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Reverend Wrong

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By JOHN REINEIRS

In My Own Words

Published: May 7, 2008

"Fame may be fleeting but obscurity is forever." Napoleon's observation became a touchstone for the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, who was Barack Obama's pastor for 20 years.
He had 15 minutes of fame, and was about to fade into obscurity, but decided to come back to haunt Obama with his appearances on the Bill Moyer's show, the NAACP in Detroit and the National Press Club, which have guaranteed that he will be anything but obscure. This has confounded the media, which is pro-Obama, but even it cannot ignore the good reverend. He is news.
The corollary to Napoleon's truism is ironically another from his vast bag of secular homilies: "From the sublime to the ridiculous is but a step." Wright took that step.
This is a step that many celebrities make, but most realize that — and sorry for the showbiz axiom — "Bad publicity is better than no publicity." This works for the Britney Spearses of the world. But here we have a preacher, who while seeking to avoid obscurity — he is retiring — took that ridiculous step. And, frankly, as a guest at the National Press Club luncheon, he performed like the regulars on "Comedy Central." He is thoroughly enjoying himself and hurting Obama.
Why? This is a man with impeccable educational credentials — enlisted in the Marines, transferred to the Navy and graduated as valedictorian and salutatorian in two different schools. After receiving his doctor of ministry degree from the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio, he took over the Chicago Trinity United Church of Christ with only 87 members — part of a mostly white denomination — and transformed it into a mega church of 10,000 members. It is a religious and political watering hole in Obama's old Chicago district. As a proponent of black liberal theology, he views blacks as helpless victims, and in his appearance on the National Press Club luncheon on April 28, said the negative attention he received by the media was an "attack on the black church."
The man has lost touch with reality.
Black liberation theology is sometimes described as sociology, not a religion, with Jesus as a black Marxist rebel. And remember, Obama has said that his "crazy uncle" Wright has been a significant influence on his life. Many black theologians have said that Wright prefers to ignore the long overdue gains made by American blacks since the civil rights movement, and in a sense, is a throwback to another era.
I'm sure that many young people who watch his video rants about the U.S. government creating HIV to use against blacks, blaming the U.S. for the 9/11 terrorist attacks — and there's more — would wonder what planet this guy came from. But if they then hear his measured, scholarly lectures they would think they were in a university classroom. It's when he shifts into anger and defiant sarcasm, his populist, left-leaning side is revealed. His strategy is to attack and focus on real or perceived injustices and victim-hood. To that extent he is a typical left- leaning liberal.
In my view the Obama/Wright fiasco shows us how shallow we have become. We have made Obama a celebrity — a man with no credentials — other than his natural ability to captivate an audience. One commentator said last week that when "Hillary enters a room, it's like your mother coming in. When Barack comes in, it's electric; the audience reacts as though he is a rock star."
Well, so is the Rev. Wright who is basking in all this attention — and probably will shortly announce a book publication. All successful politicians are performance artists. Successful preachers are no different. This man can get into character in a heartbeat. In the blink of an eye he can transform himself from a scholarly, religious academic, to a retro-raving racist, rabble-rouser.
The basic element of a contemporary performance artist is the relationship established between the performer and the audience/congregation, which is being challenged to think — usually differently. If you watched the Wright videos, when he was in action with his congregation, asking "God to Damn America," he sounded like a throwback to the 1960s — with the cadence and anger of a black preacher of that era, who can only be truly understood by an older black congregation. On Bill Moyer's show and at the National Press Club luncheon, he switched his diction and style to influence a contemporary mainstream audience.
Successful talking trial lawyers, actors, singers, preachers, motivational speakers and politicians intuitively know how to make that emotional connection with their "audience." This is their gift, and the Rev. Wright is no exception with his target audience.
The media have packaged the captivating Obama as a cult-like celebrity candidate, who will be the miraculous agent of "change" for an America of the future. The majority of Democrats had bought into this, and then along came his cantankerous mentor who wants to carry America back 150 years to the Civil War era.
This brings author D.H. Lawrence to mind, who wrote quizzically, "Why doesn't the past decently bury itself, instead of sitting waiting to be admired by the present?" I'll tell you why. When it pays.
Wright built his successful career on the past. It's hard for Obama to move beyond race when that's all his left-leaning racist pastor of 20 years wants to talk about.

John Reiniers, a regular columnist for Hernando Today, lives in Spring Hill.

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