Obama’s Pastor’s Sermon: ‘God Damn America’
Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., senior pastor, Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, March 2005. (Trinity United Church of Christ/Religion News Service)
In a fiery sermon taped and available on DVD, Barack Obama’s longtime pastor and spiritual adviser can be seen and heard saying three times: “God damn America.”
The Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., in his taped sermons, also questioned America’s role in the spread of the AIDS virus and suggested that the United States bore some responsibility for the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks.
Confronting the content of some of Wright’s sermons, parts of which have been aired this week on FOX News, Obama on Friday moved to condemn the remarks in his firmest statement on the matter to date, after initially stopping short of a full repudiation.
“Let me say at the outset that I vehemently disagree and strongly condemn the statements that have been the subject of this controversy,” he said in the statement. “I categorically denounce any statement that disparages our great country or serves to divide us from our allies. I also believe that words that degrade individuals have no place in our public dialogue, whether it’s on the campaign stump or in the pulpit. In sum, I reject outright the statements by Rev. Wright that are at issue.”
Obama said he never personally heard Wright preach the statements at the center of the controversy, but that he first learned of them when he launched his presidential campaign.
Click here to read the full Obama statement.
Wright’s supporters say his Afro-centric sermons accurately portray black America, and they contend his sermons are widely studied by theologians. But critics are now calling attention to his more incendiary words from the pulpit.
The pastor delivered his final sermon last month and retired as leader of Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago. Obama has attended the church for 20 years and calls Wright his spiritual adviser.
Click here to visit the Trinity United Church of Christ’s Web site.
In a fiery sermon in April 2003, Wright said: “The government gives them the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes three-strike laws and wants them to sing God Bless America.
“No! No No!
“God damn America … for killing innocent people.
“God damn America for threatening citizens as less than humans.
“God damn America as long as she tries to act like she is God and supreme.”
In DVD copies of his sermons available for purchase, Wright can also be seen questioning America’s role in the spreading of the HIV virus that leads to AIDS. In another speech, made in the days after 9/11, he suggested that American foreign policy invited the terror attacks.
“We bombed Hiroshima. We bombed Nagasaki. And we nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon and we never batted an eye,” Wright said.
“We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans, and now we are indignant because of stuff we have done overseas is now brought back into our own backyard. America is chickens coming home to roost.”
The pastor also said: “The government lied about inventing the HIV virus as a means of genocide against people of color. The government lied.”
Amid calls to fully repudiate Wright, the Obama campaign said late Thursday it has distanced itself from certain Wright comments.
“Senator Obama has said before that he profoundly disagrees with some of the statements and positions of Reverend Wright, who has preached his last sermon as pastor at the church,” Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton said. “Senator Obama deplores divisive statements whether they come from his supporters, the supporters of his opponent, talk radio, or anywhere else.”
That preceded the lengthy campaign statement issued Friday.
Last year, Obama rescinded an invitation to Wright to deliver the invocation at his announcement that he was running for president. He also issued a statement saying personal attacks have no place in politics after Wright delivered an attack on Hillary Clinton and former President Bill Clinton.
But Obama’s longtime relationship with Wright is continuing to spark controversy.
“This is not just someone that Barack Obama has a casual relationship with,” said Tom Bevan, executive editor of RealClearPolitics.com. He noted that Wright married Barack and Michelle Obama, and Wright’s words were the inspiration for the title of Obama’s book, “The Audacity of Hope.”
“Barack Obama has not out and out distanced himself from all of these comments … ,” Patricia Murphy, editor of CitizenJanePolitics.com, said before the campaign responded Friday. “It’s unclear if he rejects all of these statements. I would assume that he does, but I think he is going to be pushed where he needs to come out and fully explain his relationship with his pastor.”
Some of Wright’s statements have raised eyebrows at a time the Internal Revenue Service is scrutinizing tax-exempt religious organizations for alleged violations of rules barring them from participating in political campaigns.
