Like Kennedy, Romney pointed to his public record — his governorship of Massachusetts — as proof of his independence from his church's hierarchy. He said he would abide by what Abraham Lincoln called America's "political religion," promising to "defend the rule of law and the Constitution."

"When I place my hand on the Bible and take the oath of office, that oath becomes my highest promise to God," he said. "If I am fortunate to become your president, I will serve no religion, no one group, no one cause, and no one interest. A president must serve only the common cause of the people of the United States."

Romney took his audience on something of a journey through the country's religious heritage that included mentions of everyone from Anne Hutchinson, the religious dissident banned from the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1600s, to Brigham Young, who led persecuted Mormons to Utah in the 19th century.

"We do not insist on a single strain of religion," he said. "Rather, we welcome our nation's symphony of faith."

He closed with a stirring portrait of a moment in the early days of the First Continental Congress in Philadelphia during the fall of 1774. Boston was occupied by British troops, he said, and there was pervasive fear of war.

Someone suggested that the members of the congress pray, Romney said, but there were objections raised that there were too many divisions among the delegates, who included Episcopalians, Quakers, Anabaptists, Catholics and others.

"Then Sam Adams rose, and said he would hear a prayer from anyone of piety and good character, as long as they were a patriot," Romney said. "And so together they prayed, and, together, they fought, and together, by the grace of God, they founded this great nation."

That statement drew Romney a standing ovation.