28 thoughts on “Yes We Can!

  1. 馃檪 Beyond the heartswelling joy I feel over voting for the first African-American President, I am overwhelmed with the knowledge of knowing I voted for a truly decent man, a University of Chicago Professor, a happily married husband and father, and a solid man of faith.

    God Bless America Indeed.

  2. Beyond the idea of electing our first person of color to the White House, I am encouraged by this election on so many other levels. I am first of all just so grateful and reassured that we have elected a truly decent man, a happily married man and a father to this office. I am also thrilled that we have elected a former professor of law from one of the top universities in the world – an intellectual and a pragmatist.
    I am also thrilled that we have a president who in his own words thinks it is foolish for us to think we are somehow punishing our enemies by not talking to them.

    Sanity has finally arrived at the White House.

  3. Ronald Rolheiser identified narcissim, pragmatism, and unbridled restlessness as the three great sins of our postmodern culture. I already have seen two of the three present in our new political reality, and am only waiting for the third to appear. This is not new to the new political entity as it seems to be the disease of all political reality. Thus I do not believe that sanity will arrive in the White House.

    I am not a cynic, but I am truly convinced that our fallen humanity will never be able to heal the world on our own, nor will I put my hope in any individual, regardless of how intelligent or what university he attended or at which he taught. To quote an old hymn, “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus…”

    We did not vote in the Kingdom of God last week, the peaceable kingdom of Isaiah’s vision. There is noting in the platform of the politician that reassures me that we are on that path…babies will still be killed for the convenience of the parent, bombs will still be dropped on villages in Afghanistan and Pakistan to get revenge on our enemies, and class/wealth hatred/envy will still be used to mobilize the masses to support political polices (I still consider this to be violent and against the warrant of Jesus).

    That being said the President-elect will have my support when he is in the right, and my loyal opposition when he needs to be held accountable.

    Ultimately though, only through our continual return to God and upholding this nation and her people in prayer will any true change occur.

  4. I voted for Obama, I contributed to his campaign, and more than anything I PRAYED for Obama, and still do daily. Sorry I failed to realise that voting for Obama was mutually exclusive from utter dependence on God, prayer, and seeking Gods Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven. Thanks for enlightening me in that respect.

  5. Someone criticised me for saying nothing about why Obama’s win is a moment of rising above our nation’s racism, like everyone else seems to be doing.

    I say nothing about this, because I do not see it this way at all. What I see is a nation of rebellious, ignorant souls, who know neither God nor the scriptures but who think “that their mouth is heaven, and that they can dictate on earth,” (Psalm 73:9 Jerusalem Bible), who know nothing of history, who have not paid the price of liberty or even understood that there is a price, who do not understand the signs of the times, who can be led astray by the glory of the flesh, and by clever speech. It is coincidental that Obama is of African heritage, but it plays into the general deception. God will always work for the good of those who love Him and who work for truth, and His economy will always make use of our mistakes. America hasn鈥檛 really risen above its racism in electing Obama. We have only shown the world, that we are now ready to surrender to its plans for us.

    Everything will happen according to the unfolding of God鈥檚 plans.

    I witness, and I wait.

  6. Jeeze – not only am I spiritually blind and deficient – I’m ignorant and rebellious. Can you feel God’s love?

    I live in Chicago. I have lived and worked with African- American children in the inner-city for 13 years. I am now a foster parent of 3 and live in a foster parent community. I do so because of my faith in Jesus Christ. I’ve dodged bullets walking home from work, had my windows smashed twice for football sized peices of concrete for calling the police on gang bangers, and attended funerals for students killed by violence.
    Tuesday night I took five foster chidren down to Grant Park for the celebration. When I got home one of the boys who has been struggling in school told me , “This makes me want to buckle down and get to work. I can do anything now!” Obama’s race could only be declared “coincidental” ( the inference being therefore inconsequential) by someone who falsely beleives that race in America has little to do with them personally in their daily lives. The faces of the chidlren I work with have been transformed by this election – the impact on their spirits is profound. That’s my witness. I can’t wait to see the impact on this election on this generation and the next.

