Today I want to share with you that I am declaring my support for Barack Obama’s candidacy for the presidency of the United States of America and will join his campaign as a writer on the new official campaign site “People of Faith for Barack.”
All of the candidates running for president in 2008 bring different gifts to the debate over our nation’s future and my endorsement of Senator Obama is not a reflection on any of them but rather because of my faith in the senator’s leadership and ideas. I believe in Barack Obama.
As a minister in the United Church of Christ, I trust deeply in the Constitutional principle of separation of church and state and my endorsement is therefore a personal one and does not reflect on the church I serve or my denomination. But as a citizen I believe that all Americans must engage in the political process as individuals for democracy to thrive. So I choose to add my voice today with millions of other Americans concerned about the direction of this nation.
Barack Obama has shown leadership on the most pressing moral issues of our day – such as the war in Iraq and the global AIDS crisis. During his time in the Illinois Legislature and in the United States Senate he has demonstrated that his values cannot be compromised by prevailing political winds.
Christians, Jews, Muslims – all people of faith in America – share in a deep and abiding love for this nation. But many of us, as William Sloane Coffin would have said, have a “lover’s quarrel” with America. We know things can be better. We know all Americans need health care. We know that no one should be homeless in the world’s richest nation. We know that global warming threatens God’s own earth and that as the stewards of creation we are called forth to protect this planet. We are also called to be peacemakers in times of conflict.
Barack Obama shares these values and when elected president will embody them as he makes decisions in the Oval Office. When that day comes we will be a better nation.
Listen to the podcast of this statement:
(click with the RIGHT mouse button on the hyperlink and choose “Save Target As” and save to your desktop or other folder – once downloaded click on the file to listen).
Related Post: Bobby
Related Link: Obama Web Site Seeks to Rally The Faithful from The Washington Post
