This weekend and today The Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright, a colleague of mine in the United Church of Christ (thought we do not know each other personally), spoke out for the first time since controversy erupted over some of his sermons.
Of course, the media and some political agents of candidates attempted to see Dr. Wright’s comments as somehow new and thus deserving of the 24-hour cable news treatment normally reserved for stories involving escaped wildlife in suburban neighborhoods or the following of high speed car chases.
In the end, all of this is meant to be a distraction. What people are really worried about are issues such as the war, the health care crisis, crumbling schools, the soaring price of food and gas, and how after centuries of division we can find racial reconciliation. These are the moral issues that deserve national attention.
We don’t even need to focus on Hillary Clinton’s stories of running from bullets in Bosnia or John McCain tortured relationship with a Texas minister who dislikes Roman Catholics and Jews. There are more important issues to focus on.
And these important issues are the issues Senator Barack Obama, thankfully, is talking about in his campaign for the presidency.
Senator Obama has been clear that there are specific statements made by Dr. Wright that he disagrees with. You can bet that on any give Sunday there are members of my church who leave disagreeing with what I preach. That’s the nature of being a minister. Politicians and preachers do have different roles and speak of different things.
During this campaign the senator has made reconciliation a primary theme of his efforts. In like mind with the church, Barack Obama wants the American people to remember that what we have in common is more important than what divides us and also that our destinies are all tied together as a people – regardless of our color, gender, race, orientation, or religion.
None of this is to say that I don’t find what that Dr. Wright said this weekend to be important. His interview on PBS was particularly informative.
But Barack Obama has a broader vision for America than what passes for news today. He wants to address the moral issues of our lives – issues of particular concern to people of faith – in fundamental and transformative ways. That’s why I support his candidacy.
Related Link: Controversy addressed during Easter service * Easter Sunday 2008 (KATU)
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