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CNN Live Today

War & Faith

Aired March 24, 2003 - 11:27   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Back to the POW issue, the mother of one of them, Army Specialist Joseph Hudson, saw her son on TV, and has been talking with the media, sometimes tearfully, as you might imagine.
CNN's Brian Cabell is reporting for us in El Paso, Texas this morning, the home base for the POWs.

Brian, good morning.

BRIAN CABELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.

A press conference is scheduled here in about 2 1/2 hours. We're hoping to get a little more detail on the missing soldiers. We should tell you, also, that there was a press conference scheduled here yesterday for that very purpose, and it was canceled a few minutes beforehand.

But we expect it about noontime our time. That's 2:00 Eastern this afternoon.

The numbers here have been a little bit confusing, but we have been told that 12 soldiers are unaccounted for from Fort Bliss, specifically from one company, the 507th Maintenance Company. Unaccounted for means they could be killed, they could be wounded, they could be captured.

Of course, on Iraqi TV over the last day or so we've been seeing five prisoners of war. We can now tell you comfortably about three of them because we know for certain their families have been notified. One of them is specialist Shoshawna Johnson. She is 30 years old. She is a single mother of one child. She is a chef in the Army. She has been in the Army for about five years. She is one of the captured. Another one, private first class Patrick Miller. He is from the Wichita, Kansas area, 23 years old, a welder by trade. He joined the Army about a year ago. He has a wife and two children. One of them 4 years old, the other 7 months old.

And the third, the one we've heard most about, is Specialist Joseph Hudson from El Paso. He has a wife and a 5-year-old daughter. Ed Lavandera, our Dallas bureau chief, talked to his mother yesterday in New Mexico, about 50 miles away.

She said that he was deployed about a month ago, last month, and that they last had contact with him in Kuwait just a short time ago. And Then she was watching Filipino TV, which they can get here, yesterday, and found out on TV that he was a prisoner of war of the Iraqis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANECITA HUDSON, MOTHER OF POW: I was so shocked when I saw my son being interviewed, and it's like I really got confused. I can not. I don't know hot to say the right way. When I saw him on TV, all I did is scream and start crying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABELL: We're told that the families of the 12 unaccounted for soldiers are gathering here at Fort Bliss. They are being attended to by a chaplain, by a Red Cross, by social workers, anybody who can possibly help them in this time of duress, Paula, A very difficult time at fort bliss.

ZAHN: And, Brian, you well know, lot of people are relying on their faith during this very tough time, At least we've heard that from some of the families we've talked to so far this morning.

Thanks, Brian. We'll be seeing you a little bit later on this morning.

Before we get to the issue of faith, I wanted to let you know, we are expecting a news conference out of Ramstein Air Force Base, where the first wave of wounded U.S. troops arrived. We have seen live pictures earlier on in the day of those 12 injured troops being carried off a C-141 cargo plane by stretcher, placed into waiting medevac buses. The injured were taken to Lansul (ph) hospital, which is located a short distance from the base. So we're going to keep an eye on that and attempt to do an interview in between.

Back to the issue of faith. It is a crucial element during war for millions of Americans, including the U.S. commander of chief. President Bush, along with multitudes of Americans, sought solace and guidance in various places of worship over the weekend.

Reverend Franklin Graham joins us from Boon (ph), North Carolina this morning. He is the president of Samaritan's Purse, a relief an evangelistic organization. He also happens to be the son of Reverend Billy Graham.

Thanks so much for being with us. An apology ahead of time if we have to break away from this interview.

REV. FRANKLIN GRAHAM, PRES., SAMARITAN'S PURSE: Good morning, Paula.

ZAHN: How's your dad doing, by the way?

GRAHAM: Paula, He's doing very well, and of course he's in prayer for our commander in chief and, course, our military, and all those that are serving this nation. All of us are in prayer, and our hearts go out to the families of those who have loved lost once and those who are missing and captured. ZAHN: Reverend Graham, your father has been alongside a number of presidents in prayer, including the first President Bush, and I know in an interview, President Bush had told me about how much he relied on your father's guidance, particularly during that very tough time when he had to make the call to send troops into harm's way.

Can you just share a thought with us about that?

GRAHAM: Well, Paula, It's a very difficult time when you counsel a president. I certainly don't want to speak for my father, but I know he has spoken with this president in the last couple of days, and has had prayer with him, and all of us are praying especially for our president right now.

ZAHN: The pulpit is such a prominent position, prominent platform these days for antiwar sentiments as well. Give us your understanding of how that's all playing out across the country. And we've heard the pope say some strong things against the war, as have other religious leaders.

GRAHAM: Well, Paula, I think every minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ is against war. But as we read the Scripture, we know that there are times when war is thrust upon us. We didn't ask for this war. Saddam Hussein had plenty of opportunity to back out. But as we go to war now, we need to be in prayer. And yesterday, all across the United States, there were literally tens of thousands of men and women on their knees before God praying for this president, praying for this nation and praying for the men and women that are out there on the field.

