Bobby Knight once said of journalists, “All of us learn to write in the second grade.  Most of us go on to greater things.”

Tim Russert remained a journalist until the day he died, but no one would deny that he didn’t go on to greater things.

Russert’s death on June 13 triggered a flood of tributes from every corner of American society.  Rivals from other networks, politicians, historians, authors, and people from nearly every profession spoke with admiration, respect, and love for a man who was best-known for hosting NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
Why was this journalist so popular with everyone?  A look at Russert’s life reveals some qualities that come straight out of Scripture:

He treated everyone fairly and respectfully.
Many people treat the rich, famous and powerful very differently from those who are none of these things.  Russert treated everyone the same, regardless of who they were.  He understood what it meant not to show favoritism. (Jas. 2:1-4).

He worked hard and was always prepared.
Russert was educated by the Jesuits, a group that demand rigor in all of life’s endeavors.   Those Russert interviewed knew he had done his homework.  “Whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord.” (Col. 3:17).

He never took himself too seriously.
Rudyard Kipling wrote “If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch -”  Russert  walked with kings and world leaders of all stripes and kept such associations from giving him an inflated sense of self.  Ben Bradlee said of him, “He didn’t take himself or the rest of the charade too seriously.”

He loved his family.
Russert loved and was devoted to his wife Maureen and son Luke.  A few years ago he wrote a book about his father, “Big Russ,” a blue-collar laborer whom he revered.  “If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”  (1 Tim. 5:8)

He never forgot where he came from.
Growing up the son of a sanitation worker from Buffalo, Russert never forgot his roots. Years later when working for Mario Cuomo and Daniel Patrick Moynihan, Russert wondered if he, an Irish-Catholic blue-collar kid, belonged among the elite Ivy Leaguers he was surrounded by.  Moynihan told him, “What they know, you can learn; what you know, they can’t learn.”

He was a man of faith.
Russert was a lifelong Catholic who remained active in his church throughout his life.  His reputation as a believer made him stand out in a profession where many are skeptics.  But Russert treated all with dignity and kindness, knowing what he believed.  “I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day.” (2 Tim. 1:12).