OBAMARAMA

This Chicago Tribune profile of Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Jr., who has led the Trinity United Church of Christ since 1972, offers some valuable insights into the world that has been Sen. Obama’s moral home since the 1980s. Sen. Obama, who was outspoken in his opposition to South African apartheid as a college student, was first drawn to the church by a symbol on its lawn that resonated with his own values:

When he took over Trinity United Church of Christ in 1972, Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr. was a maverick pastor with a wardrobe of dashikis and a militant message. Six years later, he planted a “Free South Africa” sign on the lawn of his church and asked other local religious leaders to follow his lead.None took him up on the invitation.

The sign stayed until the end of apartheid, long enough to catch the eye of a young Barack Obama, who visited the church in 1985 as a community activist. Obama, not a churchgoer at the time, found himself returning to the sanctuary of Trinity United.

In addition to being his pastor, Rev. Wright has served as “both a spiritual mentor and a role model” to Sen. Obama since the senator joined the church in 1985, advising him even on his presidential run:

Last fall, Obama approached Wright to broach the possibility of running for president. Wright cautioned Obama not to let politics change him, but he also encouraged Obama, win or lose.Wright said, “Picture some kid who lives in Hyde Park or over in Ida B. Wells Homes or Washington Gardens, who will see Barack and say, ‘My God, I can one day be that.’ The amount of hope that it will give to kids who society has written off just in terms of them changing their concept of what is possible is going to be immeasurable for generations to come.”

(Sen. Obama and Rev. Wright, from a 2005 UCC Newsletter.)