  7. Voix d’ange, you’re only “spiritually blind and deficient, ignorant and rebellious” if you claim to be. If others, like myself, see the election of Obama as president indicative of the decayed state of the American electorate, which has been subjected to social engineering to get them that way by the media and the so called “liberal” political machine, don’t let that stop you from making the best of it, for as long as it lasts. You must be a saint to live the life you are living鈥擨 am not being facetious, I mean it鈥攁nd I’m glad to make your acquaintance on that basis, but “different strokes for different folks”, there is even more I could’ve written, but it’s quite pointless. We all have to be free to make our choices according to our own lights, and history will tell us who was right or wrong, if the outcome can even be divided that way. As my fellow Christian brother or sister (sorry, I don’t know your sex) I salute you in the name of Jesus the Christ, and wish you well. Forgive me if I have offended you or anyone; that was not my intention. God knows we’ve been carrying our crosses for a long time, and may He continue to give us strength. Go with God!

  8. 馃檪

    I don’t claim to be anything but a pilgrim and a stranger who tires to live in the presence of God and in the perpetual consciousness that I will stand before my maker and give an account for my life.

    I think the underlying point of what I was trying to say is that we need to be careful about trying to make judgements about the spirtuality of another based on their political views. Beleive it or not, I truly beleive with good reason that Barack Obama is a man of great spiritual depth and that he ran after feeling called by God to do so.

    We saw with Prop 8 in California that issues such as marriage rights and abortion can be resolved on a state level – but of course that involves us getting up and involved, rather than relying on one person to do it all.

  9. voixd’ange,

    I agree with Romanos, and would add that I am deeply sorry if my comments offended you personally. Since I do not know you, I was saying nothing about you, merely commenting on what I see in our political reality.

    I give great thanks for your work amongst the “least of these”, and will pray for your work, as I pray too, for Mr. Obama, our nation, and the world.

    Most disturbing, to me, in our political and theological discourse in this nation, is the inability to communicate disagreements without taking them as personal attacks. I’ve seen this time and time again on both the right and the left. I reiterate, I may disagree with your positions on policy, I may have written it poorly, but I hold no ill will for either you, Mr. Obama, or any with whom I will vocally disagree, nor was I making a judgment on another’s spirituality.

    Pax Vobiscum

  10. Neither of you offended me. I didn’t take it personal. I’m just watching with a little sadness the sack cloth and ashes that seem to have come out on the side of some concerning this election. And even the thinly veiled insinuations that Obama is the anti-christ.

    There are very few people today who would look back at the ministry of Dr. King and not see clearly the hand of God in it, despite King’s human frailties. In retrospect nearly everyone was/is supportive of what he stood for. But during the actual time some of Dr. King’s greatest writings and sermons came in response to the opposition that he felt from the Christian church and clergy.

    I just don’t beleive that we can put God in a box or dictate to Him who he should use and who he shouldn’t.

  11. Obama is hardly to be compared with Dr Martin Luther King Jr, and the insinuation that Obama might be anti-Christ would never have arisen if it weren’t even more widely insinuated that he is the messiah. The religious aspect of his campaign and the verbiage that went with it was the first thing that alerted many of us to the danger of his candidacy. Danger to the country, and danger to him personally as well. Make no mistake, be his intentions good or bad (and I believe them to be good, tho very misguided), president-elect Obama is at very great risk, and so is our country, in the years ahead. Hence, our sackcloth and ashes.

  12. Hmmm. Pretty interesting. I have followed his campaign from the before the start, when I first heard him speak in a church basement as a U.S. Senator, and I have never heard anyone make any references to Obama being a messiah or anything like one. I haven’t heard it from him, his campaign, or anyone who supports him. I have only heard it from the extreme religious right. But by all means, if you have any direct quotes from any of the above sources, please share.

    As far as my reference to King – Bernice King herself, the man’s daughter, stated that Obama’s election was the fruition of her father’s dream.

    This election has a weight and a meaning to America that misguided rightwingology can never diminish. To accuse those who supported him of somehow being brainwashed and in somekind of cultlike trance, unChristian, is condescending and insulting, and smacks of arrogance.

