For those who haven’t read my short and sweet About Me page, I’ll save you the trouble of clicking away and tell you that the important tidbit there is that I am a Libertarian. I’m not particularly fond of either of the two major parties so I’ll probably cast my vote for the least of all the evils. This is all significant because I want to be clear from the start: my opinion has nothing to do with my choice for president. None of the candidates reflect my views. My commentary on the 2008 race in general and this post’s topic in particular is not partisan in any way. Feel free to comment an opinion of your own but I don’t promise to debate you, even if I disagree. But I might.
I’ve watched for a week now as the media played the endless loop of Reverend Jeremiah Wright’s offensive sermons. I’ve listened to the pundits and I’ve listened to and read the transcripts of Senator Obama’s response. And I am amazed.
Why does it matter what this man’s religious and spiritual leader says and believes? Why must we conclude that Senator Obama agrees with Reverend Wright on every issue? Is that even fair?
According to Catholics In The Public Square, the 110th Congress claims 157 Roman Catholics. Of those, there are 89 Democrats in the House and 16 Democrats in the Senate. Think about that.
A handful of those Democrats are pro-life but for the most part, these Catholic Democrats vote the party line of pro-choice. We all know that the world wide leader of the Catholic Church, Pope Benedict XVI, has taken a decidedly pro-life stance and has instructed US politicians to do the same. Maybe I’m not paying attention but I haven’t heard an outcry that all Catholic Democrats secretly agree with the Pope and will work to undermine the pro-choice laws of the United States.
Of course, being pro-life isn’t necessarily a hateful thing, as racism is. So let’s look at another issue that Catholic Democrats face: Gay rights. While both parties seem to be intent on denying gays the right to marry, Democrats have always talked the talk of gay rights (even if “Don’t ask, don’t tell” was a cop out). And yet the Pope, as leader of the Catholic Church, has called gays “sinners” and homosexuality a sin. Some claim that the stance of the Catholic Church on homosexuality is hateful.
Do we question Catholic Democrats who claim to disagree with their spiritual leader on this issue? No, we do not. In fact, we don’t find it at all unusual for Catholics, whether in political life or not, to disagree with their Pope or their Bishop or their priest on this and other issues. And yet, we are holding Barack Obama to that standard. Why is that?
If we’re going to question Barack Obama on the beliefs of his spiritual leader, then we need to question every member of Congress about how their political beliefs match up with the teachings of their spiritual leaders. We need to examine them with a fine tooth comb just as we have Senator Obama and the Reverend Wright.
The way I see it, the man who brought Barack Obama to Christ is a flawed man. That doesn’t mean that the Lord did not use Reverend Jeremiah Wright to bring His child Barack into the family of Christians. Maybe it simply means that Christians are sinners but that God can still work through us. Maybe it means that no matter our shortcomings, the hand of our Lord can bring forth goodness. Maybe the message in all of this is not about hatred but about God’s power.
If the media really wants to do some digging, let’s find out who is really fueling this story. That’s what I’d like to know.