The Question: E-mail: Blessing or Curse?

I had a friend, now deceased, who refused to engage in telephone conversation. He believed that meaningful human interaction required, at its best, face-to-face communication or, at the very least, lengthy written letters and manuscripts. I frequently wish I could hear him hold forth on the merits and demerits of E-mail.

Last month, I related to a close friend the narrative of a weekend gathering of an extremely thoughtful, challenging small group of people. She commented that she could not have enjoyed such an event. “I would have been frightened of exposing myself by making a misstep or appearing ill-informed.”

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The Question: How should Barack Obama have responded to inflammatory remarks made by his former pastor, Dr. Jeremiah Wright? Are you responsible for what your spiritual leader says from the pulpit?

I am a 75-year-old, white, male, a proud veteran of the Marine Corps., a retired Episcopal clergyman, and I speak as one who loves this country. Oh how I wish the congregation my wife and I attend had a minister like Dr. Wright. For the past 14 years I have been a sermon listener rather than a sermon preacher. Only once in those 14 years have I heard a sermon that was clear enough and strong enough that real disagreement was even possible. I got so excited I made the mistake of expressing my vociferous disagreement at the door of the church rather than waiting for a more opportune occasion.

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Someone who genuinely desires deeper insight and increased knowledge regarding the issues posed for religion in America by the “isms’ of sexism and racism must begin by thinking locally, focusing upon the unique situation of a particular congregation in a single religious tradition, in one local community in one region of the nation.

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