Obama Ipsum

And right here in the UCC, we're hearing from God about what it means to be a welcoming church that holds on to our Christian witness. Our trials and triumphs became at once unique and universal, black and more than black; in chronicling our journey, the stories and songs gave us a means to reclaim memories that we didn't need to feel shame about...memories that all people might study and cherish - and with which we could start to rebuild." And then another one. To the love of my life, our next First Lady, Michelle Obama, and to Sasha and Malia - I love you so much, and I'm so proud of all of you. It was a peaceful and determined insistence upon the ideals at the center of America's founding.

Let us find that common stake we all have in one another, and let our politics reflect that spirit as well. Our government should work for us, not against us. I believe that as hard as it will be, the change we need is coming. Around the world, we can turn dialogue into Interfaith service, so bridges between peoples lead to action - whether it is combating malaria in Africa, or providing relief after a natural disaster. There need not be contradiction between development and tradition.

Segregated schools were, and are, inferior schools; we still haven't fixed them, fifty years after Brown v. No single speech can eradicate years of mistrust, nor can I answer in the time that I have all the complex questions that brought us to this point.

And that man is John Kerry. Hall in East Moline, Ill.. The fact that so many people are surprised to hear that anger in some of Reverend Wright's sermons simply reminds us of the old truism that the most segregated hour in American life occurs on Sunday morning.

The press has scoured every exit poll for the latest evidence of racial polarization, not just in terms of white and black, but black and brown as well. Perhaps somebody told her along the way that the source of her mother's problems were blacks who were on welfare and too lazy to work, or Hispanics who were coming into the country illegally. So don't tell me that Democrats won't defend this country. We cannot impose peace. All of us have a responsibility to work for the day when the mothers of Israelis and Palestinians can see their children grow up without fear; when the Holy Land of three great faiths is the place of peace that God intended it to be; when Jerusalem is a secure and lasting home for Jews and Christians and Muslims, and a place for all of the children of Abraham to mingle peacefully together as in the story of Isra, when Moses, Jesus, and Mohammed (peace be upon them) joined in prayer. That commitment is at the core of the Treaty, and it must be kept for all who fully abide by it.

Thank you, and God bless America.