Christian political leaders rally around McCain!

In Denver, Colorado on July 2, 2008, a group of about 100 Christian Conservative leaders gathered to discuss the current political atmosphere. I attended this conference and sat on one of its panels to discuss political, social, and economic issues. The next day the press began its coverage and got most of the facts correct. 

The Associated Press headline read, “Conservative evangelicals discuss backing McCain.” Times/CNN: “Christian Conservatives Uniting Behind McCain.” The Los Angeles Times reported “Religious right starts to consolidate for John McCain.” Also the World News Daily headlined “Evangelicals say McCain’s the one.”

 What was not reported was the heated, honest discussion over the current direction of this country and what to do about it. You cannot get 100 unaffiliated leaders together without conflict, emotions, and venting. Many attendees have large followings and influences worldwide. Some could call on political policy makers to push their own agenda and opinions. What the press did not report on was that after the long hours of speeches, nominations, discussions, and even disagreements, the conclusion was met with camaraderie and support. 

I did not meet anyone there whose first choice for President was John McCain, but he was the choice of most who left that room. It was said that the process of Christian political leaders to choose their leaders should have started immediately after the 2000 election. It was clear that Dick Cheney would not be running in 2007, so we should have chosen our nominee and supported him early. We will not make that mistake again.

 While no one group or individual championed the meeting, it was obviously called and attended by those who supported Mike Huckabee for President. After all, it was a Christian political meeting. Mike Huckabee was in the hotel the night before, but did not attend this meeting, and I did not see him in the hotel during the meeting. However, I did speak with him the night before, and he seemed relaxed about the idea of supporting the Republican ticket and had genuine, solid ideas on why John McCain was the only sane choice now. I think his presence there, speaking to so many of his followers and supporters, made the choices on the following day much easier. Supporting John McCain was no longer seen as the group turning their backs on their first choice, Mike Huckabee. 

However, Mike Huckabee’s appearance at the hotel did raise some questions. Did Mike Huckabee approve the support of John McCain? Did Mike Huckabee ask for our support and pressure for the second position on the ticket? I know when the press learns of the appearance of Mike Huckabee at the hotel the day before this event, there will be speculation about his motives. So let me give you my personal, first hand views.

 

I suppose if any politician was in the same hotel for another reason but found a hundred of his most loyal and financial supporters, he would stop by and say hello to a few of them. That happened the evening before in a private suite. It was not a reception for Mike Huckabee, but he was certainly the star there. He did not give a speech, nor did he discuss the Vice-Presidential position in the suite. What he did talk about were his values, love for his country, and obedience to God. I stayed until he left and spoke to him several times, and I did not get the impression that he knew about the meeting that would follow the next day. However any reasonable person would assume he knew.

However, at the meeting, one of his supporters did come up with idea of sending a letter to John McCain to request Mike Huckabee be added to the ticket. That motion came at the end of the evening and seemed quiet arbitrary and a spur of the moment addition to the conversation. It was a second thought to a comment, and became a motion.

 I know some will wonder if it was an attempt of the “Religious Right” to force Mike Huckabee’s name onto the ticket. It would have been a brilliant move, and I would have supported it; but, I do not think it happened that way. John McCain will get the support of the Christian political leaders, but Mike Huckabee will always have their hearts.

Grow up and vote right

When I was a young boy growing up in Saint Louis Missouri, I was aware of many of the “first” by black people. I remember my adult relatives calling out in excitement of seeing a black person on “American Band Stand” or a game show. I can recall the details of the first black person going to college or getting a high profile job. Every black child growing up in the 1950s remember Congressman  Adam Clayton Powell of New York.

Occasionally, I would catch myself daydreaming about being the first black person to achieve something important. And as every black person, I thought what it would be like to see a black man as president. I did not know much about politics as a child but I knew a lot about race. It seemed important to me that a black man achieve this level. It was important for my family and my race. It was important for everyone around me. 

We thought a black President would change how black people thought about themselves and how white people thought about us. We thought  black President would stop the police brutality housing discrimination and joblessness.

That was childish “symbolism” of the 1950s and I out grew it. In the 1960s I became a teenager and was living in a rural white community. I no longer look forward to seeing the first black do something, I had to become the first black to achieve many of the things I wanted out of life.

Growing up around those white children taught me a lot about white America. Some were nice some were mean, some were smarter than me and some were not. They were not magical, superior creatures, they were just kids like me. I played sports, some were better and some were not. I studied my lessons and I socialized. I learned that the greatest difference between us teenagers were our morals. Some looked at life as an opportunity to take from someone others looked at it as an opportunity to give. As I began to determined my own morals and started to associate with similar people, I found my views of my world begin to change.

It no longer mattered if we had a black President or not. The President did not represent my race. He really would not stop discrimination, I would have to. The white teenagers who had the same morals as I, banded together with others like ourselves and with the like minded adults, changed the world. It was not because we had a good President, it was because we were good people.

