Better Never Than Late?

One hesitates to even whisper the name Jeremiah Wright now that it has become a faint echo from, lo, a whole week ago. I'm sure most folk in the Obama camp hope they never hear it again.



But the story of Rev. Wright and his famous congregant have not ceased to echo in my mind and to trouble my heart.



Call me touchy-feely or wishy-washy, but I make a lot of my decisions based upon intuitive reasoning. Much of what I understand about the Universe and the people in it is communicated to me not through words or formulas or prooftexts but in visual language, through sound and feel and maybe even something less quantifiable than that. Since most ministers, I am told, are "NF" on the Myers-Briggs scale, they ought to understand. This way of "knowing" the world has grown even more dominant for me as I get older. Is that what they call wisdom? Maybe... I know that sometimes, I AM wrong!



So, what I am about to say is what I have gleaned from those intuitive sources above, filtered through a week or more of contemplation and rumination. I agree with Boyce Watkins (http://www.boycewatkins.com/) that the real tragedy here is that a Black man and his pastor and friend of 20 years have been forced to sever their relationship by a media that hounded and pounded at them mercilessly. There are so many ways in which Barack Obama is being forced to deny and repress his "blackness." But when he dismissed his pastor for once and for all, I thought I saw pain, not artificial but genuine pain, in his face and heard it in his voice.



Wright has made some errors, but we know that he is a brilliant and distinguished man of deep faith and commitment. I also know, as do my fellow clergy, that even the most intelligent and insightful members of our congregations may see us through filters and lenses that make us look more super - human than we imagine. No doubt this was the case with Obama/Wright. After all, Barack had come to his discovery of his faith under that man!



When, for whatever reason, the veneer comes off and the clergyperson is revealed to be human, flawed, and especially when the perception arises that the clergyperson is in any way abandoning his/her congregant, the pain, anger, and disillusionment are so deep and so distressing that some people even lose faith.



But most don't. In fact, they may grow. That is my prayer for Barack Obama.. that he will emerge sadder but wiser. And for Wright... may he be wise enough and intelligent enough to see deeply into why it had to be this way.

STRAIGHT FROM THE Press Conference.. yes, that one!

Here I am in Washington, DC... meeting with leaders of local affiliates of The Interfaith Alliance, who've gathered from across the country to share ideas and to learn. If you don't know about The Interfaith Alliance, you should! Our own Denny Davidoff has been a leader at the national level, and Rev. Galen Giungrich sits on the National Board. www.interfaithalliance.org

Even better, we get to spend a bit of time with Rev. Welton Gaddy, who is doing an amazing job here in Washington as well as on his weekly radio show (listen online... www.stateofbelief.com )
at protecting religion from government AND government from religion! But Welton hadn't slept well. That's because he spent yesterday at the Press Conference that Rev. Jeremiah Wright gave, and last evening at a related prayer service. He's concerned.

What Welton Gaddy is concerned about concerns me too. His words were:The chasm between Jeremiah Wright & his supporters & the working press is Grand Canyon wide. Jeremiah Wright is more right than wrong. The working press does not understand religion in America. They certainly do not understand the prophetic tradition in Judaism and Christianity.

He quoted another attender at Press Conference, who said:

“We are caught up in an epistemology of ignorance.” Indeed!

He's worried that 1) new voters who have come into the political process will give up if Obama fails and 2)if Obama succeeds, expectations of these new voters may be unrealistic. But he's also concerned that if Obama does not get the nomination, resentment will be enormous. I agree.

As we ended the conversation, he was considering The Interfaith Alliance's response to all of this. I understand that he plans to address it comprehensively on the radio program this week.

The Interfaith Alliance has been a large part of my ministry and my community witness the past 8 years. I am so proud to be a part of this organization and to help advance their goals. I admire the integrity, commitment, and passion of Welton Gaddy and my colleagues in this work. I am delighted that he seems deeply committed to using the resources and energies of his organization to address the deepening and alarming racial divide that has been exposed by all of this. I hope every leader and organization of conscience does the same. That will make some of it, at least, bear fruit.

Here are some pictures from our Interfaith Alliance of the Bluegrass.

A Beautiful Idea Made Real By Women...

There is a very special place in Eastern Kentucky that will restore your faith in the ability of humankind to find creative solutions to tough problems.

It's called Pine Mountain Settlement School. Last weekend, we took about a dozen high school youth from our UU Coming of Age Program along with some of their mentors to spend a few days there. I'd been there before, and enjoyed the home cooking, the wildflower lore, the bird watching and medicinal plant workshops, but I had never delved into the history.

Now, more than 5 years since my last visit, I am somewhat limited by a bad knee, so I spent part of an afternoon reading all of the old newsletters that were displayed in "Laurel House," the big lodge where meals are served and folk dancing is taught.

I discovered that Pine Mountain Settlement School was the creation of women -- two in particular, Katherine Pettit of Louisville and Ethel deLong Zande, of New Jersey. The buildings were designed by a woman architect! As I read, I marveled at the strength, determination, and forbearance of these women. Almost 100 years ago, they had the courage to hike miles and miles through Eastern Kentucky to connect with the simple people who lived there. They had the will and focus to try to make something better for these people to aspire to than poverty and resignation. But most amazing, they had the creativity to imagine and to bring to life a place where people could learn, celebrate, grow in competence and confidence, and not only transcend but also preserve their cultures -- the cultures of Scotland and England they had held onto for so long.

It's a magical place. So much love, laughter, and learning have poured out upon these meadows and hills that they seem to throb with echoes of a charmed past. One feels safe, comforted, and held by the land and the people.

I've been thinking about it ever since. I marvel at these women and what they were able to accomplish even though they didn't have modern technology, transportation or tools. In spite of fire, financial challenges, and frustrations galore, they remained focused, graceful, and gracious. I am so inspired by them!

I am touched by some of the connections to the woes of today. Misses Pettit and deLong describe families left fatherless by ongoing feuds, marauding gunslingers on horseback, and children leaving school at age 13 to work or marry. I was particularly struck by the similarity of these challenges to my current work in gang prevention.

I feel saddened by how much the kind of work they did is still needed in a region beset by the ravages of strip mining, unemployment, and drug abuse, a region where the KKK plans to hold a rally in the coming weeks. What they brought was dignity, enlightenment, hope, and joy. It's still there, and it's a beautiful treasure. www.pinemountainsettlementschool.com