'I'm Spiritual. I'm Religious. I'm a Good Christian.'

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BELIEFNET: During Vietnam, any moments when you felt closest to God or surest of His presence - and the flipside, when you had greatest doubt?

CLARK: Well I didn't have any doubts in Vietnam. I wore a Saint Michael's medal [warrior archangel who led the good angels in the battle against Satan]. My wife had gone to St. Michael's academy. She sent me a St. Michael's medal, and I wore it with my dogtag. I prayed every day.

BELIEFNET: Do you recall the prayers?

CLARK: I said the rosary and I said the Our Father, as they call it in the Catholic Church. One of the things I learned in the conversion process was to say the rosary and I had a set of rosary beads. So I said Hail Mary, full of grace.

BELIEFNET: Any moments where you felt divine support more than others?

CLARK: Actually when I was wounded and recovering in Japan. I went to church there and I remember on the air base where their hospital was, I remember coming out of that church and feeling like I had been - at that point I just felt very, very close to God and that I'd done the right thing with my life. And I knew I wasn't going back to Vietnam. I just knew I wasn't going back

BELIEFNET: Any low points spiritually?

CLARK: No I can't say that there was.

BELIEFNET: Going back a bit chronologically, it was around the Oxford period that you were told your father was Jewish?

CLARK: That's right

BELIEFNET: And what was your reaction when you first heard?

CLARK: Well, of course I was interested to find out about it. I was actually thrilled to be able to complete the family history. Of course, while I was a young man I'd read the book 'Exodus' and seen the movie and studied Israeli military actions: The war of Independence, the 1956 war. They were incredibly bold and daring military forces. And the 1967 war.

I was proud.

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