I first saw Tony anchoring the “Fox News Sunday” television program, but I really came to appreciate and admire his intelligence and insight as a radio show host. He was a logical, critical thinker and a proud American. He also cared deeply about the truth. That is why I so pleased when Tony agreed to become President Bush’s Press Secretary. I had a very hard time accepting that Scott McClellan was even remotely qualified for the job and knew that Tony could handle the jackals in the White House Press Corps.

I was right. Tony did a masterful job in his press conferences as evidenced by this exchange with veteran White House Correspondent, Helen Thomas:

Helen Thomas: We’re the invader. Do you realize that?
MR. SNOW: Helen, we’ve engaged in this conversation a few times. The Iraqi people have made it clear that they think that America’s involvement in unseating Saddam Hussein was historic and liberating. The real tragedy is that there are people who are willing to kill by the thousands to prevent Iraq from becoming free. And I would –

Helen Snow: How can they feel free when they’re under occupation?
MR. SNOW: I would warn against — I would warn against drawing moral equivalents between people who take IEDs and blow up civilians and Americans who are laying their lives on the line so that there can be a democracy in Iraq.

Of course, our recent success in Iraq, its functioning democracy and the devastation of Al-Qaeda, make exchanges like this that much more enjoyable to read.

I then came across this column that Tony wrote for Christianity Today about his long battle with cancer. It moved me enough to write my own tribute and I think that it will move you too:

Cancer’s Unexpected Blessings:

“Those of us with potentially fatal diseases—and there are millions in America today—find ourselves in the odd position of coping with our mortality while trying to fathom God's will. Although it would be the height of presumption to declare with confidence What It All Means, Scripture provides powerful hints and consolations.

The first is that we shouldn't spend too much time trying to answer the why questions: Why me? Why must people suffer? Why can't someone else get sick? We can't answer such things, and the questions themselves often are designed more to express our anguish than to solicit an answer. I don't know why I have cancer, and I don't much care. It is what it is—a plain and indisputable fact. Yet even while staring into a mirror darkly, great and stunning truths begin to take shape. Our maladies define a central feature of our existence: We are fallen. We are imperfect. Our bodies give out. But despite this—because of it—God offers the possibility of salvation and grace. We don't know how the narrative of our lives will end, but we get to choose how to use the interval between now and the moment we meet our Creator face-to-face.

Second, we need to get past the anxiety. The mere thought of dying can send adrenaline flooding through your system. A dizzy, unfocused panic seizes you. Your heart thumps; your head swims. You think of nothingness and swoon. You fear partings; you worry about the impact on family and friends. You fidget and get nowhere. To regain footing, remember that we were born not into death, but into life—and that the journey continues after we have finished our days on this earth. We accept this on faith, but that faith is nourished by a conviction that stirs even within many nonbelieving hearts—an intuition that the gift of life, once given, cannot be taken away. Those who have been stricken enjoy the special privilege of being able to fight with their might, main, and faith to live—fully, richly, exuberantly—no matter how their days may be numbered.

Third, we can open our eyes and hearts. God relishes surprise. We want lives of simple, predictable ease—smooth, even trails as far as the eye can see—but God likes to go off-road. He provokes us with twists and turns. He places us in predicaments that seem to defy our endurance and comprehension—and yet don't. By his love and grace, we persevere. The challenges that make our hearts leap and stomachs churn invariably strengthen our faith and grant measures of wisdom and joy we would not experience otherwise.

Through such trials, God bids us to choose: Do we believe, or do we not? Will we be bold enough to love, daring enough to serve, humble enough to submit, and strong enough to acknowledge our limitations? We surrender our concern in things that don't matter so that we might devote our remaining days to things that do?

We don't know much, but we know this: No matter where we are, no matter what we do, no matter how bleak or frightening our prospects, each and every one of us, each and every day, lies in the same safe and impregnable place—in the hollow of God's hand.”

Rest in peace, Tony Snow. You will be missed.


...click here for the complete Tony Snow Column in Christianity Today

...click here for more columns by Todd A. Carges