works of compassion and healing that take place—I viewed it as discrimination. And we needed to change it."
"I fully understand it's important to maintain the separation of church and state. We don't want the state to become the church, nor do we want the church to become the state. We're in common agreement there. But I do believe that groups should be allowed to access social service grants, so long as they don't proselytize or exclude somebody simply because they don't share a certain faith. In other words, there's a way to accomplish the separation of church and state, and at the same time, accomplish the social objective of having America become a hopeful place, and a loving place."
America’s Compassion in Action
Remarks by President Bush at the First White House National Conference on Faith-Based and Community Initiatives
Washington Hilton and Towers
Washington, D.C.
June 1, 2004
"…Staying focused on helping change America one person at a time is a vital part of government, corporate America, philanthropic America, and the faith- and community-based programs. It's got to be our continued focus. Even though statistics are improving, so long as we find anybody who hurts, we all should recognize that we hurt. It's the collective conscience of America that really helps define the nature of our country, and it gives me great optimism for the future of our country."
President Bush Highlights Faith-Based Results at National Conference
Washington Hilton Hotel
Washington, D.C.
March 9, 2006
"From the first days of my Administration, we've championed the idea that those in need are better served when government draws on the strengths of every willing community partner—secular and faith-based, large and small. My Administration has eliminated regulatory and policy barriers in the Federal agencies, delivered training and development to more than 50,000 social service entrepreneurs, and competitively awarded tens of thousands of Federal grants to faith-based and community organizations for service to others at home and abroad. These efforts fortify America's safety net and expand our nation's supply of compassion."
Statement by President Bush
June 25, 2007
