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A massive clean-up effort began Sunday in churches across the nation to mend communal bonds strained over the divisive comments of Sen. Barack Obama’s former pastor regarding racism in America.
Many of the United Church of Christ’s 10,000 pastors were scheduled to preach on the subject of race in their sermon Sunday morning in hopes of sparking “sacred conversations” about the historically divisive issue.
“Honest talks” about America’s past as well as modern-day race problems is the goal of this initiative.
“Sacred conversations are never easy,” said the Rev. John Thomas, UCC president and general minister, according to Religion News Service. “This is especially true when honest talk about race confronts us with a painful past that won’t let us ignore the trouble of our present day.”
The major UCC effort is in response to the uproar caused by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright’s statements in past sermons in which he damned the United States for racism, accused the American government of deliberately spreading the HIV virus to harm black people, and blamed the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on U.S. foreign policy.
“We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans and now we are indignant,” Wright said in the sermon after the Sept. 11 attacks, according to The Associated Press. “America’s chickens are coming home to roost.”
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Wright’s incendiary remarks sparked a media firestorm because of his ties with Sen. Barack Obama – the leading Democratic presidential candidate. Wright, the former senior pastor of Trinity UCC in Chicago, was the one who brought Obama to Christianity, had officiated his wedding, and baptized his two daughters.
The close bond and more than 20 year friendship forged between the two men forced Americans to question Obama’s patriotism and view on the race issue.
As a side-effect of the curiosity regarding Obama’s view, the public began to question not only Trinity United Church of Christ, but also the denomination’s teachings on racism in America.
UCC says it is encouraging sermons about the race issue in response to the public’s interest about the denomination’s view.
However, not all UCC members are excited about re-igniting the dialogue on race, which has cast a shadow on Obama’s campaign.
The Rev. David Runnion-Bareford, executive director of the UCC’s Confessing Movement, is among those who believe the dialogue should be suspended.
The "leadership of the United Church of Christ, in support of UCC Pastor Jeremiah Wright, damaged Obama’s candidacy by refocusing attention on racial division in a way that, sadly, energized racism in the nation,” he said, according to RNS.
“We call our church not to compound this error by engaging in ‘dialogue’ on the pain of the past or the issues that divide,” said Runnion-Bareford.
The UCC, however, is strongly encouraging pastors and lay leaders to preach and encourage conversation on race not only on May 18, but beyond into the coming months.
