Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age.
- Matthew 28:19-20
The Tradition of Christianity - A Basic Guide to the Christianity of President Barack Obama
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Our law is by definition a codification of morality, much of it grounded in the Judeo-Christian tradition.
- President Barack Obama, a Protestant Christian for over 20 years
Barack Obama, the first African-American President in a nation that was still practicing black slavery a mere 140 years ago, is one of the most inspiring occurrences in the 21st century and may well be a sign that the third millennium will turn out to be an era of peace and prosperity for all Americans, and for all God's children throughout the world. In many ways, his election as the most powerful leader in the world, indicates that the Christian doctrine of universal brotherhood has managed to emerge triumphant after a very scary, and completely evil, previous century that threatened the very foundations of Christianity. At the same time, a great many of Obama's public statements have been infused with the inspirational and moral certainty that originates with his faith in Christianity. Here are just a few highlights:
My Bible tells me that if we train a child in the way he should go, when he is old he will not turn from it. I think faith and guidance can help fortify a young woman’s sense of self, a young man’s sense of responsibility, and a sense of reverence all young people for the act of sexual intimacy.
- Senator Barack Obama
We believe in a country that rewards hard work and responsibility, a country where we look after one another, a country where we say, ‘I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper, I'm not just thinking about myself.’
- President Barack Obama
The fact of the matter is that, regardless of Barack Obama's politics, some of which are in opposition to traditional Christian doctrines, he is still an authentic, genuine Christian believer who has been properly baptized by an ordained Christian minister. After this he did not fall, and he did not stray. Instead, he dutifully attended Christian Sabbath on a weekly basis for over 20 years before running for President. What follows is a basic guide to the Christianity of President Barack Obama. It has been organized in the following manner:
Part I. A Sampling of Quotes from Barack Obama
Part II. Quotes from Official News Reports about Obama's Christian Faith
Part III. The Factual Reality of President Obama's Christian Presidency
Part IV. America's Confusion and Misinformation about Obama's Christianity
Part V. The Opposition to, Versus the Acceptance of, Obama's Christianity
Part VI. The Astonishingly Misinformed Beliefs of Certain Americans
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Part I. A Sampling of Quotes from Barack Obama
As somebody who relies heavily on my Christian faith in my job, I understand the passions that religious faith can raise.
- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
(The story of Jesus' birth) that we are called to love each other as we love ourselves, that we are our brother's keeper and our sister's keeper, and our destinies are linked...It's a message that guides my Christian faith.
- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
(We can) see God in other people and do our best to help them find their, you know, their own grace...So that's what I strive to do...That's what I pray to do everyday. I think my public service is part of that effort to express my Christian faith.
- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
I found myself drawn - not just to work with the church but to be in the church...It was through this service that I was brought to Christ.
- President Barack Obama, University of Notre Dame (May 17, 2010)
It was because of these new-found understandings - that religious commitment did not require me to suspend critical thinking...that I was finally able to walk down the aisle of Trinity United Church of Christ one day and be baptized...But kneeling beneath that cross on the South Side of Chicago, I felt God's spirit beckoning me. I submitted myself to His will, and dedicated myself to discovering His truth.
- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
Secularists are wrong when they ask believers to leave their religion at the door before entering into the public square. Frederick Douglas, Abraham Lincoln, Williams Jennings Bryant, Dorothy Day, Martin Luther King - indeed, the majority of great reformers in American history - were not only motivated by faith, but repeatedly used religious language to argue for their cause. So to say that men and women should not inject their "personal morality" into public policy debates is a practical absurdity. Our law is by definition a codification of morality, much of it grounded in the Judeo-Christian tradition.
- Barack Obama (June 28, 2006)
There is hope for a tree, if it be cut down, that it will sprout again and that its tender branch will not cease...The work ahead will not be easy, and there will be setbacks. There will be challenges along the way. But thanks to you, thanks to the great people of this great city, New Orleans is blossoming again.
- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
I am a Christian by choice...I came to my Christian faith later in life, and it was because the precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me in terms of the kind of life that I would want to lead...Being my brothers' and sisters' keeper. Treating others as they would treat me. And I think also understanding that, you know, that Jesus Christ dying for my sins spoke to the humility that we all have to have as human beings.
- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
I'm a Christian by choice. My family didn't-frankly, they weren't folks who went to church every week. And my mother was one of the most spiritual people I knew, but she didn't raise me in the church. So I came to my Christian faith later in life, and it was because the precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me in terms of the kind of life that I would want to lead-being my brothers' and sisters' keeper, treating others as they would treat me....
- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
I came to my Christian faith later in life, and it was because the precepts of Jesus Christ spoke to me in terms of the kind of life that I would want to lead: being my brother's and sister's keeper, treating others as they would treat me...I think my public service is part of that effort to express my Christian faith.
- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
It's interesting listening to the girls, what they pray for...They'll talk about family and thanking God for blessing us, but they'll always add a little twist: 'I hope we have a great Thanksgiving, I can't wait to see the cousins...They used to pray for a dog, until we got a dog.
- President Barack Obama, commenting on the Obama family prayer before dinner
It means all the world to us to know that there are prayer circles out there and people who are keeping the spirits clean around us.
- First Lady Michelle Obama
I'd just sit in the back and I'd listen to the choir and I'd listen to the sermon...There were times that I would just start tearing up listening to the choir and share that sense of release.
- President Barack Obama (2008-2011)
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Part II. Quotes from Official News Reports about Obama's Christian Faith
Obama's Christian Rhetoric-
QUOTE- As president, Barack Obama has mentioned Jesus Christ in a number of high-profile public speeches - something his predecessor George W. Bush rarely did in such settings, even though Bush’s Christian faith was at the core of his political identity...Obama’s invocation of the Christian Messiah is more overt than Americans heard in the public rhetoric of Bush in his time in the White House - even though Bush’s victories were powered in part by evangelical voters....Still, it is ironic that Obama, who rode a wave of young, Internet-savvy and more secular voters to the White House, would more freely invoke the name of Jesus Christ than did Bush. -UNQUOTE
Obama's Christian Beliefs--
QUOTE- In openly personal terms, President Barack Obama on Tuesday honored the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, saying he draws inspiration from an eternal story of pain, suffering and redemption...Obama's comments provided a brief, uncommon opening into how he views his Christian faith. He told the religious leaders that their examples are followed by millions of people. He welcomed them warmly as "my brothers and sisters in Christ" and honored Christ as "our risen savior."...Obama has also held White House events honoring the Jewish and Muslim faiths. -UNQUOTE
Obama's Christian Family Prayer--
QUOTE- The first family says grace each night before dinner, President Barack Obama and his wife Michelle told ABC News in an interview that aired Friday...The Obamas have frequently spoken about prayer since arriving in the White House. Last month, Michelle Obama told a nationally syndicated radio show that the Obamas can feel prayers that are said for them...In 2009, Barack Obama said that he had stepped up his praying since becoming president 'because I've got a lot of stuff on my plate, and I need guidance all the time.'...He told ABC News then that he starts each morning by reviewing a devotional he receives on his BlackBerry. -UNQUOT
Obama's Little Known Christian Faith--
QUOTE- A new poll from the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life indicates that the number of Americans who erroneously believe President Obama is a Muslim is growing...In March 2009, the percentage was 11 percent. Today, it's 18 percent...The percentage of those asserting that the president is a Christian -- which he is -- has gone down in that time, from 48% in March 2009 to 34% today...A plurality of Americans -- 43% -- say they don't know what religion the president is. -UNQUOTE
Obama's Daily Christian Readings
