I have not committed my vote, but I am now more interested in attending Senator Obama’s church.* Here is Rev. Jeremiah Wright addressing the National Press Club (broadcast on CSPAN and FOX News in its entirety)[after the jump]. He invokes the prophetic tradition in the Black Church in America as the full context of his recently excerpted comments that have been so inflammatory on the political scene. Agreeing or not with his wider theology, I like the idea that the Tradition of the whole church serves as a criteria for discerning the prophetic role of the church; not just the segment of history and location of those with the biggest microphones.
I also think this is a great opportunity, agreeing or not with Wright’s politics, to consider the way scripture speaks to power, or to the dominant culture. There are a lot of white churches presenting incendiary texts every week without anything catching fire. Who gets to speak for God? Well, who does God tend to pick?
*Part 3 is where I start getting that urge to go forward.
Thanks for posting these. I wonder if you’d like to jump in the discussion over on my blog concerning this matter.
*Amen, brother!!
An entire thesis could be written just on the reality of your last question.
Amen, sister. I’d read it.
Perhaps it is you, my brother, who should write it!
Does it ever occur to anyone that there seems to be this sense of “providence” with the up-coming Nov. election?? This feeling that someone has been “chosen”?
Hummmm….