As the media begins to examine Barack Obama's pastor, the Rev. Dr. Jeremiah Wright of the Trinity United Church of Christ (UCC), Obama will distance himself from Wright's virulent racism. That exercise will display some interesting linguistic choreography and promises to be an example of incredible denial.For 25 years, I was the pastor of congregations in a mainline protestant denomination similar to the UCC denomination.  It doesn't take a preacher long to understand why people join a church, why they stay, and why they leave. In a setting where the pastoral leadership turns over frequently, laypeople will stomach a preacher they don't like for a few years in hopes that a better one will come along. In settings where the preacher stays indefinitely, as at Trinity, the decision to join a church is typically more thoughtful and intentional, particularly where the preacher has a style that's noteworthy in content and delivery.  That clearly fits the description of Pastor...(Read Full Post)