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The Meaning of Reverend Wright
(Written for publication on Monday,
March 17)The
Reverend Dr. Jeremiah Wright, Barack Obama's
pastor, has caused quite a stir, as various
news outlets have aired excerpts from some of
his sermons. Now the question is, What should
we make of it? This is a dangerous topic,
because no matter what one says or writes,
there is a very real chance that it'll be
twisted and turned to fit another person's
narrative. So, I weigh in with these thoughts,
knowing full well that I run that
risk.
Let me say from the outset that I
do not endorse - indeed, I flatly reject - much
of what I have heard Reverend Wright say that
is now being reported in the news, comments
like these carried by MSNBC.com:
"We bombed
Hiroshima, we bombed Nagasaki, and we nuked far
more than the thousands in New York, and we
never batted an eye. We have supported state
terrorism against the Palestinians and black
South Africans, and now we are indignant
because the stuff we have done overseas is
brought right back in our own front
yards."
"No, no, no not God
Bless America - God damn
America!"
But in everyone's rush
to condemn the Reverend, I wonder if we have
missed some key insights.
First, the
tendency among political leaders, bloggers,
news reporters, and others to corner Senator
Obama and get him to shout "Uncle!" seems
blatantly ridiculous, serving no other purpose
than to fan the flames of political division
and score points. I often watch with utter
disgust and disbelief as they manipulate news
in ways that only coarsen and cripple public
life.
Instead, there is the question I
wish Senator Obama would answer: What is it
that you found to be inspiring, insightful, or
engaging about Reverend Wright and Trinity
Church in the first place? The Senator could
have joined any church, but he joined this one
- why? I suspect his answer to that question
will yield something about Reverend Wright, but
even more about the Senator's own beliefs and
values. My guess is that there is something
powerful in the history and teachings of that
church that speak to the Senator's sense of
faith and service, something beyond the handful
of comments by Reverend Wright now being
highlighted.
Next, what does it mean to
have people in society, such as Reverend
Wright, who aggressively challenge the status
quo, who send out messages which some say are
phony and which others call prophetic, who dare
to cross the line of politeness and rupture
norms of give-and-take, and whose comments
merely reflect a portion of what they
preach? Such comments can be
mean-spirited and can produce ill-effects; we
should not turn a blind eye to those. But
neither should we automatically condemn
someone's entire career because of selected
remarks pulled out of context; indeed, we must
not be driven by our fear of their
remarks.
The alternative is to step
forward and renounce them in ways that reflect
the kind of public life and politics we seek to
create. Let us take in the fullness of their
argument and respond in kind - with clarity,
forthrightness, and strength of conviction,
even love. I do not suggest that anyone should
back down, but neither do I advocate a slash
and burn response that poisons the very public
square we wish to invigorate.
Finally, I
think the Reverend Wright situation raises the
question, What does it mean to stand by a
leader - in this case Senator Obama - who has
worked for years to reengage people and build
bridges, and who himself can hardly be accused
of promoting incendiary comments that pit
people against one another?
It seems to
me that we must learn how to judge a public
person, with all their misdeeds and maladies,
with the expectation that they cannot comport
themselves with absolute holiness over time,
and nor should we be ready to grant them
unfailing redemption at each turn. Doing so
would forfeit our own claim to think and act
for ourselves. Indeed, it is the depths of our
very engagement -- our own willingness to step
forward -- that may be the biggest issue we
face this year.