BANGOR – Politicians don’t expect to encounter lions when they walk into a church, but U.S. Sen. Susan Collins may have felt a little like Daniel after her speech Monday at Bangor Theological Seminary’s 101st Convocation.

The “lions” showed up at the Hammond Street Congregational Church to urge Collins to attend a Belfast meeting later in the week for an airing of residents’ views about the war in Iraq.

Answering questions from the audience of 300 people, Collins, R-Maine, was invited to the Belfast meeting by Peter Stewart.

Collins responded that she preferred to meet with people one on one or in small groups at her office. She referred Stewart to an aide in her Bangor office.

It was a tense moment, but one of the reasons the seminary invites public officials to speak at the annual conference.

A Catholic, Collins attends Mass at St. Mary’s in Bangor when she is in town.

“Faith is a deeply personal matter, yet matters of faith often enter the public arena,” she told the crowd of seminary students, graduates, faculty and guests.

“This has never been more true than it is today. From the Nativity scene in the city park and the working of the Pledge of Allegiance, to education curriculum and school funding, it is clear that the constitutional separation of church and state is not a clean line of demarcation, but a point of contention.

“Our Constitution,” she continued, “guarantees a freedom of religion, but does not that mean freedom from religion? The devil, as is usually the case, is in the details and there is many a Supreme Court decision that attempts to answer that question.”

In introducing the senator, seminary President William Imes said that because Collins has never missed a Senate vote, he had been “praying for many weeks” that the Senate majority leader would not schedule a vote for Monday.

The seminary, founded by Congregationalists in 1814, has a reputation as a bastion of liberalism. After her speech, several audience members said that although they did not share Collins’ party or her political views, they respected her.

“I really appreciate your own moral courage and thank you for your leadership even as a Green party member,” said Lisa Blake, 39, of Bowdoin, a seminary student and organic farmer.

The Rev. Patricia Moore, 59, of Bangor told Collins that she has continued to pray for the senator as she promised last year when the two met inadvertently in a local store.

“I can’t tell you how much that means to me,” Collins responded. “They help to strengthen me as I do my work.”

Moore is the pastor of Veazie Congregational church and a seminary graduate.

Citing examples from Genesis, Leviticus and Chronicles, the senator at times sounded like a seminary student herself.

“Let me conclude with this observation,” Collins said. “In the ongoing story of the role of faith in our society, the headlines would lead one to think that we are a nation deeply divided. Read deeper into the story, and it is clear that while we may argue over symbols and words, the real meaning of our faith – the worth of all of humanity – unites us. It is a bond that can only grow stronger.”