Presidential Hopeful Jeb Bush Speaks at Liberty Commencement

Jeb Bush, brother of former president George W. Bush, told Liberty University students that Christianity should not be seen as an “oppressive force.”

“How strange, in our own time, to hear Christianity spoken of as some sort of backward and oppressive force,” Bush said. “Outside these seven thousand acres of shared conviction, it’s a depressing fact that when some people think of Christianity and of Judeo-Christian values, they think of something static, narrow, and outdated.”

Christian News Network reports Bush addressed the students at Liberty University’s commencement ceremony, claiming that religious freedom is at risk.

"The mistake is to confuse points of theology with moral principles that are knowable to reason as well as by faith. And this confusion is all part of a false narrative that casts religious Americans as intolerant scolds, running around trying to impose their views on everyone," he said.

He added: “There is so much that we share in common, across all the lines of region, religion, and demography that are constantly being talked about.”

Bush is expected to announce his candidacy for president of the United States. He will face Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal and former Texas Gov. Rick Perry in the Republican primary race.

Publication date: May 12, 2015