President George W. Bush's 'Provocative' Question Changed This Famous Journalist's Life

Former "Meet the Press" moderator David Gregory has made a name for himself in the political arena, but some might be surprised to learn that the celebrated journalist chose an entirely different subject to tackle in his first book: personal faith.

Describing his search for religious truth as "probably the biggest journey" of his life, Gregory recently told The Church Boys podcast the story behind his new book, "How's Your Faith?"

The title, he said, is based on a memorable question that he was once asked by President George W. Bush.

"The title of the book comes from a question I was asked from President Bush, who heard that I was studying [the] Bible and had been for awhile, and was trying to deepen my faith," Gregory said. "And he asked me that question, which I thought was just so incredibly penetrating and provocative."

Listen to Gregory discuss his faith journey below:

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Gregory, who said his personal religious quest kicked off when he began to experience "spiritual longing" about a decade ago, described his journey as one that has encompassed many big life questions: "Who am I? Who am I trying to become? How do I deepen my faith?"

Like anyone else, Gregory has had his share of victories and challenges.

Despite an immensely successful career, he was very publicly fired from his moderator role on "Meet the Press" in 2014 — a disappointing event that he said left him "struggling" as he relied on his faith in the aftermath to process what had unfolded.

"It's easy to think about my book and think, 'Oh this guy got fired and then he found God,' and it almost would have been more straightforward if that were the case," Gregory said. "Losing my job, facing that kind of public scrutiny — it was kind of heavy."

In addition to sharing details about his professional life, Gregory also dove into his upbringing and its relation to his later quest to find God.

Growing up in Los Angeles to a Jewish father and a Catholic mother, Gregory described his upbringing as culturally and ethnically Jewish, but without a solid or deep religious underpinning until his interests began to shift later in life.

It came to a head when his wife — who is a Christian — began to challenge him to look deeper into his Jewish faith. What resulted was a quest that Gregory said brought him closer than ever to the Lord.

AP Photo/Meet The Press, Scott Olson

"I've just become more grounded in faith," he said. "I feel like I have a much better and growing relationship with God."

In "How's Your Faith?" Gregory explores different religious traditions and speaks with various world religious leaders like Joel Osteen and Cardinal Timothy Dolan, among others, in a quest to answer big life questions.

"I feel like I know my truth, but I don't know what I don't know. I am Jewish, I am rooted in my Jewish faith and traditions," he said. "I believe that it's not something that I choose. I think that it was something that I was born into."

That said, Gregory believes that God isn't yet done with him, as he approaches issues of faith with an open heart and mind.

"I haven't worked everything out," he said. "I don't have all the answers."

Stay tuned for part two of The Church Boys interview during which Gregory discusses politics and media.

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