Obama joined the church to get those political connections. It had nothing to do with Jesus.
Obama’s mother raised him an athiest and he apparently got little or no religious background from his stepfather during his years living in Indonesia, so when Obama chose Chicago as the launch pad for his political career (as a “community organizer”), he figured he figured being a “Christian” had to be part of the game plan.
I doubt he seriously dreamed at that time that he would someday be a legitimate contender for the Presidency so he went with a church that would work for his immediate purposes of ascending in the world of South Side Chicago politics. Had Obama been a little more far-sighted he might have chosen a nice “mixed” church somewhere, or at least a more traditional black church.
Jesus = ebonics for "political connections".
I agree with you AB. I heard Newt talk about this last week. He was the only one with enough courage to state that it was a matter of political expedience for Obama to join this church, to establish himself with the community.