Saturday, May 31, 2008
Framing of the Wright/Pfleger Mess
From a Chicago Tribune editorial posted May 30, 2008: "Obama said Pfleger’s words were “divisive” and “backward-looking.” Pfleger apologized for what he said at Trinity. “I regret the words I chose Sunday,” he said in a statement released by his church, St. Sabina. “These words are inconsistent with Sen. Obama’s life and message, and I am deeply sorry if they offended Sen. Clinton or anyone else who saw them,” he said.If they offended? They offended. After everything that happened with Rev. Jeremiah Wright, how on earth does a priest, or any religious leader, take the pulpit and behave as Michael Pfleger did?Yes, race is a factor in this campaign. Some voters will tell you point-blank that they won’t vote for Barack Obama because he is black. But what has marked Obama’s campaign is his great ability to inspire people to look beyond race. It’s a shame that all of Obama’s supporters haven’t done the same."
What I fail to understand is how "leaders" of a Church, group or even family could espouse such views. I have always thought that you didn't go to Church to hear what you wanted to hear, but rather be led by a Church leader who told you what you needed to hear. What has been proven as of late (though I already knew it) is the fact that Church leaders are "playing to a congregation". This further proves that they are not "leaders" at all. They are panderers and much more interested in dollars in the plate than salvation. To be a person of any race and continue, in 2008, to fuel the basest of racial discussions and maintain a belief of powerlessness within a class of people who need personal power the most is a disgrace and an utter disservice. To those for whom these men were putting on this display, I say pick your leaders more wisely. Find leaders who tell you how to build yourself up, not stay in a bitter and defeated state of mind. All of us, regardless of race, gender or any number of other issues, can feel defeated. What we learn is that we often find in others reflections of how we view ourselves. To cheer a man who is preaching your inability to fuel your own fate is to cheer your own destruction. I wish for you more than that.
What I fail to understand is how "leaders" of a Church, group or even family could espouse such views. I have always thought that you didn't go to Church to hear what you wanted to hear, but rather be led by a Church leader who told you what you needed to hear. What has been proven as of late (though I already knew it) is the fact that Church leaders are "playing to a congregation". This further proves that they are not "leaders" at all. They are panderers and much more interested in dollars in the plate than salvation. To be a person of any race and continue, in 2008, to fuel the basest of racial discussions and maintain a belief of powerlessness within a class of people who need personal power the most is a disgrace and an utter disservice. To those for whom these men were putting on this display, I say pick your leaders more wisely. Find leaders who tell you how to build yourself up, not stay in a bitter and defeated state of mind. All of us, regardless of race, gender or any number of other issues, can feel defeated. What we learn is that we often find in others reflections of how we view ourselves. To cheer a man who is preaching your inability to fuel your own fate is to cheer your own destruction. I wish for you more than that.
