It’s not easy being the new messiah [Thou shalt hurl]

The Scotland Herald ^ | January 31, 2010 | Ron Ferguson

[2ndDivisionVet]

Well, is God blessing Barack Obama?

The beleaguered US President must wonder about that every time he wakes up in the White House. Part of his problem, of course, is that when he ran for the presidency under the slogan of change, the electorate projected their own dreams and aspirations onto what was effectively a blank slate; some even saw him as a black messiah. The problem with being viewed in this way is that when expectations are not met, the messiah can quickly morph into the scapegoat.

So what is it with Obama and God? Last week’s television programme on BBC2, God Bless You Barack Obama?, examined the phenomenon of how the son of a black Kenyan Muslim father and a white agnostic Texan mother managed to persuade so many conservative Christian evangelicals to vote for a black Democrat of liberal tendencies. A lot was down to Obama’s personal charisma, his intelligence, his visibly strong family life and his powerful personal story. “A few years ago,” said Bill Clinton crassly, “this guy would have been getting us coffee.”

Obama converted to Christianity when he was working as an activist on the streets of Chicago. He became impressed by the work of the black churches in mobilising people who were marginalised by their race and poverty. He encountered an electrifying black evangelical preacher, the Rev Jeremiah Wright, who challenged the young man on faith issues. Wright’s growing congregation took the lead in projects to feed the hungry, speak up for the poor, sit with drug addicts and defend gays. Drawn to this energising expression of faith, Obama became a member of Wright’s congregation.

Repeated polls have shown that America would not elect an atheist to the presidency. So was Obama’s decision to become a Christian a cynical political one? There is no evidence that this is so, and those who know Obama are convinced of the sincerity of his religious commitment – but who knows the secrets of the human heart? What is certainly true is that Obama’s connection with the fiery Jeremiah Wright almost cost him the Democratic nomination. When clips of Wright’s preaching appeared on YouTube – especially one in which he shouted “God damn America!”– and repeatedly shown on American television, Obama’s lead in the polls went into meltdown. He bravely went on live television to address the issue of race in America, and the rest is history.

In the TV documentary, Jeremiah Wright gave his first interview since the whole affair. What was clear is that Wright is no raving fundamentalist, but a sophisticated, intelligent man with a passion for justice. The “God damn America!” soundbites had been ripped from a sermon which took America to task for its treatment of blacks, the poor and those who had no healthcare, as well as for its wars. Wright’s main offence lay in his strong challenge to white Republican-voting evangelicals’ fixation with the “hot button” issues of abortion and homosexuality, while ignoring the biblical themes of poverty, war and justice. The Bush administration’s failure to act adequately in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina – while bodies of poor black people floated in the floodwaters of New Orleans – alienated many of its former supporters. Meanwhile, a brilliant campaign by America’s leading evangelical activist and long-time friend of Obama’s, Jim Wallis, focused on injustice in America and insisted that God was neither Republican nor Democrat.

After a year in power, Barack Obama is being tested. How he responds to the setbacks he has encountered will shape the rest of his presidency. As he seeks to rescue his plan to provide health coverage for America’s poorest people, the man whose hero is the Rev Dr Martin Luther King Jr will be sustained by his faith. Who can tell whether God is blessing him; but if he succeeds, the blessing of those who are marginalised will be approval enough.

[2ndDivisionVet]

That's odd: I thought that "white Republican-voting evangelicals" provided multiple billions of dollars in relief and charity to the poor all over the world every year ... I must have them mixed up with those Islamic and Atheist charities.

[Allegra]

So what is it with Obama and God?

You mean Obama and Allah...

[jeffc]

The hurl warning was so appropriate! So much mush and cheerleading for the Zero is like too much candy the day after Halloween - were we tricked or treated?

Last week’s television programme on BBC2, God Bless You Barack Obama?...

Can you fathom the BBC2 doing a program called God Bless You George Bush?

[Oztrich Boy]

but who knows the secrets of the human heart?

[darkangel82]

Worst writing ever. Wtf is this, Pravda?

[bogusname]

This is an excellent example of just how far people have gotten from God. God is not on Obama’s side. Obama is not on God’s side. To suggest otherwise is a blaspheme in and of itself.