Last night, ABC's Nightline aired a wide-ranging interview with President George W. Bush. An
article and published
excerpts of the interview on ABC's website report that among the topics discussed were Bush's religious beliefs. Bush said he is not a literalist when it comes to reading the Bible. Asked about his views on evolution, Bush said:
I think evolution can -- you're getting me way out of my lane here. I'm just a simple president. But it's, I think that God created the Earth, created the world; I think the creation of the world is so mysterious it requires something as large as an almighty, and I don't think it's incompatible with the scientific proof that there is evolution.
Asked about the development of his personal faith, Bush said:
It is hard for me to justify or prove the mystery of the Almighty in my life. All I can just tell you is that I got back into religion and I quit drinking shortly thereafter and I asked for help -- I was a one-step program guy.
In the interview, Bush rejected the notion that he was chosen by God to be president, and the suggestion that his decision to go to war in Iraq was based on his religious views.