I learned that I had to represent me. I had to stop the discrimination. I had to open opportunities for myself and for my family. By not waiting for a leader to lead me, I began to take charge of my own future. Sure I found many people did not like my new style and self confidence, so what? Others wanted me to fail for their own reasons, so what? I had to achieve because it was up to me.

However, many people did not have that mind set. Many never developed that personal confidence in their own future. Some kept and grew the impression that their plight in life was the fault and responsibility of others. These are the people who supports Barrack Hussein Obama today, simply because he would be the first black President. Obama’s polices does not matter to them. He will lift the burdens off their lives, he will make the bullies of life leave them alone. Obama represents the great equalizer. This is the real hope he presents.

White voters and black voters who have been depending upon symbolic representation are idolizing Obama as the great equalizer. It does not matter what comes out about him or what he does, they will only support him more. I understand that mentality and no longer try to challenge it or persuade it. The only hope is for us to show up on election day and out vote them. 

Obama’s hope!

I have been watching the meteoric run of Barrack Hussein Obama for the past few months. It seems obvious that his strength is not in his stance on policy but in the collective American imagination. His victories have come from the imagination of people looking for others to improve their lives. This will make Barrack Hussein Obama harder to beat because, albeit imaginary, he is leading a movement.

Just as Ronald Reagan led a conservative movement, Barrack Hussein Obama is leading an emotional movement. Reagan lead a revolution based upon conservative principles, which were clearly outlined and defined. That movement was founded on the ideas of smaller government, lower taxes, and a strong national stance against communism. Barack Hussein Obama’s movement is based upon imagination and daydreaming about what “hope” means to the individual.

This will make him much harder to defeat because ‘hope’ springs eternal. He has tapped into the cry for help so many utter when they think of their own lives. Even though their personal views may not line up with reality, people vote based upon their perception, not based upon the facts. In order to better understand Barack Hussein Obama we should look at the persuasive power of emotional leaders of the past.

Leaders of great movements have the ability to identify with the problem, real or imagined, of those being led. Bill Clinton had, “I feel your pain” when he ran for President; Barack Hussein Obama offers ‘hope’ that the pain will go away. It does not matter if the pain is in the imagination of the masses - it only matters that they feel the pain.

The “Wright” response.

Reverend Jeremiah Wright has recently made national news with his inflammatory comments, and in the process has introduced America to the phrase “Liberation Theology.” What is Liberation Theology? Is it a new Gospel? Is it comparable to any other theology? This phrase and the philosophy behind it are the remnants of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement. Its logical place would be the black church.

The Civil Rights Movement had to begin in the black church because that was where all past organization and motivation for oppressed black people came from. On the plantation, one of the few places for blacks to meet without being watched by white slave managers was Sunday morning church service.  It was also where slaves could have leaders that they chose instead of those chosen by Master. The preacher was one of the few slaves who could approach Master on behalf of other slaves to address grievances.

Thus, the slave preacher was usually in the forefront of the Underground Railroad Movement. He  coordinated with other Christians from the North based upon a common faith and a common theology. Christians like Harriett Beecher Stowe, John Brown, the Quaker church, and the Wesleyan Church worked with Christians like Harriett Tubman to publicly denounce slavery and help slaves escape. On the other hand, you also had the militant slave preachers like Denmark Vesey and Nat Turner who lead revolts and rebellions.

It was a Christian movement which eventually pushed this country to tear itself apart to end the institution of slavery. Then came discrimination as “Separate but equal”, and again, it was the Christian church that lead the way with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., the Christian Leadership Conference, and the thousands of black churches in black communities throughout America organizing, educating, and strategizing to confront this threat to liberty and dignity.

I was a young man in the 1960s, and while I serving in the Navy a white racist shipmate dropped 2,800 pounds of metal on me in an attempt to kill me. I became permanently disabled and continue to face physical struggles. I went through radical and angry responses and found a solution which worked for me and may work for the rest of America. It was racial forgiveness. Not racial “restoration” and not “liberation theology. It was an old theology called “Forgiveness.” As a Christian, what other resolution was there? What other response could I give?

I could have demanded an apology, special treatment, or punishment for the perpetrator. However, if I demanded anything from anyone, I would be dependent upon them. If I was going to be free, I would have to act like a free man. First, I had to totally forgive the hatred and attempted murder. I had to forgive whatever contributing factor I placed upon my country and white people. The real “Liberation Theology” was not new; it was very old - it was the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The “New Civil Rights Movement” has hijacked the Gospel and twisted it to suit themselves. They have taken the philosophy of forgiveness and turned it into a total acceptance of every lifestyle and belief system possible. They have developed a new philosophy called “Tolerance”, meaning to hold everyone’s beliefs to equal standing with your own beliefs. Not just acceptance of others’ right to hold different beliefs, this new philosophy of Tolerance requires you to view their beliefs as of equal value to yours. It requires a change in your beliefs to tolerate others. This requires you to have no beliefs.

So, Reverend Wright can be a Christian minister and accept beliefs of Farrakhan as equal to his Christian beliefs. He can accept abortions as equal to his Christian faith, and he can believe poverty is caused by government action not individual action.