  13. Romanos –
    Who are you to determine if Obama can be compared to Dr. King? Who are you?

    Bernice King said the Obama’s election is the fruition of her father’s dream. Bernice King – if you don’t know who she is that is his daughter.

    I first heard Obama speak in a church basement as a US Senator. I have followed his campaign from the very start, I have NEVER heard him, his campaign or anyone who supports him refer to him as a messiah figure. I have only heard that from the extreme right wing. But if you have any quotes from him or anyone from his campaign stating otherwise, please do share.

    The most dangerous thing to ever hit American shores is condescending arrogance of extreme misguided rightwingology that has been mistaken for Christianity in this country.

  14. My Christianity is not politicised, Voix d’ange, Please, cool your jets! As for who Obama can be compared to, everyone is entitled to their opinion. No one can be compared to Reverend King, in my opinion. He was a saint, and in a class by himself, just as Abraham Lincoln was. Perhaps Obama will be a man like that, but let’s wait and see.

    Sorry to have to respond, but you did ask a question, “Who are you to determine if Obama can be compared to Dr. King? Who are you?” It’s obvious who I am. Take a look at my blog, it’s all there. Can we bury the hatchet, please?

  15. Now that’s pretty funny to me, Romanos, that after all that’s been said, you now declare that your Christianity is not politicized.

    My orignial post said nothing about church, religion, or spirituality. It didn’t put anyone else down, or belittle someone else. As someone who is intimately conected to the African-American community, I just had the nerve to state my joy over the election results and a few of the things that made me happy about it. Didn’t mention church, faith, or Christianity.

    What I got in return was a barage of self-righteous comments about “ignorant souls” and “rebellion” and accusations that those of us who supported him had been duped by “clever speech”. But your faith isn’t
    politicized . . . ? Sorry, but when you feel that someone else’s support for a political candidate gives you the right to automatically make such judgements about thier spiritual condition your Christianity has indeed been politicized. Or maybe the correct word is neutralized.

  16. It’s amazing how Obama can be a man of “spiritual depth”, yet consistently block principled efforts of pro-lifers.

    His record in the Illinois state legislature documents his opposition to protecting the human rights of even a baby born alive during a botched abortion. (The U.S. Senate passed similar legislation on a federal level 98-0.). He has the most pro-abortion record of anyone elected president.

    Yet he still had the audacity to lament about America not taking care of the “…least of these…” during his Saddleback appearance. That’s pretty deep stuff, man.

    On another note…as a “person of color”, I resent being called such. To call me a “person of color” implies color is a permanent, immutable, unbridgeable thing. You’re defining me by my color, not by my human-ness.

    My color does not define me…I’m a person first, not a pigmentation. This trend to define is far removed from Dr. King’s admonition to judge someone by the content of their character, and not by the color of their skin.

    Nonetheless, I do agree with Geraldine Ferraro: Barack Obama is where he is because he is a person of color. (But again, all the chief executives up to GWB were “Presidents of Color” – their color just happened to be white.)

  17. My children are bi-racial and have no problem being called persons of color. Ididn’t call YOU a person of color, I called Barack Obama one. How he feels about it is up to him to say. I disagree with abortion and a Gay lifestyle. I don’t judge another persons spirituality on how they feel about those issues.

    I live in Chicago now and am a Catholic. But I was raised in the Bible belt in an Evangelical environment. I was taught to hold “spiritual” prejudice against Catholics, Greek Orthodox, Anglicans, and many others. I was taught that none of the above were really saved, and that they were bound up and steeped in religious traditions. It blows my mind when I hear members of that same group turn right around and pronounce the same prejudice, judgement, and condemnation on others who may disagree with them.

    The Republican party doesn’t give a *&^% about gay rights or wrongs or abortion. They just know that they have found two highly inflamatory issues that they can use to manipulate naive people into supporting their platform. Their only agenda is keeping their money safe and seeing how they get more. My son was a die-hard Republican for years until he actually joined and got involved with the party and found out what they were REALLY all about.

