Father Pflager apologized, his Cardinal publicly reprimanded him, and he was suspended from his parish for a time of reflection. But Father Pflager's mocking tirade of Hillary Clinton at Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ, captured for the world to see in a video clip, was the final straw for Barack Obama's campaign. He and his wife resigned their twenty year membership from Trinity.
In my estimation the Obamas' resignation was "too bad." We, meaning American society, had much to learn about the culture of the urban black mega-church through Mr. Obama's association. In the promised dialogue on race, Trinity would have been a wide window on the African American experience. I'm afraid that opportunity has been lost. I doubt we be able to get beyond video clips of the Revs. Wright and Pflager to ever see the real Trinity.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
1 comment:
For anyone interested in learning about the culture of the urban black mega-church, I'd recommend visiting one on any given Sunday. My wife and I have had amazing experiences at Salem Baptist Church of Chicago and Broadview Missionary Baptist in recent months. We attend a somewhat diverse but largely white suburban congregation, and I can assure you that we both had our boats rocked.
The opportunity is still there waiting, if not for American society at large, then for those of us who live a short drive from any number of African American churches, including Trinity UCC.
Post a Comment