(RNS) President Obama will publicly take the oath of office with Bibles once owned by his political heroes, Abraham Lincoln and the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.
Lincoln’s Bible was well read, but cited cautiously. King’s granted scriptural sanction to the civil rights movement.
President Barack Obama looks at the portrait of Abraham Lincoln that hangs in the Oval Office. RNS photo by Pete Souza/The White House.
This image available for Web and print publication. For questions, contact Sally Morrow.
When Obama lifts his hand from the Bibles and delivers the inaugural address on Monday, his own approach to Scripture will come into view. Characteristically, it sits somewhere between the former president and famous preacher.
His faith forged in the black church, Obama draws deeply on its blending of biblical narratives with contemporary issues such as racism and poverty. But like Lincoln, Obama also acknowledges that Americans sometimes invoke the Bible to argue past each other, and that Scripture itself counsels against sanctimony.
Obama articulated this view most clearly in a 2006 speech, saying that secularists shouldn’t bar believers from the public square, but neither should people of faith expect America to be one vast amen corner.
“He understands that you can appeal to people on religious grounds,” said Jeffrey Siker, a theology professor at Loyola Marymount University in California who has studied Obama’s speeches. ”But you also have to be able to translate your case into arguments that people of different faiths, or no faith, can grasp.”
Florida megachurch pastor Joel Hunter, a close spiritual adviser to the president, said Obama often starts the day by reading Scripture.
One “great source of encouragement in my life,” Obama has said, is Isaiah 40:31: “Those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.”
President Barack Obama tours the Martin Luther King Memorial in Washington, D.C., Oct. 14, 2011. RNS photo by Pete Souza/The White House.
This image available for Web and print publication. For questions, contact Sally Morrow.
Obama seldom attends church since moving into the White House but occasionally alludes to his private faith in public speeches. More often, he cites Scripture to connect with traditions and arguments familiar to most Americans, if only faintly.
“He is a leader who wants to approach challenges from many different aspects of our lives,” Hunter said. “Not just intellectual, but also moral, and he finds Scripture to be a way of communicating values that many of us share.”
Like many liberal Protestants, Obama often emphasizes Bible passages that urge compassion for the poor and downtrodden.
“He uses those Scriptures more than any other type,” said Hunter. “It has to do with assisting those in need, rather than moral commands about sin,” Hunter said.
As Hunter notes, occupying the bully pulpit gives presidents license to cite Scripture, and Obama is far from the first to use it.
Bill Clinton alluded to the Psalms while asking for forgiveness during the Monica Lewinsky scandal, and George W. Bush cited Scripture to forge a personal connection with evangelical Christians.
Obama uses the Bible a bit more broadly.
He has quoted the Sermon on the Mount to explain his economic views, read Psalms to bereaved families in Newtown, Conn., and Tucson, Ariz., and cited the Bible’s Golden Rule to explain his evolving support for same-sex marriage.
During his 2009 inaugural address, Obama cited the Apostle Paul’s admonition to “set aside childish things,” challenging the country to tackle its complex problems.
“Any time anybody quotes Scripture, they are implicitly saying: If you are a person of faith, this is what God is telling us to do,” said Siker.
President Barack Obama prays following a meeting with religious leaders in the Oval Office, May 18, 2012. RNS photo by Pete Souza/The White House.
This image available for Web and print publication. For questions, contact Sally Morrow.
But like Lincoln, Obama has also used the Bible for the opposite purpose — to argue that no one fully knows the divine design.
“The full breadth of human knowledge is like a grain of sand in God’s hands,” Obama said at the National Prayer Breakfast in 2011.
“And there are some mysteries in this world we cannot fully comprehend. As it’s written in Job, ‘God’s voice thunders in marvelous ways. He does great things beyond our understandings.’”
Of course, not everyone agrees with Obama’s interpretation of Scripture.
Focus on the Family founder James Dobson has accused Obama of “dragging biblical understanding through the gutter.” Former GOP presidential candidate Rick Santorum said Obama has a “phony theology … not a theology based on the Bible.”
But nothing upset conservatives quite like Obama’s citation of the Bible to back same-sex marriage. Even Hunter criticized the president. “You can’t cite one Scripture to interpret or negate other Scriptures,” he said. “But I know for him that was a moral decision.”
That’s precisely why Obama drew on the Bible, said Mary Frances Berry, co-author of “Power in Words: The Stories Behind Barack Obama’s Speeches, from the State House to the White House.”
“What he wants is to have moral authority. Not just to be president, but to have moral authority,” Berry said. “That’s in the black tradition. We talk about the preacher as having moral authority: the ability to convince your audience of the rightness of what you are saying.”
In that vein, Obama sometimes bookends big speeches with Scripture, Berry said, wedging a challenging message in between.
Obama in the Oval Office, backgrounded by paintings of Abraham Lincoln and George Washington, busts of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Abraham Lincoln, and the Emancipation Proclamation. RNS photo by Pete Souza/The White House.
This image available for Web and print publication. For questions, contact Sally Morrow.
Despite Obama’s later estrangement from the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, his former pastor at Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, he learned at the feet of a rhetorical master, said Martha Simmons, co-editor of “Preaching with Sacred Fire,” an anthology of African-American sermons.
Among the skills Obama gleaned at Trinity UCC is the ability to draw modern messages from ancient texts, and to condense that message into a memorable phrase. It’s called “shorthanding” Scripture, Simmons said.
For example, Obama frequently used the expression “we are our brother’s keeper” during his 2008 presidential campaign. Some evangelicals were perplexed at the citation, noting that it comes from the mouth of Cain, history’s most famous fratricide.