QUOTE- President Barack Obama is a great example of how technology and religion are symbiotic. Each morning, Obama reads a devotional on his BlackBerry....“I pray all the time now - because I’ve got a lot of stuff on my plate and I need guidance all the time,” he said with a laugh during an interview with ABC’s Nightline that was aired Thursday night...Obama said he receives his daily devotional from Joshua DuBois, his director of faith and neighborhood initiatives....“That’s how I start my morning. You know, he’s got a passage, scripture, in some cases quotes from other faiths to reflect on. This is something where you just hope that you are aligning your work with His purposes and that you’re attuned to the needs of the people you’re there to serve,” he said. -UNQUOTE
Obama's Tolerant Christian Understanding of Faith and Sin
QUOTE- "This is a country that is still predominantly Christian, but we have Jews, Muslims, Hindus, atheists, agnostics, Buddhists" and others, he said, adding that "their own path to grace is one that we have to revere and respect as much as our own, and that is part of what makes this country what it is."...Humans are "sinful" and "flawed" beings that make mistakes and "achieve salvation through the grace of God," the president continued....Obama responded that abortion should be "safe, legal and rare" in America, adding that families -- not the government -- "should be the ones making the decision."...Restrictions against late-term abortion are in place now, he said, adding that "people still argue and disagree about it. That's part of our Democratic tradition." -UNQUOTE
Obama's Christian Faith Denied and Defamed
QUOTE- Americans have some extreme views of President Obama, with a new controversial survey suggesting that 40 percent of adults believe he is a socialist, and about a quarter of survey participants thinking the president is a racist, anti-American and even doing things Hitler did...When broken out by political party, results showed some stark differences. For instance, the majority of Republicans believed the president is a Muslim and a socialist, while around 40 percent believe he is a racist, someone who resents American heritage and "wants terrorists to win."...Forty percent of Republicans, compared with just 15 percent of Democrats, think Wall Street pulls his strings. -UNQUOTE
Obama's Non-Muslim Past and Christian Present
QUOTE- Obama, however, claimed that his father, who he only knew as an infant, was an atheist. He assured that his time as President has only served to deepen his commitment to Christianity....Obama has repeatedly said that he is a Christian and prays regularly, but more Americans than ever have raised doubts over his beliefs. -UNQUOTE
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Part III. The Factual Reality of President Obama's Christian Presidency
- President Obama publically affirmed his Christian faith to a predominantly Muslim audience in Cairo, Egypt. He went to mention the famous Islamic legend of Isra, when Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed came together as one and prayed to God.
- Speaking to students at the University of Notre Dame, Barack Obama repeatedly described about his religious conversion to Christianity which occurred in Chicago working with the inner-city poor as a community activist.
- While discussing his economic policies in a speech at Georgetown Univeristy, President Obama deliberately invoked the Christian Gospel parable of building a house upon a foundation of either sand or solid rock to illustrate his political strategy.
- Even though he remains virulently opposed to nearly all of Obama liberal politics, Mr. Tony Perkins, who is president of the Family Research Council, a conservative Christian interest group, is on record praising the President's openly Christian faith. Commenting on Barack Obama's religious faith, He stated: 'I don't recall a single example of Bush ever saying Jesus or Christ...This is different...I applaud that. It gives people a sense of comfort.'
- Obama also managed to schedule an Easter prayer breakfast at the White House specifically for Christian pastors. During his opening remarks, he openly and specifically employed devout Christian rhetoric, even welcoming all the assembled guests as 'my brothers and sisters in Christ.'
- A growing number of different news organizations have been reluctantly forced to make note of President Obama's astonishing, and frequent, use of the term Jesus Christ, as well as other blatantly Christian terminology. One particular article even admitted the following: 'Obama’s invocation of the Christian Messiah is more overt than Americans heard in the public rhetoric of Bush in his time in the White House'.
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Part IV. America's Misinformed Confusion about Obama's Christianity
Did you know that...
1) Since becoming President, Obama has mentioned Jesus Christ by name in public far more often than George W. Bush ever did during his tenure?
2) The Obama family, including his wife Michelle and their two daughters, recite Christian grace and prayers every night before eating dinner?
3) Barack Obama begins each morning by reading and reflecting upon Christian Scriptures and Prayers with one of his Christian staff members?
