Mike Pence praises bible-reading, church-going Christians for a “New American Awakening”
In the commencement address at Hillsdale College in Michigan, Vice President Mike Pence told the Class of 2018 they were joining the workforce amid “opportunity and optimism” due to growing faith in America.
He told the graduates, “You are now uniquely suited, and I believe you are uniquely called, to renew the fabric of our national life with your character and with your ideas.”
Here are some other highlights from the vice presidents address:
“The percentage of Americans who live out their religion on a weekly basis – by praying, going to church, and reading and believing in the Bible – has remained remarkably consistent over the decades, even as the population of the United States has grown by leaps and bounds,”
“We live in a time when traditional values, even religious conviction, are increasingly marginalized by a secular popular culture – a time when it’s become acceptable, even fashionable, to malign religious belief. I still believe with all my heart that FAITH in America is rising. Religion in America isn’t receding – just the opposite. Faith is gaining new life with every passing day.”
He added, “Faith has always been the wellspring of hope for millions of Americans, and from our Founding, faith has been the foundation of our freedom, and religion essential to our republic.”
He encouraged the graduates to take their “deepest-held convictions into every facet of your life – and add your voices, and your values, to this new American awakening.”