This is an excerpt from Rev. Dr. William Barber’s speech at Binkley Baptist Church in Durham, NC on June 30, 2013 — four days after the Supreme Court struck down a key provision of The Voting Rights Act of 1965.

Our web series did not release this footage until now because this event was likely to be included in our upcoming feature length documentary. But this speech, out of many that we have filmed, best encapsulates Rev. Barber’s religious and moral convictions.

After filming a speech Rev. Barber gave in Virginia, I wrote about a topic I had ignored for many years, religion:

There is beauty in today’s movement to reclaim Christianity from the talons of oligarchy and oppression.

Yesterday I spent most of the day in a church where the man you see here gave a sermon in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Afterwards, another pastor sang a song that went “They will know we are Christian by our love.” I was surprised to realize that those words actually made sense, and even resonated with me for the first time.

Truth be told, I am not a believer in this religion or any religion, but it is a blessing for me, I must admit, to at last be able to look upon the Christian faith with deep respect and warm regard.

It’s such a huge part of American history — those who have fought and are fighting to protect its integrity are doing a service not just to their faith but to their country.

A Story of America team, including Annabel Park and me, will be documenting the Moral March on Raleigh on Sat. Feb. 8, 2013, at which Rev. Barber is traditionally the keynote speaker.

Here is another, much longer speech by Rev. Barber that begins and ends with religious faith: