Jeremiah Wright - Part II

Did you hear those questions they asked him at the end of the address? I was flabbergasted. They were so ignorant as to be insulting and that is sad because the ones doing the asking had generated the questions out of a sense of their own goodness. After all, if they were good and felt swept up in broad brush-strokes of condemnation aimed at their country (i.e. who they are..as far as one primary identification goes) their questions are code for “Am I not good?” The entire dialog between Wright and questioners takes the form of “I am not what you refer to but what about you?” But belief in one’s own goodness IS the issue, isn’t it? And the larger issue is about whether America can do no wrong. We will not get to the discussion about what America could do better or what it might be doing wrong with people who believe that it can do no wrong. Don’t delude yourself about that by adopting a demeanor of appeasement. America has a big elephant in the living room and it is race. It hurts everyone involved to ignore it.

One question posed whether people of other races would feel welcomed at Wrights church. Now I can’t say for sure, but I suspect the questioner had their doubts and through ignorance did not realize the denomination was not exclusively black and that the congregation was mixed, to whatever extent. I bet the denominations membership goes up after so many have heard Wright. There are many minds that could not be moved and which could not get past a few things to hear a primarily hopeful message of liberation and reconciliation but I suspect some were. Now the spread would not look good to a politician but for those of us living life any improvement is welcomed.

On the optimistic side, those decidedly not in the Jeremiah Wright fan club we can discuss why we feel the way we do. Sometimes that is all we have, our feelings. As much as we’d like to consider ourselves logical, rational beings we most often are not. We like to believe that there are rules and laws recognized by all, universal truths. We band together in groups of the like-minded to reinforce and justify feelings and to vault them into a level of regard that we deem truth. But still, they are nothing but feelings and a resulting belief. What a foible it is to try and make more of it than that.

His remarks in which he said “God damn America” had a context. That context was built around something to the effect that God would judge America no different than any other country and that if America violated God’s law then God would damn America. Isn’t that what we are saying about Islamic countries sometimes. I think what bothers some people the most about that is that he is saying we can be, have been, and are currently in some cases wrong in America. Why should that be so hard to stomach? We have examples enough though, don’t we? Slavery etc. Wright cited syphilis experimentation on blacks in Tuskeegee Alabama. People don’t want to see that and they don’t want to examine how badly wrong America has been and how contrary to the message of Christianity America has behaved and juxtapose it with some of our actions and policies today. That is unbearable to many.

People don’t want that anymore than they want to look in the mirror. Inasmuch as “America” (or their concepts thereof) is a self-righteous identification and one source of derived self-worth (remember it is just human to seeks ways to define oneself…often through identifications) it is like a slap in the face or supreme insult to suggest that America is not perfect. In fact, people often take effrontery towards a sacred cow much more seriously than they do personal insult because the sacred cow is sacred because it has been confirmed as sacred by a crowd, those in their class or demographic group…their “gang.” Since it is not just them being insulted many or more bold in their retaliation against such insult.

So maybe I am just different. I love America but it is not my sacred cow. It can do wrong and it can be very wrong. I am not destroyed by that admission. In fact it is the only path to improvement. Collective righteousness can be just as obnoxious as any individual at his/her worse who refuses to engage in self-examination or look in the mirror. The emboldening effects of groupthink can, in fact, lead to acts, far more egregious acts than individuals can manage on their own.

I am encouraged that youth who have listened to Wrights address by and large indicate that he is right (without the W  ). If only the rest of us could have such an uncontaminated, simple, innocent and forthright ethical sense. Right and wrong are only hard to sort out when with a so-called maturity we begin equivocating.

White people should not take insult or feel threatened by the outlooks, suspicions, fears and cynicism that is a natural outgrowth of the black experience in America, especially when those espousing it highly value the virtues of reconciliation, equality, and forgiveness. These, after all are the meat and potatoes of what Jesus spoke.

There are some things Wright and the rest of us as well should ever make nice over. We should stand our ground while loving those who hate us. Maybe some call that egotistical but I call it mentally healthy and even liberating. We all need to be liberated of something. Inasmuch as I expect to hear the “tssk,tssk” of disapproval directed at Wright I also believe it is wrong-minded and misdirected. Those who disapprove of him need to look within themselves for answers not at Wright for raising questions that might make them feel uncomfortable.

I kind of see Wrights address as that of a patient teacher who at times administers the lesson in a strict manner when supreme ignorance and thick-headedness exhibited by the pupil. The pupil might not like it but they do have the conscious choice to either learn or steel their defenses. They can hide the embarrassment at their own ignorance by pointing at the teachers tone or what they perceive as ego or they can try to understand, and learn.

At this point too many have not gotten over the shock of having their sacred cows knocked off their pedestal to even engage in a rational examination of the substance of Wrights address. For those feeling emotional stress overpowering their responses, maybe they would be better served and more receptive to a kinder, gentler message that lets them retain a sense of dignity and righteousness. On the other hand, when the fragile ego seeks safe harbor and protection from what might be the truth, resulting in ascribing egocentricity to the source of their discomfort, then the school of hard knocks might be the only avenue offering any hope.