To understand why Barack Obama finally severed his ties with pastor Jeremiah Wright, one only needs to reach for a copy of Dreams from My Father.
After meeting Wright for the first time, Obama recalls thumbing through a church brochure, reviewing the guiding principles of Trinity United. He described one particular passage that stood out for him.
"While it is permissible to chase middle incumbness with all our might, those blessed with the talent or good fortune to achieve success in the American mainstream must avoid the psychological entrapment of black middleclassness that hypnotizes the successful brother or sister into believing they are better than the rest and teaches them to think in terms of we and they instead of us."
That statement speaks of community, of not forgetting where you came from.
Whatever we might think of the now infamous Wright sound bites, the tapes were released by a third party. Although responsible for his harsh words, the pastor did not put himself under the sharp glare of the media. Obama did what most politicians would not, but what most Christians would. After expressing his extreme disappointment, he turned the other cheek.
While speaking at the National Press Club, not only did Wright seek out the media spotlight, his remarks expressed undercut the very principle that drew Obama to the church in the first place. Wright became all about Wright, hypnotized by his fifteen minutes of fame into believing that he was better than the we of who he preached.
He didn't practice what he taught others to follow and apply to their own lives.
For Obama--a Yes We Can type of guy--the betrayal rocked the foundation of his steadfast faith in coming together as community. To keep his vision for change front and center, he cut Wright loose.
By doing so he proved his faith to be his guide.
It is now America's turn to have faith in Barack Obama.
“His comments were not only divisive and destructive, but I believe that they end up giving comfort to those who prey on hate, and I believe that they do not portray accurately the perspective of the black church,” Mr. Obama said, his voice welling with anger. “They certainly don’t portray accurately my values and beliefs.”
(...)
"At a certain point, if what somebody says contradicts what you believe so fundamentally, and then he questions whether or not you believe it in front of the National Press Club, then that’s enough,” Mr. Obama said. “That’s a show of disrespect to me. It’s also, I think, an insult to what we’ve been trying to do in this campaign.”
