Election and Exceptionalism

The conclusion to last night's Presidential Address from the Oval Office regarding the Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Crisis:

"Each year, at the beginning of shrimping season, the region's fishermen take part in a tradition that was brought to America long ago by fishing immigrants from Europe. It's called 'The Blessing of the Fleet,' and today it's a celebration where clergy from different religions gather to say a prayer for the safety and success of the men and women who will soon head out to sea - some for weeks at a time.

"The ceremony goes on in good times and in bad. It took place after Katrina, and it took place a few weeks ago - at the beginning of the most difficult season these fishermen have ever faced. And still, they came and they prayed. For as a priest and former fisherman once said of the tradition, 'The blessing is not that God has promised to remove all obstacles and dangers. The blessing is that He is with us always, 'a blessing that's granted '...even in the midst of the storm.'

"The oil spill is not the last crisis America will face. This nation has known hard times before and we will surely know them again. What sees us through - what has always seen us through - is our strength, our resilience, and our unyielding faith that something better awaits us if we summon the courage to reach for it. Tonight, we pray for that courage. We pray for the people of the Gulf. And we pray that a hand may guide us through the storm towards a brighter day. Thank you, God Bless You, and may God Bless the United States of America."

In my estimation Barack Obama once again gives insight into his personal religion, while also giving a religious gloss to the general situation--at least its solution. He offers a complex traditional equation: generic faith, national courage, and trust in a guiding and steadfast Providence.

I suspect that faith, courage and trust are principles significant to Mr. Obama's sense of Self. Perhaps his seeming equanimity, which some criticize as a lack of passion, relates to a core belief of being elected (in a religious sense) and in communion with his God.

And I further suspect that those who disparage him by mockingly calling him "The Messiah" somehow share a similar outlook and ironically project notions of Divine election and exceptionalism on him. This is to say that of recent political personalities, Mr. Obama is the one who, in popular connsciousness, seems "chosen" to fill his office and shape a national destiny--for better or worse depending on your political outlook.