The most presidential lorem ipsum in history.
And if we can do that - if we can embrace a common destiny - then I believe we'll not just help bring about a more hopeful day in America, we'll not just be caring for our own souls, we'll be doing God's work here on Earth. Not with so much work to be done. These needs will be met only if we act boldly in the years ahead; and if we understand that the challenges we face are shared, and our failure to meet them will hurt us all. Likewise, many Israelis recognize the need for a Palestinian state.
I'm talking about something more substantial. It seems to me that each day, thousands of Americans are going about their lives - dropping the kids off at school, driving to work, shopping at the mall, trying to stay on their diets, trying to kick a cigarette habit - and they're coming to the realization that something is missing. What we have already achieved gives us hope - the audacity to hope - for what we can and must achieve tomorrow. I would not be running for President if I didn't believe with all my heart that this is what the vast majority of Americans want for this country. The Talmud tells us: "The whole of the Torah is for the purpose of promoting peace."
Religious leaders like my friends Rev. Jim Wallis and Rabbi David Saperstein and Nathan Diament are working for justice and fighting for change. If John McCain wants to have a debate about who has the temperament, and judgment, to serve as the next Commander-in-Chief, that's a debate I'm ready to have. "We cannot walk alone," the preacher cried. For centuries, black people in America suffered the lash of the whip as slaves and the humiliation of segregation.
That's why organizations are rising up across the country to reclaim the language of faith to bring about change. That legacy of defeat was passed on to future generations - those young men and increasingly young women who we see standing on street corners or languishing in our prisons, without hope or prospects for the future.
Tonight is a particular honor for me because - let's face it - my presence on this stage is pretty unlikely. It's the hope of slaves sitting around a fire singing freedom songs. This is where we are right now.
Thank you. And may God's peace be upon you.