  18. The truth is, both ‘sides’ staked elements of their campaign claims to a ‘Kingdom-connection.’ The right (even thos establishment-types now being lambasted by their one-time conservative cronies) rallied ’round the Republican veep nominee for her right-to-life stand and insinuated that she is/was a modern day version of the biblical ‘Esther.’ The left, meanwhile, touted a humanistic, we are one-world approach with very compelling overtones that referenced, among other things, the Book of Matthew.

    Are we surprised to see either camps go this route after eight years of Rovian divide-and-conquer politics, when only the wedge issue mattered–forsaking all other public discourse? Methinksnot.

  19. From Wikipedia –
    Person of color (plural: people of color) is a term used, primarily in the United States, to describe all people who are not white. The term is meant to be inclusive, emphasizing common experiences of racism. People of color is preferred to both non-white and minority, which are also inclusive, because it frames the subject positively; non-white defines people in terms of what they are not (white), and minority, by its very definition, places the subject in a subordinate position. Thus, the term has a positive connotation and is generally preferred by people of color in the US to refer to themselves.

  20. voixd’ange, if you carefully read Romanos, his indictment is for all, not toward any particular political leaning. I quite clearly read it as applying to all political backgrounds.

    Personally, when i prayed for the candidates, i prayed for them all equally, because Christ would have. i hope you were equally generous in your Christianity.

  21. “It is coincidental that Obama is of African heritage, but it plays into the general deception. God will always work for the good of those who love Him and who work for truth, and His economy will always make use of our mistakes. America hasn鈥檛 really risen above its racism in electing Obama. We have only shown the world, that we are now ready to surrender to its plans for us.”

    That’s a direct quote from Romanos. When I post, I try to use simple language and to be clear. Now if there is some subliminal message hidden in obscurity between the lines of this post, I’m sorry that I missed it.

    But I will state two things – 1. Anyone who is dismissive of the incredible impact this election has had on my community and those like it is out of touch. 2. I even pray for W. And I sent him a nice email thanking him for the job he has done for the past eight years. I’m not kidding. Not because I agree with anything he did, but because I hold us all responsible for what happens in this country.

  22. “America hasn鈥檛 really risen above its racism in electing Obama.”

    Your posts kind of prove Romanos’s point. If children of a particular race can only be inspired to levels of achievement by a member of their race, racism is not diminished in any way. How was this taught to them to feel this way?

  23. This argument has gone down a path of ridiculousness that is a waste of time to even continue. I am grateful for ANYTHING that inspires children of any race to acheive greatness. Not to mention that children and adults of every race and nationality all over the world were inspired by Obama – in case you didn’t notice. ( Or just stubornly refuse to acknowledge it.) And by the way 61% of the people who voted for Obama were WHITE. For those of you who still say he was only elected because he is Black. . .

    Your reasoning makes as much sense as someone feigning indignation over being called a “person of color”.
    We have real issues in my community, we don’t have time to make up nonsense, or to debate it. I met this same beligerent denial 8 years ago when folks were draping flags over the cross and I was out protesting the war on the street – and my christianity, intelligence, and sanity were questionedthen. Now eight years later . . . and by the same people I might add . . .

    Come up with somethng that remotely resembles a valid point. Now you sound like you will just say anything for the sake of arguing.

  24. Voix d’ange has always been politically prickly. Now she has her own echo. What an annoying string. Voiix d’ange, re-read your posts. Try the decaf. Maybe there’s something in the air in Chicago?
    Oh, and Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Thank you, Jesus.

  25. WOW…you people have not only tasted the cool-aid, you have drank the pitcher and asked for refills. Obama is NOT who his image portrays during his carefully coreographed speaches. Put aside the emotions of voting for this person and see who he really is. What has he done? Nothing! What do we really know about him? Nothing What is his experience? None. How in the world can anyone be excited about voting for a junior senator with no record of where he stands on issues. Governmental bailouts and additional spending, which is what he is asking for, are not the way to deal with this situation. Anyone with any amount of intelligence knows if you lower taxes people will start spending and things will improve. If you really want what Obama is proposing move to Canada or some other country that is already doing what he is proposing and see how well you like it. Actually, why dont you just leave the country anyway? That would be a great first step.

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