Prior to his retirement last month, Wright delivered commentary from the pulpit in which he praised Obama, as well as remarks focusing on the racial divide between Obama and Clinton.
“There is a man here who can take this country in a new direction,” Wright said during his Jan. 13 sermon.
During a Christmas sermon, Wright tried to compare Obama’s upbringing to Jesus at the hands of the Romans.
“Barack knows what it means living in a country and a culture that is controlled by rich white people,” Wright said. “Hillary would never know that.
“Hillary ain’t never been called a nigger. Hillary has never had a people defined as a non-person.”
In a Jan. 13 sermon, Wright said:
“Hillary is married to Bill, and Bill has been good to us. No he ain’t! Bill did us, just like he did Monica Lewinsky. He was riding dirty.”
So far the Clinton campaign has been quiet over Wright’s comments.
Wright has declined interview requests from FOX News.
FOX News’ Jeff Goldblatt contributed to this report.
TRY LIVE IN THE WORLD BEING BLACK IN AMERICAN. BELIEVE ME IT IS NOT THE AMERICAN DREAM. WHITES SAYS THAT WE (BLACK) SHOULD GET OVER IT. THERE ARE THINGS THAT YOU DON’T GET OVER .WE ARE SILL CONCERNED SECOND OR THIRD CLASS CITZENS. NO,THECLINTONS WILL NEVER BE CALL THE N WORD NOR WITH SHE KNOW HOW IT IS TO BE POOR OR BLACK LIVING IN THIS SO CALLED AMERICAN LAND OF THE FREE. I BELIVED REV. WRIGHT SERMON CAME FROM THE HEART OF MOST BLACK AMERICAN BUT WILL NOT SPEAK THEM.WE ALL KNOW THE HOSTRY OF THE AIRMAN, AIDS , CRACK IN OUR COMMUNITIES IS NO DIFFER. BILL CINTON GOT ELECTED BY BLACKS DUE TO THE FACT WE HAD NO OTHER CHOICE BUT ELECT HIM. AND IS WIFE ARE NOT BAD PEOPLE BUT THERE ARE THINGS IN THAT CLOSET WE DON’T WANT TO SEE. BLACKS ARE THE MOST FORGIVING CLASS OF PEOPLE THAT I HOPE. THE CHRUCH IS ALL WE HAD IN OUR COMMUNITY AND WHATEVER REV. JEREMANIN WRIGHT HAS SAY WE TOO WILL FORGIVE HIM. REV. WRIGHT SEEMS TO BE A GOOD PASTOR WILL HISTORY AND KNOWLEDGE. I DO NOT BELIVED THAT HE SPEAKS OF HATE AMONG WHITES AND BLACKS. I AM SO SOHAPPYTO SEE SENATOR CLINTON AND SENATOR OBAMA BOTH TO SEEK THE HIGHEST OFFICE OF THIS NATION.I LIVE TO SEE THIS.
HOW GREAT!!!!!!!!
Why doesn’t Obama ever mention his white side ancestory? He is just as white as black. Is he ashamed of being white? I feel that he does. He is not a black man, he is bi-racial.
It amazes me that we are expected to believe that Barack Obama knew nothing about his “so called” Reverend’s (I don’t think the man deserves the title) past hate sermons. You cannot affiliate yourself, for 20 years of your life, with someone with so much obvious hate for white americans as this man has and then try to convince everyone that you never knew that side of him. He is a disgrace to the pulpit to use it the way he has and it is a disgrace for Obama to expect us to believe his lies.
With churches like Wright’s, across the nation, there is know wonder that hate is still going strong in America.
AMERICA WAKE UP!!!!!!!!!
I feel that some of the statements the Reverend said true and some not true. The question I have is do we feel that Senator Obama should seperate himself from Reverend Wright entirely or should we allow the Senator the ability to seperate himself from the Reverends fallacies? I feel that Senator Obama has to identify the statements in question, the ones that are false and reject them outright then ask him on his feelings regarding the rest of the Reverends questionable statements. After that we should all get a clear understanding of Senator Obama.
