"To the Irish people I say simply this: We should not underestimate the scale of our economic problems, but we must have faith in our ability as a people to recover and prosper once more, " he said.

BBC: Republic of Ireland confirms EU financial rescue deal

When I was in Rome a few weeks ago, Pope Francis spoke movingly in his homily about our commitments to each other, not just as people of faith, but, he went on to say, but as human beings.

WHITEHOUSE: The White House

We should and -- we can and should negotiate over how we continue to reduce our deficits in a responsible and balanced way, but we should not play chicken with the full faith and credit of the United States.

WHITEHOUSE: Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jay Carney,

That type of depression did not happen, but our polling finds strong evidence of another kind of depression: a loss of faith in the American Dream.

FORBES: What American Dream?

But I would say, as we have in the past, that it is not a good idea to play chicken with our obligations and the full faith and credit of the United States government and with the prospect of default in the United States.

WHITEHOUSE: Press Briefing

And this is not blind optimism or synthetic confidence to console people, it is the practical affirmation for our times of our faith in a better future.

BBC: In full: Brown's speech to Congress