I’ll admit up front: I’m not a fan of this guy. But I know many who are, and what Bill O’Reilly has to say here about his Catholic upbringing is pretty interesting.

Take a look. This comes from Long Island’s newspaper, Newsday:

You know him as the eponymous commentator on Fox News’ “The O’Reilly Factor.” (“I’d appreciate it if you don’t put any words in front of my name, like ‘conservative,'” he says sternly.) Brooklyn-born, Levittown-raised Bill O’Reilly, 59, has written a new book, “A Bold Fresh Piece of Humanity” (Broadway Books, $26), titled after a description of him by Sister Mary Lurana, one of the School Sisters of Notre Dame who taught him at St. Brigid’s School in Westbury.

In the book, you are forever earning the “hairy eyeball” from a battery of nuns. How has their influence shaped you?

In my neighborhood in Levittown, there was a split: the kids who went to Catholic school and kids who went to public school. There was always a difference in behavior. The Catholic school kids were wild, too – unrestrained is the best word. But as we got older there were fewer boundaries for the public school kids, in the language and the attitude. The Catholic school kids had a built-in restraint mechanism.

It’s just inconceivable to young parents today when I tell them I had 60 kids in my class. Every kid by the third grade could read and write. None of them didn’t make the cut. Back then the advantage was, even though we didn’t have any money, everybody got the basics down, and everyone had a reasonable chance to succeed.

What about the emphasis on shame and fear that often accompanied that?

There was a lot of shaming, but it didn’t work for me. I think that was more of a Levittown thing than a Catholic school thing. I can remember at 4 and 5 years old being tossed out into the neighborhood. It was a hardscrabble upbringing. I had that edge at age 6.

You still go to Mass every week. Why?

I’ve always done it, even when I was in college and I was sitting with the chaplain, just the two of us, because no one else showed up. It’s an hour for me for not dealing with the madness. And when I travel around the world, I seek out the cathedrals. I find in any one of them there is a kind of peaceful feeling. The traditions of Catholicism are very important to me, because I believe I am here for a reason. I believe there is a reason why I do what I do, why I’ve been given these talents.

But you’re not a proselytizer?

I’m not a roller. I’m not going out and saying, “I’m a church guy.’ I’m the biggest sinner on the block. It would be ridiculous for me to tell anybody what I do. Everybody seeks solace in their own way. Religion, used properly, is a positive. It gives you peace of mind.

Should it be a part of the political discourse?

I’m a secular guy. It’s the separation of church and state. We don’t make laws based on religion, and I don’t accept arguments based on that. I tell people, “Unless you can produce God … and I can book Him on the show next week.”

Culturally, isn’t being Catholic only a piece of it?

The Kennedys grew up Catholic. I grew up working-class Catholic. Being in a situation where you were competing all the time for attention and limited resources. I kept my old friends. I consciously fostered my working-class background. I always knew this was going to give me the edge. I’m not impressed by money.

What are you impressed by?

By intellect, by accomplishment, by fairness, by charity. By people who sacrifice for others. I’m more interested in helping the country – I know it sounds ridiculous. But we have a purpose, and that’s mine.