Quotations From William Boykin

RELS-327

Religion and Violence Fall 2008 MW 2:30-3:45, Olin 103 rels-327.pbwiki.com

Instructor: Nathan Rein Office hours: MW 10-12 and by appointment Olin 211, x. 2571, nrein at ursinus dot edu

Quotations from Lt. Gen. William G. "Jerry" Boykin Army Lt. Gen. William G. "Jerry" Boykin was appointed deputy undersecretary of defense for intelligence by Pres. George W. Bush in 2004. [Referring to a 1993 battle with a Muslim militant leader in Somalia:] "I knew that my God was bigger than his. I knew that my God was a real God, and his was an idol." "We in the army of God, in the house of God, kingdom of God have been raised for such a time as this.... Our spiritual enemy will only be defeated if we come against them in the name of Jesus." "Why do they hate us so much? I will tell you this. This is my own personal belief. One of the most fundamental reasons they hate us is (a) because we are a nation of believers, and (b) because we support Israel. Now, if you don't believe that this nation was founded on Christian beliefs, Christian values, then go back and read the writings and the orations of the founders of this nation, read what they said. Every man that signed the Constitution of the United States was of the Christian faith." "We're a Christian nation, because our foundation and our roots are JudeoChristian and the enemy is a guy named Satan." "This is not a political speech. I am in fact apolitical. But why is George W. Bush in the White House? ...You must recognize that we as Americans saw a miracle unfold with the election of George W. Bush. Whether you voted for him or not is irrelevant. The fact is he is there today not only to lead America, but to lead the world, and that is what he is doing. Where does he start his day? He starts his day in the Oval Office at 4:30 with a Bible in his hand." "We as Americans, we as Christians, need to understand that that's not the enemy that America's up against. In fact, the enemy that we're up against is called the principality of darkness, he's called Satan. We are in fact in a spiritual battle, ladies and gentlemen, more than we are in a physical battle."