Clinton Takes to Pulpit to Thank Congregation

Taking the pulpit in his expected final church visit as chief executive, President Clinton thanked congregants Sunday for their prayers and welcome to his family “in the storm and sunshine” of the last eight years.

He also used his 13-minute sermon at Foundry United Methodist Church to look back on his tenure and ahead to life as a private citizen.

“In the years ahead, America may have presidents who do this job better than I have. But I really doubt we’ll ever have another one who enjoyed it more than I have,” Clinton said to laughter among the worshipers.

The president said his visits to the church were a welcome respite from the Oval Office. “You cannot imagine the peace, the comfort, the strength I have drawn from my Sundays here,” he said.

Pastor J. Philip Wogaman was one of three ministers, who, in Clinton’s words, “have shared the burden of meeting with me on a weekly basis” in counseling sessions since the Monica S. Lewinsky scandal and his impeachment.

Clinton said Foundry’s services helped “to remind me that no matter what was going on in Washington, D.C., at this moment, there was a real world out there, with real people and real hearts and minds.”

He was more lighthearted as he looked toward the future after he leaves office at “high noon” Jan 20.

“I look forward to finding out whether John Quincy Adams was right when he said there is nothing so pathetic in life as an ex-president, or whether, instead of his words, the life of John Quincy Adams and the life of Jimmy Carter prove exactly the reverse,” Clinton said.

And how will life change:

* No more trips on Air Force One. “I anticipate that my Christian bearing will be tested by a return to commercial air travel.”

* Less pomp and circumstance. “I anticipate that for several months I will be disoriented when I walk into large rooms, because no one will be playing a song anymore.”

Later Sunday, New York Democrats threw a celebratory fete for their new senator, First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton. Held at Madison Square Garden’s Theater, a festive reenactment of her swearing-in featured Vice President Al Gore.

“I’d just like to take a moment to congratulate you, Sen. Clinton,” Gore said with laughter after a standing ovation. “Not only on winning, not only on all the votes you received, but on getting your votes counted and finishing the race on time and actually winning it.”