Mary Mitchell: Warren pick insults struggle for justice

[babylonsister]

Warren pick insults struggle for justice
Event calls for black pastor, not gay rights foe

BY MARY MITCHELL Sun-Times Columnist


Of all President-elect Barack Obama's choices, his selection of megapastor Rick Warren to give the inaugural invocation had my phone ringing off the hook.

Some people were outraged that Obama bypassed prominent black pastors and selected a wildly popular white evangelical minister to give the sacred prayer on an occasion that has special significance for generations of African Americans.

Others were dismayed that Obama chose a pastor at the center of the gay marriage debate over the objections of gay rights activists who supported Obama's historic campaign.

Let me first say, I read Warren's A Purpose Driven Life and found it full of wisdom that has helped me to deal with my own personal challenges.

That being said, I, too, am stunned by Obama's decision.

Frankly, it's insulting.

How do you put a civil rights icon like the Rev. Joseph Lowery at the tail end of an event that honors the nation's election of its first African-American president?

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http://www.suntimes.com/news/mitchell/1341501,CST-NWS-mitch21.article