Wednesday, November 5, 2008

The Election is Now History

Yesterday, history was made in our nation in a way we can all celebrate. Regardless of whether you voted for McCain or Obama, the fact that “we the people” elected an African-American to the highest office of civil leadership in our country holds enormous historical significance. I will admit that it is hard for me, who grew up in “privileged” White America, to fully appreciate the sense of hope and joy this brings to our brothers and sisters in Christ in the Black community, who love the blessings of living in America, but who never believed they would personally live to see the day a Black person could become President.
Like many of you I watched the news programs this morning about the election. I saw (General) Colin Powell, a Republican who served in the Bush Administration, choking back tears as he spoke of what the election of Obama meant to him as an African-American. I heard interviews with other prominent Black leaders who spoke about their sense of wonder and amazement, some at a loss for words. I watched the congregation of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Atlanta (Martin Luther King’s church) celebrate with exuberant joy in their sanctuary. (For me that brought back memories of just a few years ago when I sat in that sanctuary as part of my Sankofa journey.) The importance of the day came home to me in a deeply personal way last night. I coach a basketball team my daughter Marisa plays on. We have several African-American players and they were absolutely giddy over the election results. It said to them that being “Black” or a “minority” in America need not be an obstacle to whatever they hope to achieve in life.
This is a good time to remember that Christians have had an important historical role in making this day possible. In the 1840’s it was devout Christians who began the anti-slavery crusade that coalesced into the broader U.S. abolitionist movement. In the 1960’s it was a Christian pastor named Martin Luther King who was so inspired by the compelling social justice message of the Old Testament prophets, and the determined love of Jesus extended even to His enemies, that he, Rev. King, was willing to make enormous personal sacrifices and to lay down his own life to bring an end to systemic racism in America.
Of course not all Christians voted for Obama, nor should we expect they would. The reasons we vote as we do are complex and involve many considerations. Rest assured, I’m not writing this to pass judgment on the way anyone voted. (It's everything I can do in an election to figure out how I should vote.) Yesterday was the day for voting our conscience. The electorate has spoken and regardless of how we personally voted, today is the day for all of us to celebrate the important milestone in history that has been accomplished. For that we can all be proud of our nation and thankful once again to be living in the land of opportunity that is America.
The real work is just beginning for President-elect Obama as he assumes the most influential position in our temporal world. He will not be perfect in all his decisions. No president ever has been. What is important is that we remember to pray for him and his family in the days ahead, as we remember to pray for all of our national and local leaders.

Gratefully Serving,

Keith Carpenter
Senior Pastor

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