It sounds like Wrights comments were also uttered by Obama’s wife when she stated that this was the first time she was proud of America. The Obama’s have taken on the doctorine of Wright. They utter his beliefs but when it isnt popular they start backing up.
i need to add a little to my last comment,i do not agree with this man in anyway but when we try to supress him or anyone else because they say mean and hateful thing i do not agree with that. there are groups out there that preach hate regularly but we do not supress them.(for example kkk,black panthers,ayrian brotherhood,and god only knows what others ) so why attack this guy and not them.
i belive he has the right to say how he feels no matter what position or influnce he holds. we have freedom of speech and that is not limited to people agreeing with everything said. i cant truly belive we are trying to supress this man simply because he is angry about what is going on and has the platform where people can hear him. if this is so im am outraged. i fight for that right everyday and no one should be silenced no matter what they believe. now keep in mind if he is leader of a terroist group shut him down by all means; but just because he is unhappy with how our government is handiling the problems we have gives us no right to silence him.
thank you for reading this hope im not misunderstood
Obama tries to explain away the beliefs and statements of his Pastor stating it’s not what he believes. But if you go to the web site of TRINITY UNITED CHURCH OF CHRIST and click on
“About Us”, you’ll find the following statements:
“We are a congregation which is Unashamedly Black and Unapologetically Christian… Our roots in the Black religious experience and tradition are deep, lasting and permanent. We are an African people, and remain “true to our native land,” the mother continent, the cradle of civilization.”
“……ministries which address the Black Community.”
“The Pastor as well as the membership of Trinity United Church of Christ is committed to….
…….. A congregation with a non-negotiable COMMITMENT TO AFRICA.”
The above says the members also are committed to these things!
Now go back, then click on “Mission” and read the churches mission statement:
It emphasizes Black people(racists) and THAT is THE CHANGE Obama keeps talking about, a NON-NEGOTIABLE COMMITMENT TO AFRICA while denouncing America! Take all this church believes and promotes, then read where it says in their Mission Statement that the MEMBERS ARE CALLED TO BE AGENTS FOR CHANGE. (Does that sound familiar?) The church states:
“The fortunate who are among us combine forces with the less fortunate to become agents of change for God who is not pleased with America’s economic mal-distribution!”
I think Obama’s CHANGE, is not the CHANGE Americans are thinking of at all!
Also: These statements of Obama’s pastor telling God to damn America, did not just now come to his mind. He’s believed that way for many, many years, as he says…UNASHAMEDLY.
Obama staying there for 20 yrs tells me he was taught that way. I believe with all my heart the CHANGE Obama speaks of is directly related to his church, and he is just an agent of that church! These facts NEED to be told and brought to the light in the news, so those who are just following Obama without checking him out completely, can know the truth! Please don’t be deceived by “Barak Hussein Obama”…. America! WAKE UP!
I think it is called ..truth to power.
What isn’t true about his words?
The Bush Adm is responsible for the spread of aids in Africa with abstinence programs and in US because of not allowing free needles and because of stingy funding of aids drugs and insisting on American prescriptive drugs rather than generic drugs which limits the amount affordable and renders less medicine to provide for the care needed.
If people don’t think Bush and Cheney had something to do with at least the success of 9/11…like why didn’t Norad pop into the sky to check out 4 hijacked planes and who ever saw a burning steel constructed building collapse in 56 minutes while the first building hit took 103 minutes from the same type of aircraft and building 7 collapsed hours later with no hit from a plane …puleez..and why the hell shouldn’t Black people be a bit bitter over the way they have been abused in America from its beginning up to now where 1 in 8 black people have been imprisoned and get longer sentences and the CIA introduced crack cocaine into the Black community to fund the Contras in th 80’s?
As Obama has been open to listen seriously this views, He became the best option to position US as a worldwide trustable and safer Nation.