---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think it's very important for people…"
description: "\"I think it's very important for people who are serving (in office) to make sure there's a separation of church and state.\" — George W. Bush"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/george-w-bush-64_church_i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-w_2618645.jpg"
---

#  I think it's very important for people who are serving (in…

![“I think it's very important for people who are serving (in office) to make sure there's a separation of church and state.” quote by George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/george-w-bush-64_church_i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-w_2618645.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/george-w-bush-64_church_i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-w_2618645.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/george-w-bush-64_church_i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-w_2618645.jpg)

> “I think it's very important for people who are serving (in office) to make sure there's a separation of church and state.”

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Advocates maintaining a clear division between religious institutions and government functions.

**In simple terms:** Separate church and state.

Key Takeaway

Uphold separation.

Themes

religion government politics

Mood

formal serious

Type

political educational

When to use this quote

- policy making
- public office
- legislative debates
- educational curricula

Key Concepts

separation of powers secularism

Questions to Reflect On

- Can true separation exist in practice?
- How does this affect religious freedom?

A Different Perspective

Complexity of personal faith influencing policy.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/) [Church and state](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church-and-state/) [Church State](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church-state/) [Important](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important/) [Important people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/important-people/) [Office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/office/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Separation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/separation/) [Separation Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/separation-church/) [Separation of church and state](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/separation-of-church-and-state/) [Serving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serving/) [Serving Office](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serving-office-2091326/) [States](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/states/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/)

## Related quotes

> [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/)

[Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/)

> [The separation of church and state is a misnomer. People misunderstand it. Of course, it comes from a phrase that was in a letter…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-johnson/the-separation-of-church-and-state-is-a-misnomer-people-misunderstand/)

[Mike Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-johnson/)

> [US is a very religious country. Separation of church and state is part of our credo, but that it is hard to understand since…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/madeleine-albright/us-is-a-very-religious-country-separation-of-church-and-state-is-part/)

[Madeleine Albright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/madeleine-albright/)

> [“Do you know, where does this phrase "separation of Church and State" come from? It was not in Jefferson's letter to the Danbury Baptists...The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glen-urquhart/do-you-know-where-does-this-phrase-separation-of-church-and-state/)

[Glen Urquhart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glen-urquhart/)

> [The separation of Church and State in everything relating to taxation should be absolute.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-a-garfield/the-separation-of-church-and-state-in-everything-relating-to-taxation/)

[James A. Garfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-a-garfield/)

> [Quite often you hear people say, 'What about separation of church and state?' There is no such thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-severson/quite-often-you-hear-people-say-what-about-separation-of-church-and/)

[Dan Severson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-severson/)

> [They have kept us in submission because they have talked about separation of church and state. There is no such thing in the Constitution.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pat-robertson/they-have-kept-us-in-submission-because-they-have-talked-about/)

[Pat Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pat-robertson/)

> [The fact that religion plays such a part in how people vote troubles me, troubles me as a minister's daughter. Because I always felt…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tori-amos/the-fact-that-religion-plays-such-a-part-in-how-people-vote-troubles/)

[Tori Amos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tori-amos/)

> [The separation of church and state is a suburban, not an urban, issue.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-evans/the-separation-of-church-and-state-is-a-suburban-not-an-urban-issue/)

[Tony Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-evans/)

> [I disagree strongly with the concept of separation of church and state. It was not written into the Constitution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-buck/i-disagree-strongly-with-the-concept-of-separation-of-church-and/)

[Ken Buck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-buck/)

> [I questioned the faithful of all communions; I particularly sought the society of clergymen, who are the depositories of the various creeds and have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexis-de-tocqueville/i-questioned-the-faithful-of-all-communions-i-particularly-sought-the/)

[Alexis de Tocqueville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexis-de-tocqueville/)

> [ I do not make decisions \[as governor\] based on what have I learned through my Bible studies, what have I learned in my religious… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-schwarzenegger/i-do-not-make-decisions-as-governor-based-on-what-have-i-learned/)

[Arnold Schwarzenegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-schwarzenegger/)

> [Where in the Constitution is the separation of church and state?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christine-o-donnell/where-in-the-constitution-is-the-separation-of-church-and-state/)

[Christine O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christine-o-donnell/)

> [“I'm completely in favor of the separation of Church and State. ... These two institutions screw us up enough on their own, so both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-carlin/i-m-completely-in-favor-of-the-separation-of-church-and-state-these/)

[George Carlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-carlin/)

> [The civil Government, though bereft of every thing like an associated hierarchy, possesses the requisite stability, and performs its functions with complete success; whilst…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-madison/the-civil-government-though-bereft-of-every-thing-like-an-associated/)

[James Madison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-madison/)

