They Chose a School, Now the Obamas Must Choose a Church
The Obama girls are going to Sidwell Friends, and will thereby be exposed to an ethic of service from the Quaker School. Now the hunt is on for a Church for the family that also lends values important to their lives. The choice may not be as important as the choice of Secretary of State, but the decision could be symbolically significant.
Evidently the churches in DC are competing to recruit Barack Obama and family as members. Now that the family has chosen to send Malia and Sasha to Sidwell Friends, it is time to choose a church, and the churches themselves don’t appear to be shy about trying to sell themselves, even though attendance by the Obamas will disrupt the routines at whatever church they choose because of Secret Service requirements. What will the churches focus on in their sales pitches? Here’s a bit of the story from the Washington Post:
Denominational leaders are getting into the act, pointing out how their faith’s beliefs line up with Obama’s.
Bishop John School, who heads the Baltimore-Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church, sent Obama a list of local United Methodist churches.
“Our congregations would be glad to welcome you, your family, your staff and their families to be part of our communities of prayer and service,” his letter said. “Your message of personal responsibility and social justice are important United Methodist themes.”
The United Church of Christ, the denomination of Obama’s former church, United Trinity Church of Christ, is in the running, too. UCC General Minister and President John Thomas dropped Obama a note three days after the election “offering the hospitality of our congregations in Washington as places of nurture, sanctuary and encouragement.”
I suppose a church markets itself on the notion of community, and maybe also on the notion of social justice, service, etc. Certainly Sidwell Friends emphasizes service as part of the Quaker tradition, so they’ve got that base covered. Hey, this isn’t an eart-shattering decision, though it will be interesting to see if there is criticism directed at the Obamas based on the particular church they choose. If the church does not measure up on an evangelical or literalist yard stick, will the religious right campaign harder against him in the future?
Meh! The extremist religious types are going to campaign hard against him anyway, so were it me I’d pick a place where the security issues will upset the congregants the least. I’d narrow the list to seven or eight congregations and then let the Secret Service put in their two cents.
As a matter of record, St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church (are they Anglican Communion?) in Washington has been known as “the Church of the Presidents,” with the 22nd pew on the lefthand side (facing the altar) traditionally reserved for the First Family.
Would Obama’s beliefs be consistent with those of the Episcopalian?