my job is to be brief and secondly, my only task is to introduce eric metaxas, who is going to set up and share the program today. for many of you, he doesn't need much introduction because he's done many port thing known to you and others joining us by television. perhaps some of you have argued that his best-selling book, "bonhoeffer", which has a near times bestseller and important book about an important man. in addition here in washington d.c., i believe players copies of the presentation available outside. we are also grateful for him being a participant in this book, "persecuted", he hoped to write the foreword and has been an important contributor. i want to thank them for their participation. aside from a much distinguished work, including the companion to the movie, the heroic campaign to end slavery, and other important man with import work they needed to be more widely known that he hoped to make possible. he has a varied array of interests in a sense of hamner, for someone who appears in washington, is not all that common as some of you know. he has written for not only t

without any further ado, let me introduce eric metaxas. [applause] >> thank you so much. a lot of that is actually true. it's because of my parity of the ripley's believe it or not books that i was invited to moderate this panel today. i went to thank you for noting the existence of god. there's one copy left. no, i hope i'm not here because of that, although i'm glad someone is aware of it. i am here for many reasons as my concern of the issue of persecution is not only creations, but anyone for religious reasons around the world. something that obviously get little coverage it seems to me. i was asked to write the foreword for this brand-new book by these distinguished authors i was profoundly honored and thrilled to do it. there's so much to talk about them we will get to that. i've got a brief 45 minute presentation that will get to the three of you. i can do it in 42 if i talked fast. thank you for laughing. that's not true. i only want to say up front that would treat me into the subject of persecution and religious freedom was writing my book on "bonhoeffer." this