May 13 (Bloomberg) -- Senator John McCain used a graduation address at Reverend Jerry Falwell's Liberty University to defend the war in Iraq, avoiding any mention of the social issues that are at the core of the evangelical political agenda.

McCain, who ran for the Republican nomination in 2000 and is considering a bid in 2008, said his ``patriotism'' and ``conscience'' required him to support the war because, ``I believed, rightly or wrongly, that my country's interests and values required it.''

Evangelical Christians represent a key Republican constituency, though McCain's speech at the Lynchburg, Virginia university was most notable for what he didn't say. He made no mention of religion or hot-button social questions such as abortion or gay marriage. Nor did he quote from scripture or refer to ``Jesus'' or ``Christ.''

McCain's aides said the address was ``virtually identical'' to the speeches he plans to deliver at the New School and Columbia University in New York next week and Ohio State University on July 11.

In 2000, running against George W. Bush in the Republican presidential primaries, McCain denounced Falwell and others as ``agents of intolerance'' after they opposed his nomination. This fall, Falwell requested a meeting with McCain and the two met on Sept. 20 to establish friendly relations.

In an opinion article in the New York Times on May 7, Falwell wrote that `no ideological deals were brokered'' at the meeting, and that the two men didn't ``ask for apologies.'' Falwell said he and McCain's positions weren't always in ``perfect harmony.'' McCain, for example, opposes a constitutional ban on gay marriage that Falwell supports.

Not an Endorsement

Falwell wrote that the invitation to speak at Liberty University didn't ``symbolize an endorsement'' of a possible McCain candidacy. He said he asked McCain to come because he ``is the front-runner for the nomination and is the kind of conservative I would have little trouble supporting.''

Most of McCain's 25-minute address to the almost 2,500 graduates of Liberty University was devoted to defending dissent in the U.S. ``Americans should argue about this war,'' he said. ``It has cost the lives of nearly 2,500 of the best of us.''

McCain, an Arizona Republican, directly addressed those who disagree with him about the conflict in Iraq, which is increasingly losing popular support in polls.

``I ask that you consider the possibility that I, too, am trying to meet my responsibilities, to follow my conscience, to do my duty as best as I can, as God has given me light to see that duty,'' said McCain, 69.

`Vainglorious Dreams'

The U.S., he said, was not pursuing ``vainglorious dreams of empire'' nor ``cheap oil'' nor a ``foolishly romantic conception of war.''

He said he recognized that ``many Americans'' are opposed to the war, which ``has imposed an enormous financial burden'' on the economy.

``At minimum, it has complicated our ability to respond to other looming threats,'' McCain said. He also said that a ``defeat will further destabilize an already volatile and dangerous region, strengthen the threat of terrorism, and unleash furies that will assail us for a very long time.''

Though McCain was interrupted by applause only four times today, the crowd did cheer when he said the global war between the U.S. and terrorism ``is a fight between right and wrong. Relativism has no place in this confrontation.''

McCain also championed U.S. intervention in the Darfur region of Sudan, where tens of thousands of people have died in a conflict between Arab and non-Arab peoples.

``If the United States and the West can be criticized for our role in this catastrophe it is because we have waited too long to intervene to protect the multitudes who are suffering, dying because of it,'' McCain said.

`Blind Eye'

He said the U.S. had ``turned a blind eye to another genocide in Rwanda'' 12 years ago and ``now, belatedly, we have recovered our sense of moral duty and are prepared, I hope, to put an end to this genocide'' in Darfur.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice this week asked the United Nations to move quickly to send up to 20,000 peacekeeping troops to the Darfur region of Sudan to implement a new peace accord reached in U.S.-led negotiations.

McCain said the U.S. was ``not a perfect nation'' and that its history ``had its moments of shame and profound regret.'' He urged the graduates to ``sacrifice for a cause greater than yourself'' and said ``humanity is impatient for your service.''

Before McCain spoke in the university's Vines Center, the graduates marched down the steeply pitched aisles to the floor of the sports arena. They wore black graduation gowns and some had taped messages to their mortarboards. One graduate, celebrating her impending marriage, carried the message: ``Mrs Degree 5-27.''

To contact the reporter on this story: Roger Simon in Lynchburg, Virginia at rogersimon@bloomberg.net

Last Updated: May 13, 2006 16:11 EDT