Reverend Wright and the Gospel of Christ

I greet you all in the name of the Lord of the universe, Jesus the Christ. I am ecstatic that Jesus has called people to repentance, and through this repentance we must completely understand the goals of the kingdom of Christ. One of those goals is to have all races united in His kingdom. One of my favorite songs is the “Blood Song” by Kirk Franklin and Jaci Velasquez, which emphasizes that it did not matter what color Jesus was, but that His blood was red. The blood of Jesus Christ is what washes away sins, not His skin color. We must remember that any kind of racism is a sin, because God has created man in His own image (Genesis 1:27). I understand that I work from the premise of the Bible, because God’s word and ways are higher than those of men, and for those people who may not trust the Bible as God’s word than you may not like this message, because Christians are not familiar with any other way. My very good friend who I met this school year, James, has asked me to write about Barack Obama and the situation which concerns many voters in our great country; it especially concerns many conservative Christians. I understand that many people are concerned about Barack Obama’s pastor, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Firstly, I am a black American who can give a detailed perspective of many older black Americans. I am a young seminary student, but I can give an account of what I have learned from my grandparents, and even from my parents. Secondly, I am from the Chicago land area and I can also give some insightful views of Pastor Wright. I will try to be as brief as I possibly can; I hope you all will be able to clearly understand what I have written. I also hope that you all will be able to fairly analyze Barack Obama and his former pastor.

Many older black Americans, specifically those who are from my grandparents’ generation, still have resentment which resides in their innermost being. Why do they have this resentment? I am glad you asked. They cannot forget the struggles of the Jim Crow days because those days formed their very own perspectives. No one can take away some one else’s experience; our experiences help to form us into the people we become. Our experiences do not dictate who we should become; rather they help to mold us into becoming the people we are now. It is very hard to forget the first twenty or forty years of one’s life of people promoting and teaching that one is not worthy because of skin color; segregation and racism helped to form the way my grandparents and my parents view life, even to this day. I do not even think that I, as a young black man, can completely understand the struggles of my grandparents’ generation, even that of my parents generation. I believe something which is worth remembering is that black grandparents, just like many grandparents, pass down their life stories to their children and their grandchildren. Therefore, I feel obligated to comment on the current race situation in America in regards to Reverend Wright. Reverend Wright preaches liberation theology. Most Christians do not respect liberation theology because it focuses on social issues without much consideration as to what else needs to be preached for the kingdom of Christ to be advanced upon the Earth. I think it is great that Reverend Wright has a passion to help people in need, but it is important not to forget the call to preach the whole gospel. The Lordship of Christ is to be preached in every pulpit, every Sunday. Now, without going into much detail about liberation theology, I would like to focus on the personality of Reverend Wright and that of many other black preachers. I am sure that many people know that most black churches are charismatic in worship and preaching and, in general, it has been so since the days of the slaves. The slaves were very influential in formulating the outlook, doctrine, worship, and the preaching of the modern black church. Reverend Wright’s comments that “God [should ] Damn America” are detestable. However, we must also remember that black churches are emotional. I would not have said what Wright has said, especially from the holy pulpit of God. Do I believe that God will judge America of its sins, including a final judgment of the sin of racism? I sure do. Our nation is one that is familiar with God and His commandments, yet we still cannot move pass skin color. This is a big problem. Our churches need to remember to focus on the entire gospel, but we should also remember that each culture has a different form of worship. Most Black worship styles are not similar to Caucasian worship styles. Reverend Wright, in many of his sermons, was reacting to America with great frustration because he believes that black people deserve much better than what they have received. As I alluded to earlier, older blacks continue to view life from the generations in which they were reared. Wright is one of those black Americans who view life in this way; it is very hard for these black people to forget or somehow tame their own perspectives to fit a “better” one, one which some Americans feel is more patriotic. I do not disqualify someone for criticizing our nation or calling for God’s judgment upon it. I do, however, believe that God will bring His judgment for other reasons than the ones noted by Wright. Racism is one reason which I agree with him on, and the way our nation treats impoverished people is another reason that God will bring his judgment upon America. We are to take care of those who cannot take care of themselves. God calls us to always be merciful (Matthew 23). While all of Wright’s beliefs obviously do not keep with factual information, it is still important to understand his own background without jumping to judgment of his complete ministry. I will not judge his complete character based on a thirty second sound bite from the media, nor will I completely judge Barack Obama’s character on that of Reverend Wright’s distasteful comments. I simply mean for this message to help people to analyze and become cognizant of the fact that Americans can view life differently; they can criticize our nation, and still be patriotic. I criticize our nation, but that does not make me unpatriotic. I am judgmental in the hope that our nation will change for the better; many slaves took this same attitude. Slaves were not so much grumblers as they were doers. They understood their situations and wanted better lives for their children so they analyzed their situations and they sought to make an easier way for their descendants. It is important to note that they did not forget what they had experienced, because their experiences motivated them to achieve goals. Their experiences provided for them a way to remain humble while seeking for a more just society.

I am from the Chicago land area, and I have always disagreed with most of Reverend Wright’s views of the world and even his perspective of the gospel of Christ. The gospel is not simply a social message, but it is also a call for people to repent and to turn to God through faith in Jesus Christ. The message of the Lord Jesus Christ does not only call rich people to repent, but poor people are also expected to repent, and this is the problem with the social gospel. Every human being will have to answer to God at His judgment seat (Romans 14). My many disagreements with Wright do not make me think that he is the anti-Christ, nor an American hater. Some people may disagree with me, but I am aware that Wright has been very critical of the black community as well. Does that mean he hates the black community? No. He likes to challenge people to think differently by including his emotionalism when preaching; emotionalism is not uncommon in the black church. My purpose for writing this is not for you to agree with Wright, but to analyze him fairly. I have heard many stories of racism from my grandparents who grew up in the “deep south” during a time of blatant racism. I will not forget these stories for as long as I live, and I will pass them on to my own children one day. Those stories of struggle with racism, with dogs being turned to attack my mom and aunts as they went into “town” to buy bread for their grandmother, as they were finally able to attend the white school which was located across the street from their house when schools were finally forced to desegregate, as my grandmother was told that education would not even help her succeed because she was black. These are just some memories that I have of stories that have been relayed to me, and I have many more. My prayer is that we, as Christians in America, will continue to take a stand against the evils which continually perpetuate any kind of racism, so that we can show the world that all people are accepted into the body of Christ, even those whom we disagree with in regards to certain doctrinal issues. The church must lead against all forms of sin so that the world will see what the kingdom of God is like when it is manifested through the power of God’s Holy Spirit. May the Lord who made the Heavens and the Earth keep you forever!