4) The historical evidence shows that Obama was never really a Muslim believer, while his sincere and authentic conversion to Christianity later in life has been clearly documented and verified?
5) President Obama has read and studied Roman Catholic Saint Augustine, the Christian intellectual Graham Greene, and the famous Protestant theologian Reinhold Niebuhr?
President Obama prays at the Western Wall in Jerusalem.
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Part V. The Opposition to, Versus the Acceptance of, Obama's Christianity
Obama's Public Christian Witness
Opposition To: I don’t need to hear politicians tell me how religious they are...Obama in a very overt way does what Bush tended to do in a more covert way. (Rev. Barry Lynn, United for Separation of Church and State)
Acceptance Of: I don't recall a single example of Bush ever saying Jesus or Christ...This is different...I applaud that. It gives people a sense of comfort. (Tony Perkins, President of Family Research Council)
Obama's Actual Christian Faith
Opposition To: Obama can call himself anything he likes, but there is a clear requirement for one to qualify as a Christian and Obama doesn't meet that requirement...Such people do have a label applied to them in Scripture. They are called 'false prophets'. (Cal Thomas)
Acceptance Of: Obama has accepted Jesus Christ. That’s what he says he has done. So I just have to believe that the president is what he has said. (Reverend Franklin Graham, Son of Billy Graham)
Obama's Christian Beliefs
Opposition To: The fact Senator Obama denies Jesus is the only way to be saved...calls into question whether he believes...It is time for Senator Obama to be held accountable for what he says he believes to examine if he really is a Christian. (Bill Keller)
Acceptance Of: The president says he’s a Christian. I take him at his word...I think the faith that most Americans are questioning is the President’s faith in the government to generate jobs. (Republican Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell)
Obama's Christian Theology
Opposition To: I think he's deliberately distorting the traditional understanding of the Bible to fit his own worldview, his own confused theology...He is dragging biblical understanding through the gutter. (James Dobson, Focus on the Family)
Acceptance Of: He presents his Christianity as an important aspect of his identity but one he doesn’t want to foist upon anyone else, and he would rather risk downplaying it than offending somebody...This notion that we are our brothers’ keepers...is kind of a mantra for him.(Jeffrey Siker, Loyola Marymount University)
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Part VI. The Astonishingly Misinformed Beliefs of Certain Americans
Some Astonishing Facts about the Misinformed Beliefs of American Voters
+ Bill Keller, a Internet Televangelist, accused President Barack Obama on-air of being an 'Enemy of God'
+ 14 percent of Americans (24 percent of Republicans and 6 percent of Democrats) believe President Barack Obama may be the Antichrist.
+ A Pew Research poll in August (2010) revealed 'that one in five Americans falsely believe the president is a Muslim, more than thought so last year'.
+ In a poll by Newsweek, 12 percent of voters incorrectly believe he's Muslim; more than a quarter believe he was raised in a Muslim home.
+ A Time Magazine poll found that 24 percent of Americans believe Obama is a Muslim, rather than a Christian.
A List of Specific Beliefs of Certain Americans
38% - Believe Obama wants to abolish the right to bear arms
32% - Believe Obama is actually a Muslim in disguise
29% - Believe Obama intends to end U.S. independence and establish a single world government.
29% - Believe Obama has secretly violated the U.S. Constitution
27% - Believe Obama resent's America's heritage
27% - Believe Obama is the puppet of Wall Street bankers
25% - Believe Obama was not actually born on United States soil
25% - Believe Obama is the enemy of the U.S. Constitution
23% - Believe Obama is a racist
23% - Believe Obama is anti-American
23% - Believe Obama plans on staging a economic collapse of terrorist incident to seize control and declare Martial Law
20% - Believe Obama is doing the same thing Hitler did
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May the LORD God bless you in the name of St. Peter, Prince of the Apostles.
A Last Important Quote-
And I'd say, probably, intellectually I've drawn as much from Judaism as any other faith.
- President Barack Obama
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May the LORD God bless you in the name of Saint Judas Maccabaeus.