“Wherever politics tries to be redemptive, it is promising too much.”
Pope Benedict XVI
If anybody knows about politicians promising messianic things, it is probably Pope Benedict XVI.
Back in July, 2007, Obama had not yet emerged as Obamessiah. And at that time, Michelle Obama had a realistic take on her husband:
‘He has big ears, she has said. A funny name, too. He doesn’t put the butter away. He has trouble making beds. He’s not the ‘next Messiah who’s going to fix it all. In the end, he’s just a man.’”
But then “hope” and “change” and “Yes, we can” gave way to something else. “We are the ones we’ve been waiting for,” he said on Super Tuesday night.
It had already begun in New Hampshire: “… a light will shine through that window, a beam of light will come down upon you, you will experience an epiphany … and you will suddenly realize that you must go to the polls and vote for Obama” – Barack Obama in Lebanon, New Hampshire. January 7, 2008.
Gary Kamiya of Salon said in January, 2008:
Obama’s victory seemed almost otherworldly–as if the laws of space and time had been suspended, and a quality as evanescent and fragile as hope had suddenly become real. I am not a religious person, but it was hard not to feel that his triumph vindicated the essence of what I think of as the secular essence of religion, something even nonbelievers can believe in: the possibility of inner transformation. A transformation at once personal and national.
http://www.salon.com/opinion/kamiya/2008/01/08/obama/
More recently, Barack Obama said, “I never believe in irreparable breaches. I’m a big believer in reconciliation and redemption,” Obama told reporters in Indianapolis. “So, look, this has been a fierce contest. I’ve said repeatedly: Come August, there will be a whole lot of people standing on a stage with a lot of balloons and confetti raining down on the Democratic nominee, and people are going to be excited about taking on John McCain in November.”
Tags: Barack Obama, Culture, Election 2008, Hillary Clinton, John McCain, Life, Michelle Obama, Politics, Pope Benedict XVI, Religion
April 26, 2008 at 3:28 pm
I find the “messiah” message a little scary. I think it comes more from some nutty people who support him, not all people who support him, but if he believes it –and I am not saying he does–it could be trouble. I think the Pope had it pegged right.
April 26, 2008 at 7:18 pm
[...] toby.harnden@telegraph.co.uk (Toby Harnden) wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptMore recently, Barack Obama said, “I never believe in irreparable breaches. I’ma big believer in reconciliation and redemption,” Obama told reporters in Indianapolis. “So, look, this has been a fierce contest. I’ve said repeatedly: Come … [...]