And, Paula, faith is a big part of our nation. Of course it plays an important part in our military, because the military is a reflection of this nation. I know many chaplains, and I have spoken with them personally, and they have shared with me the faith of our men and women in uniform, and their commitment not only to service, but their commitment to almighty God and his son the Lord Jesus Christ.

ZAHN: Reverend Graham, we're going to pause for a second, we're seeing an indication that the news conference might have started. Do you have indication of that? It has not started.

Sorry, I just once again need to warn you, we are going to break away to that.

Reverend Graham, describe to us what your aid organization does for victims of war.

GRAHAM: Paula, we work with the churches around the world. And when there is a crisis, a war, famine, we are invited in to come help them meet that need that is before them. Now of course, the church in Iraq has been there for over 2,000 years. And they have asked us for assistance. We are prepared to go in. We have a team in Jordan and in Kuwait, and we'll be going in soon as it is safe for us to go. We'll be working with, we hope, hospitals, with medications, with doctors, nurses. We'll also be involved in food distribution and temporary shelter, if that's a need.

So we're ready to go. We're prepared. We've been working on this for months. And to be honest with you, I hope we don't have to go. I hope there isn't a need for us.

ZAHN: I wanted to close with just something I want to give you a chance to respond to after the September 11th attacks, you were quoted as saying Islam was a very evil and wicked religion. Have you, during the past several months been able to make any peace with that part of the religious community?

GRAHAM: Well, Paula, I'm a follower of Jesus Christ. I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of the living God, who died for my sins and for your sins. I believe we put our faith and trust in him, that God will forgive us. I'm not a Muslim. I don't believe in Islam. And I have a lot of concerns and a lot of questions about their faith.

But right now, this isn't a discussion about Islam or Christianity; this is a discussion of war. We're not fighting Islam. There are many wonderful Muslim people. I know them, I work with them, and I respect them. I just disagree.

ZAHN: And reverend, finally this morning, what do you say to folks out there who might be doubting their faith? We've spoken with some folks on the phone who have tremendous religious conviction, but they're finding this to be a very tough time.

GRAHAM: It is a tough time, Paula, and during tough times, we need almighty God more than ever. God loves us, and he loves us so much that he sent his son Jesus Christ. The Bible says, God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. And during this time of uncertainty, all of us, we need to look almighty God and ask him for help and for protection, and I believe he'll give us peace in our hearts that will calm us through this tremendous storm that we find ourselves in.

ZAHN: Reverend Franklin Graham, thank for your time. As always good to see you. We really appreciate you dropping by. And very glad we didn't have to interrupt you after all.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired March 24, 2003 - 11:27   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: Back to the POW issue, the mother of one of them, Army Specialist Joseph Hudson, saw her son on TV, and has been talking with the media, sometimes tearfully, as you might imagine.
CNN's Brian Cabell is reporting for us in El Paso, Texas this morning, the home base for the POWs.

Brian, good morning.

BRIAN CABELL, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Paula.

A press conference is scheduled here in about 2 1/2 hours. We're hoping to get a little more detail on the missing soldiers. We should tell you, also, that there was a press conference scheduled here yesterday for that very purpose, and it was canceled a few minutes beforehand.

But we expect it about noontime our time. That's 2:00 Eastern this afternoon.

The numbers here have been a little bit confusing, but we have been told that 12 soldiers are unaccounted for from Fort Bliss, specifically from one company, the 507th Maintenance Company. Unaccounted for means they could be killed, they could be wounded, they could be captured.

Of course, on Iraqi TV over the last day or so we've been seeing five prisoners of war. We can now tell you comfortably about three of them because we know for certain their families have been notified. One of them is specialist Shoshawna Johnson. She is 30 years old. She is a single mother of one child. She is a chef in the Army. She has been in the Army for about five years. She is one of the captured. Another one, private first class Patrick Miller. He is from the Wichita, Kansas area, 23 years old, a welder by trade. He joined the Army about a year ago. He has a wife and two children. One of them 4 years old, the other 7 months old.

And the third, the one we've heard most about, is Specialist Joseph Hudson from El Paso. He has a wife and a 5-year-old daughter. Ed Lavandera, our Dallas bureau chief, talked to his mother yesterday in New Mexico, about 50 miles away.

She said that he was deployed about a month ago, last month, and that they last had contact with him in Kuwait just a short time ago. And Then she was watching Filipino TV, which they can get here, yesterday, and found out on TV that he was a prisoner of war of the Iraqis.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

ANECITA HUDSON, MOTHER OF POW: I was so shocked when I saw my son being interviewed, and it's like I really got confused. I can not. I don't know hot to say the right way. When I saw him on TV, all I did is scream and start crying.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

CABELL: We're told that the families of the 12 unaccounted for soldiers are gathering here at Fort Bliss. They are being attended to by a chaplain, by a Red Cross, by social workers, anybody who can possibly help them in this time of duress, Paula, A very difficult time at fort bliss.

ZAHN: And, Brian, you well know, lot of people are relying on their faith during this very tough time, At least we've heard that from some of the families we've talked to so far this morning.

