White House Marks 7th Anniversary of Faith-Based Initiative

Yesterday President George W. Bush marked the seventh anniversary of the Faith-Based and Community Initiative by visiting an orgaization in Baltimore (MD) sponsored by the Episcopal Church. The Jericho Project helps released non-violent prisoners-- many fighting alcohol abuse-- to develop skills that permit them to find jobs and successfully re-enter society. (Baltimore Sun.) In his remarks (full text), Bush explained the problems he saw that led him to begin the FBCI:

Unfortunately, in some instances where there was an interface with government, people were told that in order to interface you have to take the cross off the wall, or take down the Star of David. In other words, you had to abandon the very principle by which you existed in the first place. And it made no sense. If a program was effective because they were willing to recognize a higher power, if a program was effective because people responded because they felt a call from a higher power, than to deny the higher power really reduced the effectiveness of the program.

The White House yeterday also released a Fact Sheet on the Faith-Based and Community Initiative. [Thanks to Steven H. Sholk for the lead.]