Reverend Wright could build a great church because the masses love to be taken care of and his passion for their plight gives them hope. I found that real hope lies in the total forgiveness of my Christian faith, and it has truly liberated me from the anger, frustration, and hatred of the past. I went on with my life and have achieved some levels of success, especially in my Christian walk. So, I do not need a Black Liberation Theology. I no longer belong to the black race; I belong to the race of Christ.

I was blessed when Dr. D. James Kennedy produced a biography of my life for his television program, “The Coral Ridge Hour.” It highlights my struggle with the anger and how I found complete release. As this nation struggles with past and present wrongs, this message may help us all adjust. Instead of punishment, reparation, or guilt, let’s try forgiveness.

In the 1940s black men and white men (like Reverend Wright) went to war to fight for the freedom of others, and then came back to America to face discrimination at home. White and black people joined hands again for a new push for civil rights. They took down Poll Taxes, fought against illiteracy, and again, worked for the dignity of all men.

This was the era of Reverend Wright. He and I grew up in the middle of that America, and it formed our views of America. I also joined the military, I also faced open hostility from white America, and I also went on to a radical response to that hostility. However, I came to a profoundly different conclusion about my country and the proper response to these problems. The fight for freedom was just, but the response to being free has not always been justified.

Once World War II ended, the “war industry” disassembled and returned to the actions of community building. People went back to their lives and began to build families, culture, and careers. However, when the Civil Rights Era of the 1960s and 1970s was won, the Civil Rights “industry” did not disassemble, but redirected itself to other areas because there is a lot of money, influence, and power in addressing “problems.” So, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Louis Farrakhan, and the others could not maintain their status as advocates for the MOVEMENT unless the movement continued. You will never see them celebrate the achievements of America. You will never hear them praise the accomplishments of the individual. Furthermore, you cannot expect them to acknowledge the great progress America has made in racial equality. They are crisis managers, so they cannot get paid if there are no crises.

After the Civil War, 360,000 white men had been killed on the Union side. They died fighting their brothers and cousins to free strangers. That was the original “apology for slavery” everyone is crying for today. Those that remained alive returned home and started families while the former slaves dealt with the newness of freedom. Slaves did not blame America for slavery, and despite today’s call for “forty acres and a mule”, most blacks did not expect much from the government. The call for Civil Rights was a call for personal freedom and protection, not government control and management. I did not fight for the right to be managed by America; I fought for my God-given right to participate in the America dream.

To view the Coral Ridge Hour program featuring Mason Weaver, see “The Power of Forgiveness” on my web sight http://americanbeliefs.com/media.html

What inspires a Leader to lead?

What Inspires a Leader to lead? My wife and I have been blessed to be acquainted with many world leaders and influential people. We have known benevolent foreign presidents that leads their people with a kind heart. We have know industry giants that have build great wealth by inspiring others to greatness. We have seen spiritual leaders that have a vision and can direct and define and entire culture. Then there is the uncommon leader that draws people to themselves and motivates them out of service to them.

I remember the very first time I met one of my many mentors I will call “Jack”, he was serving me. I was giving a speech near Palm Springs California and he came to hear me. It was not connected with his business and he only knew me as an author but he came anyway. After my speech we had questions and answer and this man stood up to let a room full of strangers know how much my book “The Rope” had done for him and his business. He was selling my books to this audience for me. He did not have to do that, he was going to get nothing out of doing it but he did it because he had the heart of a servant. That is the key of real success, developing the heart of a servant.

A few months later I was asked to speak at a function of “Jack’s” organization and meet his business partner “David” and their other leaders. It was at this meeting that I began to speculate on the characteristics of leadership. What made these guys go? What compiled them to continue long after they have reached every economical goal, every level of social prestige and the most satisfying lifestyle imaginable?

The answer clarified the evening before the main event began. “Jack” and “David” gathered with all their leaders behind the stage. They did not gather to agree on a strategy to increase their profits. They did not gather to determine how many people showed up to support them. They gathered to have prayer and to ask comfort over those seeking answers to the personal problems weighing them down.

As we stood there in a circle with both male and female leaders, I began to think about the characteristics’ of a successful person.You must have these characteristics long before you become successful because they must lead you like a beacon in the night. Backstage that evening I felt each one of those leaders would have rejoiced if someone from the audience had exploded their business to greater heights than anyone back stage. They would rejoice at the success of others.

I then had a moment to set down with “David” before I went on stage. Here is a man successful before coming to into this business. His motivation was not to provide more beautiful things for his wife, he understood there was nothing he could give her more beautiful than she already was. He was not trying to make more friends his level, of respect had guaranteed many friends. He was not trying to sell a few more products so he could be the biggest badness man in the business. Any conversation you had with “David” would leave you with an understanding of success. Success comes from serving others.

It does not matter if you are a surgeon ”David” or a migrant worker like “Jack”, the heart of a servant brought them successes of extraordinary levels.