Thanks, Brian. We'll be seeing you a little bit later on this morning.

Before we get to the issue of faith, I wanted to let you know, we are expecting a news conference out of Ramstein Air Force Base, where the first wave of wounded U.S. troops arrived. We have seen live pictures earlier on in the day of those 12 injured troops being carried off a C-141 cargo plane by stretcher, placed into waiting medevac buses. The injured were taken to Lansul (ph) hospital, which is located a short distance from the base. So we're going to keep an eye on that and attempt to do an interview in between.

Back to the issue of faith. It is a crucial element during war for millions of Americans, including the U.S. commander of chief. President Bush, along with multitudes of Americans, sought solace and guidance in various places of worship over the weekend.

Reverend Franklin Graham joins us from Boon (ph), North Carolina this morning. He is the president of Samaritan's Purse, a relief an evangelistic organization. He also happens to be the son of Reverend Billy Graham.

Thanks so much for being with us. An apology ahead of time if we have to break away from this interview.

REV. FRANKLIN GRAHAM, PRES., SAMARITAN'S PURSE: Good morning, Paula.

ZAHN: How's your dad doing, by the way?

GRAHAM: Paula, He's doing very well, and of course he's in prayer for our commander in chief and, course, our military, and all those that are serving this nation. All of us are in prayer, and our hearts go out to the families of those who have loved lost once and those who are missing and captured. ZAHN: Reverend Graham, your father has been alongside a number of presidents in prayer, including the first President Bush, and I know in an interview, President Bush had told me about how much he relied on your father's guidance, particularly during that very tough time when he had to make the call to send troops into harm's way.

Can you just share a thought with us about that?

GRAHAM: Well, Paula, It's a very difficult time when you counsel a president. I certainly don't want to speak for my father, but I know he has spoken with this president in the last couple of days, and has had prayer with him, and all of us are praying especially for our president right now.

ZAHN: The pulpit is such a prominent position, prominent platform these days for antiwar sentiments as well. Give us your understanding of how that's all playing out across the country. And we've heard the pope say some strong things against the war, as have other religious leaders.

GRAHAM: Well, Paula, I think every minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ is against war. But as we read the Scripture, we know that there are times when war is thrust upon us. We didn't ask for this war. Saddam Hussein had plenty of opportunity to back out. But as we go to war now, we need to be in prayer. And yesterday, all across the United States, there were literally tens of thousands of men and women on their knees before God praying for this president, praying for this nation and praying for the men and women that are out there on the field.

And, Paula, faith is a big part of our nation. Of course it plays an important part in our military, because the military is a reflection of this nation. I know many chaplains, and I have spoken with them personally, and they have shared with me the faith of our men and women in uniform, and their commitment not only to service, but their commitment to almighty God and his son the Lord Jesus Christ.

ZAHN: Reverend Graham, we're going to pause for a second, we're seeing an indication that the news conference might have started. Do you have indication of that? It has not started.

Sorry, I just once again need to warn you, we are going to break away to that.

Reverend Graham, describe to us what your aid organization does for victims of war.

GRAHAM: Paula, we work with the churches around the world. And when there is a crisis, a war, famine, we are invited in to come help them meet that need that is before them. Now of course, the church in Iraq has been there for over 2,000 years. And they have asked us for assistance. We are prepared to go in. We have a team in Jordan and in Kuwait, and we'll be going in soon as it is safe for us to go. We'll be working with, we hope, hospitals, with medications, with doctors, nurses. We'll also be involved in food distribution and temporary shelter, if that's a need.

So we're ready to go. We're prepared. We've been working on this for months. And to be honest with you, I hope we don't have to go. I hope there isn't a need for us.

ZAHN: I wanted to close with just something I want to give you a chance to respond to after the September 11th attacks, you were quoted as saying Islam was a very evil and wicked religion. Have you, during the past several months been able to make any peace with that part of the religious community?

GRAHAM: Well, Paula, I'm a follower of Jesus Christ. I believe that Jesus Christ is the son of the living God, who died for my sins and for your sins. I believe we put our faith and trust in him, that God will forgive us. I'm not a Muslim. I don't believe in Islam. And I have a lot of concerns and a lot of questions about their faith.

But right now, this isn't a discussion about Islam or Christianity; this is a discussion of war. We're not fighting Islam. There are many wonderful Muslim people. I know them, I work with them, and I respect them. I just disagree.

ZAHN: And reverend, finally this morning, what do you say to folks out there who might be doubting their faith? We've spoken with some folks on the phone who have tremendous religious conviction, but they're finding this to be a very tough time.

GRAHAM: It is a tough time, Paula, and during tough times, we need almighty God more than ever. God loves us, and he loves us so much that he sent his son Jesus Christ. The Bible says, God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. And during this time of uncertainty, all of us, we need to look almighty God and ask him for help and for protection, and I believe he'll give us peace in our hearts that will calm us through this tremendous storm that we find ourselves in.

ZAHN: Reverend Franklin Graham, thank for your time. As always good to see you. We really appreciate you dropping by. And very glad we didn't have to interrupt you after all.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com