Panelists assess 'Kennedy moment' and its impact on today's campaigns

Published: 2008-01-22

NEW YORK (CNS) -- Then-Sen. John F. Kennedy's eloquent defense of the separation of church and state in a 1960 address successfully deflected suspicion that his presidency would be governed by his Catholic religion. But by using ambiguous language, the speech also isolated his personal beliefs from potential public policy positions in a way that is not possible for contemporary candidates, concluded panelists at a Jan. 16 discussion of "Religion and the Race for the Presidency: The Kennedy Moment." The event, attended by 400 people, was held at Jesuit-run Fordham University in New York. The so-called "Kennedy moment" was an 11-minute speech to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association Sept. 12, 1960. In it, Kennedy said, "Whatever issue may come before me as president ... I will make my decision ... in accordance with what my conscience tells me to be in the national interest, and without regard to outside religious pressure or dictates."

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