Archives

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

(1:00) BO, "Divisive/Destructive."  "I have been a member of Trinity United Church of Christ since 1992. I have known Reverend Wright for almost 20 years. The person I saw yesterday was not the person that I met 20 years ago. His comments were not only divisive and destructive, but I believe that they end up giving comfort to those who prey on hate and I believe that they do not portray accurately the perspective of the black church.  They certainly don't portray accurately my values and beliefs. And if Reverend Wright thinks that that's political posturing, as he put it, then he doesn't know me very well. And based on his remarks yesterday, well, I may not know him as well as I thought, either."
(:48) BO, "Denounced."  "When he states and then amplifies such ridiculous propositions as the U.S. government somehow being involved in AIDS, when he suggests that Minister Farrakhan somehow represents one of the greatest voices of the 20th and 21st century, when he equates the United States wartime efforts with terrorism, then there are no excuses. They offend me. They rightly offend all Americans. And they should be denounced. And that's what I'm doing very clearly and unequivocally here today."
(1:33) BO, "Performance."  "What I had heard was that he had given a performance. And I thought at the time that it would be sufficient simply to reiterate what I had said in Philadelphia. Upon watching it, what became clear to me was that it was more than just a -- it was more than just him defending himself. What became clear to me was that he was presenting a world view that -- that -- that contradicts who I am and what I stand for. And what I think particularly angered me was his suggestion somehow that my previous denunciation of his remarks were somehow political posturing. Anybody who knows me and anybody who knows what I'm about knows that -- that I am about trying to bridge gaps and that I see the -- the commonality in all people. And so when I start hearing comments about conspiracy theories and AIDS and suggestions that somehow Minister Farrakhan has -- has been a great voice in the 20th century, then that goes directly at who I am and what I believe this country needs."
413-423Harry Jackson (thetruthinblackandwhite.com), senior pastor of the 3,000 member Hope Christian Church in Washington, D.C., and co-author with Tony Perkins of Personal Faith, Public Policy, on Jeremiah Wright.
• Rich Lowry, A Christian Farrakhan.
(1:22) BO, "Pained/Angered".  "Well, look, as I said before, the person I saw yesterday was not the person that I had come to know over 20 years. I understand that -- I think he was pained and angered from what had happened previously, during the first stage of this controversy. I think he felt vilified and attacked, and I understand that he wanted to defend himself.  I understand that, you know, he's gone through difficult times of late, and that he's leaving his ministry after many years. And so, you know, that may account for the change.  But the insensitivity and the outrageousness, of his statements and his performance in the question-and-answer period yesterday, I think, shocked me. It surprised me. As I said before, this is an individual who has built a very fine church and a church that is well- respected throughout Chicago."
428-437Gary Bauer, founder of American Values (ouramericanvalues.org), on Jeremiah Wright.
(:41) BO, "Stage."  "You know, after seeing Reverend Wright's performance, I felt as if there was a complete disregard, for what the American people are going through and the need for them to rally together to solve these problems.  You know, now is the time for us not to get distracted. Now is the time for us to pull together.  And that's what we've been doing in this campaign. And, you know, there was a sense that that did not matter to Reverend Wright. What mattered was him commanding center stage."
443-452Dale Burke (daleburke.com), pastor of EV Free Fullerton (evfreefullerton.com) [and author of his latest Take Back Your Life:  10 Choices to Give You More Time, More Energy and Better Relationships,] on the biggest challenges before the church.
(1:02) BO, "Liberation Theology."  In terms of liberation theology, I'm not a theologian. So I think to some theologians, there might be some well-worked-out theory of what constitutes liberation theology versus non-liberation-theology.  I went to church and listened to sermons. And in the sermons that I heard, and this is true, I do think, across the board in many black churches, there is an emphasis on the importance of social struggle, the importance of striving for equality and justice and fairness -- a social gospel.  So I think a lot of people would rather, rather than using a fancy word like that, simply talk about preaching the social gospel.  And that -- there's nothing particularly odd about that. Dr. King obviously was the most prominent example of that kind of preaching.
458-508Shirley Dobson, chairman of the National Day of Prayer Task Force (ndptf.org), shares some of the events happening this Thursday May 1st, the National Day of Prayer.  The theme this year is "Prayer! America's Strength and Shield" drawn from Psalm 28:7:  "The Lord is my Strength and Shield; my heart trusts in him and I am helped."  Also on Thursday, pilots with Prayerflight (prayerflight.org) will be provide literal "prayer cover" as they flyover every state capitol in America.
• National Day of Prayer, FAQ.
512-523Father Butros Zakaria, (fatherzakaria.com) is a Coptic Christian priest who has perhaps the most effective Christian radio and television outreach to Muslims in the world, influencing many of those six million Muslims who come to Christ each year.  He's been referred to as "Islam's Public Enemy #1," and as a result, his life has been threatened many times.   He appears frequently on the Arab channel al-Hayat or "Life TV."
• NRO (3/25), Islam's Public Enemy #1.
528-539 (1:09) BO, "Wrong/Destructive."  "I want to use this press conference to make people absolutely clear that obviously whatever relationship I had with Reverend Wright has changed as a consequence of this.  I don't think that he showed much concern for me.  I don't -- more importantly, I don't think he showed much concern for what we are trying to do in this campaign and what we're trying to do for the American people and with the American people.  And obviously, he's free to speak out on issues that are of concern to him and he can do it in any ways that he wants. But I feel very strongly that -- well, I want to make absolutely clear that I do not subscribe to the views that he expressed. I believe they are wrong. I think they are destructive. And to the extent that he continues to speak out, I do not expect those views to be attributed to me."
544-554(:58) BO, "Damage."  "There's been great damage. You know, I -- it may have been unintentional on his part, but, you know, I do not see that relationship being the same after this. Now, to some degree, you know -- I know that one thing that he said was true, was that he wasn't -- you know, he was never my, quote-unquote, "spiritual adviser."  He was never my "spiritual mentor." He was -- he was my pastor. And so to some extent, how, you know, the -- the press characterized in the past that relationship, I think, wasn't accurate.  But he was somebody who was my pastor, and married Michelle and I, and baptized my children, and prayed with us at -- when we announced this race. And so, you know -- so I'm disappointed."
558-608(1:07) BO, "Rants." "there wasn't anything constructive out of yesterday. All it was, was a bunch of rants that -- that aren't grounded in truth, and you know, I can't construct something positive out of that. I can understand it. I, you know, the -- you know, people do all sorts of things.  And as I said before, I continue to believe that Reverend Wright has been a -- a -- a leader in the South Side. I think that the church he built is outstanding. I think that he has preached in the past some wonderful sermons. He provided, you know, valuable contributions to my family.  But at a certain point, if what somebody says contradicts what you believe so fundamentally, and then he questions whether or not you believe it in front of the National Press Club, then that's enough."
608 – [1:30] "Your Independent, Unbiased, Advisors: The Money Guys" Robert Micone/Bill O'Connor at Applied Financial, 866-SEEK-COUNSEL, and online at www.appliedfinancialplanning.com.
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(1:08) BO, "Spectacle."  "Well, you know, the new pastor -- the young pastor, Reverend Otis Moss, is a wonderful young pastor. And as I said, I still very much value the Trinity community. This -- I'll be honest, this obviously has put strains on that relationship, not because of the members or because of Reverend Moss but because this has become such a spectacle.  And, you know, when I go to church it's not for spectacle. It's to pray and to find -- to find a stronger sense of faith. It's not to posture politically. It's not -- you know, it's not to hear things that violate my core beliefs. And so -- you know, and I certainly don't want to provide a distraction for those who are worshipping at Trinity."
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