Why Reverend Wright Matters

By now we are all a little tired of the Reverend Wright and the Trinity Church of Christ scandal. Barak Obama has tried to distance himself, albeit reluctantly, from the controversial pastor and church. My question is this; have we drawn the right conclusion from this series of events? What insight does it provide the electorate concerning Mr. Obama?

This issue matters because we know so little about Mr. Obama. He resume is very thin considering he is running for the most powerful position in the world. He is a Harvard educated attorney, who worked for several years as an associate in a large law firm. He then became a paid community organizer and visiting lecturer at the Chicago School of Law. Just three and half years ago he was a part-time state legislator from the south side of Chicago. He is now the junior senator for the state of Illinois. He has never served in an important leadership position in government, business, or the military. His ability to perform as a chief executive officer is completely untested.

Because he has very few public accomplishments and a thin legislative record we are forced to look at other sources to determine what motivates, inspires and drives this would-be president.

That means his time at Trinity Church of Christ under the spiritual leadership of Reverend Jeremiah Wright matters. Mr. Obama spent twenty years at this church. He has devoted more time to this activity than any other event in his life other than his marriage. Mr. Obama himself described Reverend Wright as his spiritual mentor. He chose to be married at Trinity and for Reverend Wright to officiate the ceremony. He stated publically that he could not disown Rev Wright anymore than he could his uncle, at least until the political pressure made it the expediate thing to do.

It is clear that the Trinity Church of Christ and Reverend Jeremiah Wright have played a big part in shaping Obama’s adult life. What motivated this man to attend this particular church for so long and what does it tell us about Mr. Obama?

I have no doubt that Mr. Obama does not endorse the contemptible statements uttered by Rev. Wright. Reverend Wright is his own person and was inflammatory when he made these statements. Obama should not be held accountable for the statements of another person. However it begs the question: Why did Mr. Obama choose this church? The fact is he chose this church on his own as an adult. It was a conscious decision to align himself with this controversial pastor and church. I can think of four scenarios that would explain Mr. Obama’s actions.

Scenario One - Mr. Obama needed to align himself with a powerful black church. Obama was new to Chicago and was politically ambitious. He might have needed the political clout that came from his association with this large, politically connected church. He would not have been the first politician to pick a church for public relations reasons. If so, this defies his primary appeal that he is not just another politician.

Scenario Two - Mr. Obama was unaware of the radical statements of his pastor. This is hard to believe. Reverend Wright is a showboat speaker. Even if Obama was not there on the multitude of Sunday’s Reverend Wright expressed these views it is incredulous to think that Obama was not aware of them as he has claimed. Why else did he ask Reverend Wright (a strong political sponsor) to avoid the stage when Obama announced his presidential candidacy?

Scenario Three - Mr. Obama embraces the black liberation theology of Reverend Wright and Trinity Church of Christ. This theology is the social cornerstone of this church. It moves beyond the religious to the political. Black liberation theology is embraced by very few churches. It is simply too radical and not part of the mainstream racial reconciliation process in America today. Consider these comments from The Black Value System that are posted on the church’s website (www.tucc.org/black_value_system.html):
• “The highest level of achievement for any Black person must be a contribution of strength and continuity of the Black Community.”
• “Pledge Allegiance to All Black Leadership Who Espouse and Embrace the Black Value System.

While there is nothing inherently wrong with each individual tenant, the overall message of this value system is radically exclusionary and would make most people, black or white very uncomfortable. These are not the inclusive comments that Mr. Obama speaks about so eloquently on the campaign trail. Why is this important? Look carefully at how Mr. Obama distanced himself from Rev Wright.

He spoke out against Wright’s inflammatory comments - the infamous GD America and US KKK America rants. However, he has never publically denounced or offered his opinion on the basic political rhetoric of the pastor and church. Does he embrace this theology?

Scenario Four- Mr. Obama sat in the pews for 20 years and was clueless as to the teachings of his pastor and church. While this is theoretically possible, it defies logic.

These are four possible scenarios. The question remains, what insight can we draw from this series of events? Is Mr. Obama just another politician using his church for political gain? Does he believe in this radical theology? Or is he really “the One we have all been waiting for.”