OBAMA, REV. JEREMIAH WRIGHT JR., AND WHA!T IT MEANS TO BE "UNASHAMEDLY BLACK"!

The opening line of the Trinity United Church of Christ’s website reads, “We are a congregation which is Unashamedly Black and Unapologetically Christian…” So, the fact the Barack Obama has not only attended this church but has maintained a close relationship with the Church’s Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr. since 1980 has come under some heavy scrutiny
Hannity (Fox News) in an interview with the Rev. Al Sharpton asked if it would not be taken as prejudiced were the church to announce that they are “Unashamedly White,” Shouldn’t a “Black Church be held to same standard?” (Similar questions have been printed in articles and interviews in the Washington Post and the Chicago Sun-Times.) Clearly, it is a question, which deserves some attention.
John J. Dilulio Jr. (Director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives) in an article entitled “Defending Black Churches” writes, “Under what, if any conditions can the life prospects of today’s black inner-city poor be improved, and how, if at all, can we foster those conditions? My argument in this essay is that supporting black churches and other faith-based grassroots organizations that perform youth and community outreach functions in poor inner-city neighborhoods is a necessary and vital although insufficient condition for repairing the social fabric and economic vitality in true disadvantaged urban neighborhoods.”
Hannity’s question seems to suppose that the purpose of the Trinity United Church is to exclude Caucasians, Hispanics, or any ethnicity or race, which is not Black. This is not the case”. The church is in a neighborhood, which is populated mostly by African Americans and therefore caters largely to African Americans. Again, this is not to say that the entire congregation is Black, it is not, or that the messages preached in this church are prejudice.

Having looked at some of what the church stands for, let us take a closer look at Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr.
Over the last year, a lot has been written about the prejudice of Rev. Wright. Rather then, directly respond to these accusations I am going to take some lines from an interview Rev. Wright Jr. gave on March 13th, 2007 which paints a different picture.
When asked whether Democrats as a party and Obama in particular planned to reach out to religious voters he said, “…The new movement is toward not being afraid to talk about your faith. But you should also stop thinking you have absolute truth -- that your faith is the only one.”
SPIEGEL: Isn't that the nature of faith, though? Believing strongly in your faith to the exclusion of others?
Wright: We’re not on this planet alone. Right now, the average American or the average German or the average Brit couldn’t tell you the difference between a Sunni and a Shiite. I mean, you got Christians who lynch people in the name of Jesus, and you got Muslims who fly planes into buildings. But you got some Muslims who don’t do that. You got some Christians who ain't got time to lynch people. We need to stop lumping folks together and start living together. Otherwise, we’re going to kill each other off because you don’t believe what I believe. That’s crazy. Before Democrats were quiet because they didn’t want people to think they were fanatics. Barack has broken that ice.

This is a powerful message and one well worth taking to heart.

Does this mean that Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr. has never said anything prejudice or that might misrepresent the mission of his church? No, Rev Wright Jr. was a Pastor for thirty years and so over that period it is inevitable that he said things, which may have misrepresented even his own beliefs. Taken over that long a period we all contradict ourselves or say something, which could later be misconstrued to mean something else. However, it is important that we not judge a man (or woman) based solely on the sound bytes and accusations that appear in the media but also on our own analysis and research. Only then can we say we are voting, in good conscience, for the candidate with the strongest foundation and truest beliefs needed to run our country.

Links and Sources:
The Church’s Mission Statement: http://www.tucc.org/mission.htm
Spiegel’s interview with Rev. Wright Jr.: http://www.spiegel.de/international/0,1518,471221,00.html
John J. Dilulio article on Defending Black Churches:
http://www.hoover.org/publications/digest/4525066.html