“Shibboleth” · Season 2
In this episode: Josiah Bartlet (3), C.J. Cregg (3), Toby Ziegler (2), Sam Seaborn (2), Josh Lyman (1), Charlie Young (1)
Over three and a half centuries ago, linked by faith and bound by a common desire for liberty, a small band of pilgrims sought out a place in the New World where they could worship according to their own beliefs... and solve crimes.
Sam...
It'd be good. By day, they churn butter and worship according to their own beliefs, and by night they solve crimes.
Read the thing.
Pilgrim detectives.
Do you see me laughing?
I think you're laughing on the inside.
Okay.
With the big hats.
Give me the speech.
Every time we come up on a holiday, you guys check out like seniors who are done with finals.
We are writing a very important Thanksgiving proclamation.
And possibly a new action-adventure series.
Nobody here has checked out...
[Josh enters]
Hey, I was just flipping a nickel in my office. Sixteen times in a row, it came out tails.
In the following days, we will be meeting with Reverend Al Caldwell, members of Beijing's Embassy and INS agents. The President has asked Josh Lyman and Sam Seaborn to run these meetings so it's entirely possible that by week's end we'll have alienated Christians, China, and our own government.
They sent me two turkeys. The most photo-friendly of the two gets a Presidential pardon and a full life at a children's zoo. The runner-up gets eaten.
If the Oscars were like that, I'd watch.
Okay, Mr. President, I say this with all possible respect, but each of these knives cut, you know, meat. Why is it important?
Because it's something we pass on. Something with a history so we can say, 'My father gave this to me. His father gave it to him.'
Well, okay, sir, but if that's true, then why don't you already have one?
I do have one.
Why do you need a new one?
I'm giving mine away.
To who?
Whom.
To whom?
Funny you should ask. [takes out knife case from his drawer] Charlie, my father gave this to me, and his father gave it to him, and now I'm giving it to you. Take a look. The fully tapered bolster allows for sharpening the entire edge of the blade.
It says 'P.R.' I thought I knew them all, but I don't recognize the manufacturer.
Yeah. This was made for my family by a Boston silversmith named Paul Revere.
There are questions as to the veracity of your claim to the asylum.
Yes sir.
How did you become a Christian?
I began attending a house church with my wife in Fujian. Eventually, I was baptized.
How do you practice?
We share bibles--we don't have enough. We sing hymns. We hear sermons. We recite the Lord's Prayer. We are charitable.
Who's the head of your church?
The head of our parish is an 84-year-old man named Wen-Ling. He's been beaten and imprisoned many times. The head of our church is Jesus Christ.
Can you name any of Jesus' disciples? [beat] If you can't, that's okay. I usually can't remember the names of my kids, or for that matter...
Peter, Andrew, John, Phillip, Bartholomew, Thomas, Matthew, Thaddeus, Simon, Judas and James. [beat] Mr. President, Christianity is not demonstrated through a recitation of facts. You're seeking evidence of faith, a wholehearted acceptance of God's promise for a better world. 'For we hold that man is justified by faith alone' is what St. Paul said. 'Justified by faith alone.' Faith is the true... uh, I'm trying to... shibboleth. Faith is the true shibboleth.
[beat] Yes, it is. And you sir, just said the magic word in more ways than one. Thank you.
These quotes come from Wikiquote's The West Wing pages and are available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.