## More by George W. Bush

> [Throughout our history, the words of the Declaration have inspired immigrants from around the world to set sail to our shores. These immigrants have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/throughout-our-history-the-words-of-the-declaration-have-inspired/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [I recognize I am essentially a failed human being in the sense that I can't possibly live up to the expectations of an Almighty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-recognize-i-am-essentially-a-failed-human-being-in-the-sense-that-i/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [We will make sure our troops have all that is necessary to complete their missions. That's why I went to the Congress last September…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/we-will-make-sure-our-troops-have-all-that-is-necessary-to-complete/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [God speaks through me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/god-speaks-through-me/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [For diplomacy to be effective, words must be credible - and no one can now doubt the word of America.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/for-diplomacy-to-be-effective-words-must-be-credible-and-no-one-can/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [You can fool some of the people all the time, and those are the ones you want to concentrate on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/you-can-fool-some-of-the-people-all-the-time-and-those-are-the-ones/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [If you take all the food aid, America is by far the most generous country. If you take the direct aid, we're very generous.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/if-you-take-all-the-food-aid-america-is-by-far-the-most-generous/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [The tyrant has fallen, and Iraq is free.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/the-tyrant-has-fallen-and-iraq-is-free/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [“One of our energy strategies is to increase the CAFE standards to 35 miles per hour..”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/one-of-our-energy-strategies-is-to-increase-the-cafe-standards-to-35/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [There's a lot that I want to accomplish.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/there-s-a-lot-that-i-want-to-accomplish/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [If he's - the inference is that somehow he thinks slavery is a - is a noble institution I would - I would strongly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/if-he-s-the-inference-is-that-somehow-he-thinks-slavery-is-a-is-a/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [My answer is bring 'em on.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/my-answer-is-bring-em-on/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [On 9-11, we discovered that we cannot escape from the world. To me personally, this was a life-changing experience, and I realized, as did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/on-9-11-we-discovered-that-we-cannot-escape-from-the-world-to-me/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [As Americans, we want peace - we work and sacrifice for peace. But there can be no peace if our security depends on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/as-americans-we-want-peace-we-work-and-sacrifice-for-peace-but-there/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

> [I couldn't imagine somebody like Osama bin Laden understanding the joy of Chanukah.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-couldn-t-imagine-somebody-like-osama-bin-laden-understanding-the/)

[George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

[Explore all 1,717 George W. Bush quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/)

## More Church quotes

> [While the 1963 Birmingham church bombing is the most historic, there also was a series of church burnings in the 1990s. Recognition of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthea-butler/while-the-1963-birmingham-church-bombing-is-the-most-historic-there/)

[Anthea Butler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthea-butler/)

> [If I had my brothers I think with just a little bit of the correct marketing, I'd like to be almost exclusively in small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-bozzio/if-i-had-my-brothers-i-think-with-just-a-little-bit-of-the-correct/)

[Terry Bozzio](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-bozzio/)

> [Turn over the pages of history and read the damning record of the church's opposition to every advance in every field of science. . . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/upton-sinclair/turn-over-the-pages-of-history-and-read-the-damning-record-of-the/)

[Upton Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/upton-sinclair/)

> [Believing with you that religion is a matter which lies solely between man and his God, that he owes account to none other for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-jefferson/believing-with-you-that-religion-is-a-matter-which-lies-solely/)

[Thomas Jefferson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-jefferson/)

> [Jeff Chu's pilgrimage across America to discover his own place as a gay man in the Christian church as well as attitudes about being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-freitas/jeff-chu-s-pilgrimage-across-america-to-discover-his-own-place-as-a/)

[Donna Freitas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-freitas/)

> [God is not calling us to go to church; he is calling us to be his church, the hope of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-groeschel/god-is-not-calling-us-to-go-to-church-he-is-calling-us-to-be-his/)

[Craig Groeschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-groeschel/)

> [The emerging church movement has come to believe that the ultimate context of the spiritual aspirations of a follower of Jesus Christ is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samir-selmanovic/the-emerging-church-movement-has-come-to-believe-that-the-ultimate/)

[Samir Selmanovic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samir-selmanovic/)

> [ T\]he church is not a place. It's not a building. It's not a preaching point. It's not a spiritual service provider. It's a people… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-dever/t-he-church-is-not-a-place-it-s-not-a-building-it-s-not-a-preaching/)

[Mark Dever](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-dever/)

> [There could be no more powerful argument against mixing religion and government than the success of independent African American churches in placing racial segregation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jacoby/there-could-be-no-more-powerful-argument-against-mixing-religion-and/)

[Susan Jacoby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jacoby/)

> [Worship is not about personality, temperament, personal limitations, church background, or comfort. It is about God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wimber/worship-is-not-about-personality-temperament-personal-limitations/)

[John Wimber](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wimber/)

> [A beggarly people, A church and no steeple.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-b-macaulay/a-beggarly-people-a-church-and-no-steeple/)

[Thomas B. Macaulay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-b-macaulay/)

> [Pound St. Paul's Church into atoms, and consider any single atom; it is to be sure, good for nothing; but put all these atoms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/pound-st-paul-s-church-into-atoms-and-consider-any-single-atom-it-is/)

[Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/)

> [The religion of art, like the religion of politics, was born from the ruins of Christianity. Art inherited from the old religion the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/the-religion-of-art-like-the-religion-of-politics-was-born-from-the/)

[Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/)

> [The minute you walk outside of your church on Sunday you're in mission territory.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-barron/the-minute-you-walk-outside-of-your-church-on-sunday-you-re-in/)

[Robert Barron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-barron/)

> [I'm not ashamed of the things I believe and why I believe them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-huckabee/i-m-not-ashamed-of-the-things-i-believe-and-why-i-believe-them/)

[Mike Huckabee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-huckabee/)

[Browse all 9,430 Church quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/church/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I think it's very important for people who are serving (in office) to make sure there's a separation of church and state.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "George W. Bush"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-who-are-serving-in-office-to/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Church"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-who-are-serving-in-office-to/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/george-w-bush-64_church_i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-w_2618645.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/george-w-bush-64_church_i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-w_2618645.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/85a/george-w-bush-64_church_i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-w_2618645.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I think it's very important for people who are serving (in office) to make sure there's a separation of…” — George W. Bush",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "George W. Bush",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I think it's very important for...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-who-are-serving-in-office-to/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-think-it-s-very-important-for-people-who-are-serving-in-office-to/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
