Obama: leaving his spiritual home



And so it came to pass that Barack Obama felt the need to leave his church. After the egomania of retired Pastor Jeremiah Wright caused Obama endless woes on the campaign trail (not to mention a National Review cover story on black liberation theology), your blogstress finds some irony in the fact that the final blow to Obama's ability to remain both a member of Trinity United Church of Christ and a viable presidential candidate came in the form of a sermon from a Roman Catholic priest, Michael Pfleger.

Speaking a guest preacher in Trinity's sanctuary, Pfleger mocked Hillary Clinton's tearful moment in New Hampshire, saying she was crying only because she was losing to Obama, a black man, while she is white, "entitled", and "Bill's wife."

For one, your blogstress is not surprised to hear such sexist and demeaning comments flow from the mouth of a Catholic priest. Only this week, the pope reaffirmed church policy to excommunicate Catholic official who dares to ordain a woman priest, or any woman who would be so ordained. No misogyny there!

Still, I can't help but wonder if, had Chris Dodd or Joe Biden come this close to winning the nomination, they would have been forced to leave their churches for whatever disparaging remarks their pastors may have uttered -- perhaps towards women or queer people -- from their Roman Catholic pulpits.

Comments

Unknown said…
Pfleger has been a loose cannon in Chicago for years. He's done a lot of good at St. Sabina's but always seems to draw the spotlight to himself in an unfavorable way. It's a shame these religious leaders can't see the harm they do to all their good works when they open their mouths sometimes. In spite of Hillary's protestations to the contrary, speeches do have a lot of power, for good or ill.

While there's nothing new about the Vatican's position regarding the ordination of women, don't go tarring Pfleger with that same brush--he's about as far from the Vatican as he can get while still claiming membership in the Church. Most of us are more surprised it took this long for Rome to say something about these recent ordinations. It seems that enlightenment will be a looong time coming.
10:28 PM
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