But the message, which Obama used to argue against excessive individualism, made perfect sense to African-Americans, said Simmons. ”He was doing what the black community does: understanding the relevancy of the text for our modern context.”
One more rhetorical tact Obama learned from the black church, especially from King: Orators can challenge their audience, but should always end on an uplifting note.
“When all is said and done,” Simmons said, “you leave people with a hopeful word.”
15 Comments
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lj wilkins
When your not grounded in reality you fall in love with an illusion and you truly are low informed or no informed and to work in the field of writing is truly scary.the President is a fraud and the fact you buy into it is a shame do you homework and stop being a sheep Please you are really a sad joke DO SOME RESEARCH Start with what he has done to the Catholics and Freedom of Religion you are a mindless fool
pk
The devil used scriptures to tempt Jesus in the desert.
Tom
There will be wolves dressed in sheep clothing. Many will come as false prophets in the endtimes. You can distinguish them so easily by how much they love and obey Our Lord Jesus Christ. Those who do not obey the commandments of God are liars and enemies of Christ.
John
You are so right, Tom. You know a Christian by their fruits. He certainly is no Christian, except in words that promote his agenda. He is a man who stands by the killing of babies, gay marriages (contrary to the word of God), and he persecutes Christians ie HHS Mandate to kill babies and the heck with Religious Freedom. No fruit from this man from the Holy Spirit, thistles for sure. thanks Tom.
ken kropp
Jesus tells us through Sacred Scripture that a tree is known by its fruit. Jesus applied this to us who would know the true believers through their fruits or actions. What has Obama done? He has voted down the Infant Protection Act 4 times that would have allowed guaranteed medical care and protection for babies who have survived abortion. Obama has gone against the Supreme Court on banning partial birth abortion. Time and time again, Obama has defended abortion rights in spite of what we all know through 3-D ultrasounds. Obama is forcing mandated insurance coverage for abortions, sterilization and contraceptives regardless of Catholic belief or anyone’s morals. Obama is a polite, dignified, ‘smile-in-your-face’ socialist dictator. He was re-elected because many people don’t know the issues and listen only to sound bites. Obama is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, just as Scripture describes. As the ancient prophet Isaiah wrote (Isaiah 5:20), “Woe to those who call evil good, and call good evil.” How will anyone be able to account to the Lord for voting for this quiet madman?
Kathleen H
I couldn’t agree more Ken You have hit the nail on the head I would love to tell alll Americans to read the Declaration ofIIndependence and see what Obama has done to our country When he said he was for “change” he was talking a complete opposite of what we thought of as change.
come on, American wake up and smell the coffee
Tom Downs
Thanks Dan. As one who has to compose and deliver a sermon or two each week, what you say about using images, ideas and quotes from the Bible rings true to me. Unfortunately some people don’t seem to recognize that the Bible (and the authority it carries) can be used to support almost any point of view. I think truth is most likely to be found in the broad sweeping ideas seen throughout the book, That’s why quoting (miss quoting) Cain makes sense in a community that has heard the story of the Good Samaritan and our obligation to care for our neighbor.
Ken and Tom. Of course, before you accept the truthfulness of a person’s words test them. But don’t just measure them against the point of view/bias you or your group holds. All you get then is agreement of disagreement… not truth. If you want to judge a person, then compare their words to their actions. But be careful, judging is tricky and likely to just create more evil. No one but God can see into a man’s heart.
Chris
Obama is not an authentic christian. Its all a phony act to dupe people into thinking he is. Unfortunately there are so many Americans lacking in the ability to use their God given gift of reason to come to the knowledge of the Truth. Obama champions two intrinsic evils, abortion & same sex marriage. No where in the Bible does it state that these evils are Gods plan for mankind.
anne
oblabla will be lucky if his left hand does not catch on fire when he falsely swears his lying oath ! 50% of americans are so blind. 50% know where he comes from!!!!! A true Godly man follows Gods laws! period! as did reagan, and bush. everything that comes from his mouth is a lie. He is very shrewd as to how lead the sheeple. so is satan. he is not my president and never will be. i will never refer
to him as anything!!!!! only God can help us now with him in washington.
Henrietta
Obama may read the bible but does not comprehend what he reads. Because if he did he would know it is against God’s law to kill innocent babies by abortion and condone homosexuality ! He does not fear God! Obama has no morals. He is liar and a murderer of innocent babies! Putting his hand on 2 bibles shows nothing but his arrogance and pride. Those 2 bibles belonged to 2 God fearing men and had morals! Obama is NOT truthful to God or our country! He is only making a mockery of the American people! Wake up America before it’s too late!
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[...] Obama will be sworn in for the second time on Monday, using Bibles owned by his political heroes, Abraham Lincoln and Martin Luther King, Jr. Daniel [...]
john
Obama came from a church that preached hate.His unclean hands should not be plcaed upon that bible.As for learning from orators on how to captivate an audience..it appears he learned from Hitler.God help us..we reap what we sow.
Troy
Hay Daniel you are a peanut mate – how can you write this stuff and support someone who does not support the unborn. Shame on you and shame on the people who allow this crap to be printed, you truly are allowing the devil to use you – wake up before its too late. Repent.
DANUTA
trzeba czekać na pewne proroctwa które są jeszcze przed nami ma przykład: Jak Obama nie będzie wprowadzał Biblijne prawa w życie każdego człowieka to, Bóg pokieruje się z kimś innym ale najpierw muś Bóg otworzy oczy i uczy jakiemuś człowiekowi który ma władze. Może to być jakiś rząd który mocno prześladował chrześcijan by ten poznał prawdę z Biblii i ogłosił całemu światowi może też nakazał by wszyscy ludzie przestrzegali prawa Boże Dzieje Apostolskie 9:1-43