Obama at Prayer Breakfast: 'No God Condones Terror'

At the annual National Prayer Breakfast Thursday, President Barack Obama spoke on how faith is being distorted by horrific acts being done in the name of religion.

"From a school in Pakistan to the streets of Paris, we have seen violence and terror perpetrated by those who profess to stand up for faith," said the President. "They profess to stand up for Islam but in fact are betraying it. ISIL, the brutal vicious death cult, that in the name of religion carries out acts of barbarism."

Obama added that we must speak up against those who would misuse religion to justify oppression or violence.

"No God condones terror. No -- no grievance justifies the taking of innocent lives or the oppression of those who are weaker or fewer in number," he said. "And so, as people of faith, we are summoned to push back against those who've tried to distort our religion. Any religion for their own nihilistic ends."

The president made sure to stress that Islam is not the only religion that has inspired violence.

"And lest we get on our high horse and think this is unique to some other place, remember that during the Crusades and the Inquisition, people committed terrible deeds in the name of Christ. And in our home country, slavery and Jim Crow all too often was justified in the name of Christ," he said.

Obama has come under fire from pundits and on social media for that remark. Others say they're still waiting to see a strong U.S. response to ISIS.

Gordon Robertson gives a history lesson for the president and those equating Islamic terrorism to the Christian crusades. Watch below.

Watch the National Prayer Breakfast remarks below. Ebola survivor Dr. Kent Brantly spoke at the event. His remarks begin at 17 minutes in.

The president joined other religious and government leaders Thursday for the annual event. The prayer breakfast has been taking place since 1953. It is an opportunity for lawmakers and world leaders to come together and discuss religion and its impact on the world today.

Obama had been expected to focus his speech on the importance of religious freedom around the world, but focused his attention instead on recent terrorist activities.

Some notable guests at this years breakfast included the Dalai Lama and Ebola survivor Dr. Kent Brantly. This is the first time the president and the Dalai Lama have attended the same public event. China considers the Dalai Lama a threat because of his work to see his native Tibet free from Chinese rule.

Jordan's King Abdullah II cancelled plans to attend the breakfast after the horrific murder of a Jordanian pilot by ISIS militants.