As I sit here watching the Pope and listening to his preaching I can’t help but think back to the “preaching’s” of Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Add in the repugnant statement last week by Barack Obama and I have come to some interesting conclusions.
The Pope in his very first speech at the White House concluded with “God Bless America”. I don’t know if it was intentional but I bet a lot of folks were comparing that to Wright’s “God Damn America”. So far the Pope has been preaching a sermon of forgiveness, encouragement and love. Wright, on the other hand, seems to spend a lot of time preaching about blame and anger and even hatred.
Ironically, Pope Benedict XVI has more reason to hate a group of people than Wright ever will. This German Pope lived through Hitler’s regime and had to deal with the terror and ugliness of Nazism. Now Jeremiah Wright may talk of slavery but he was never shackled in chains, nor his father or probably even his grandfather.
Anyway, in addition to comparing the Pope’s message of love and forgiveness to that of Wright’s hate and anger filled sermons throw in Barack Obama’s message last week. If Barack does attend a church that preaches hatred then you can almost understand why he might think that bitter people turn to religion when they are frustrated.
If your church reflects your frustration and anger with the world then I suppose it would be appealing to a frustrated bitter person. But most people who go to church go to one that preaches a message of love and forgiveness similar to the Pope’s sermons.
Mixing all of these thoughts together and I am arriving at two interesting conclusions. First, it isn’t small town folks who are bitter but the Democrats. Liberals, like Obama, seem to be very frustrated and bitter and angry at the USA. These liberals have yet to forgive anyone; not the people, the Supreme Court, Republicans, Southerners, Floridians nor anyone else who they think helped to elect President Bush in 2000 and again in 2004.
On the other hand, the most successful Republicans, like Reagan, campaign on the promises of hope and a better tomorrow. Their positive messages reflect that of main stream churches. History has shown that most people want leaders who are positive, who offer the masses hope and encouragement to be a better person, a better country. Actully it isn't only Republicans who are elected if they have a message of hope. Think of Roosevelt, Kennedy even Bill Clinton. All of them encourgaed the population that there would be a new tomorrow filled with hope and the good life.
Obama had initially started off campaigning on hope and the offer to bring Americans together again. But after the divisiveness of Jeremiah Wright, Obama’s proclaimed spiritual advisor, then Obama himself began to be tainted with the brush of liberal anger and hatred. Obama then compounded the problem with his bitter statement. He probably will still be the Democratic nominee for President. But if McCain can emulate the Pope by giving Americans a message of hope and prosperity he just might win over an opponent who is portrayed as seeing a bitter not better people and country.
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