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Bush urges prayer during 'testing time' for U.S.Addresses annual National Prayer Breakfast
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- In the wake of the Space Shuttle Columbia tragedy and with the possibility of a new war with Iraq on the horizon, President Bush Thursday urged Americans to pray during this "testing time" for the country. "One thing is for certain, we didn't ask for these challenges, but we will meet them. I say that with certainty because this nation has strong foundations that won't be shaken," Bush said Thursday at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington. Although he did not mention Iraq specifically in his comments, the president alluded to the challenges that the world and the nation now face, even as the U.N.'s top weapons inspectors, Hans Blix and Mohamed ElBaradei, prepare to return for a third time to Baghdad. "This is a testing time for our country. At this hour we have troops that are assembling in the Middle East. There's oppressive regimes that seek terrible weapons. We face an ongoing threat of terror." As the United States passes through "this decisive period," the nation can be confident in the character of its people, Bush said. "In the months since September 11, 2001 we have not wrought fear and fatigue or rash anger. "Instead we've witnessed courage and resolve and calm purpose. We've seen that a new generation of Americans is strong and steadfast in the face of danger, and our confidence will not be shaken," he told the breakfast meeting. Bush said the United States can be confident of its cause in the world. "Our nation is dedicated to the equal and undeniable worth of every person. We don't own the ideals of freedom and human dignity, and sometimes haven't always lived up to the them, but we do stand for those ideals and we will defend them." The president also said that America still believes as former President Franklin Roosevelt once said that "men and women born to freedom in the image of God will not forever suffer the oppressors sword." The United States is confident that "people in every part of the world wish for freedom, not tyranny, for peace not terror and violence," said Bush. Rice echoes Bush themeNational Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice also addressed the prayer gathering, at times sounding a theme similar to the president's. "It is times like these that remind us that it is privilege to struggle, a privilege to struggle for what is right and true, a privilege to struggle for freedom over tyranny, a privilege even to struggle with the most difficult and profound moral choices," she said. The National Prayer Breakfast is a 51-year-old tradition that brings together in prayer hundreds of lawmakers, military leaders and international government representatives. Others attending the event included first lady Laura Bush, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Richard Myers, CIA Director George Tenet, Senate Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi. D-California, and House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Illinois.
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