According to the U.K. Telegraph newspaper, Bishop Cornal Garnett Henning, who offered a prayer before a rally in Columbus, Ohio, compared Barack Obama to Moses and Martin Luther King in the same breath. He thanked God for having “given us a Moses and a Martin called Barack Obama” and asked the Almighty to “grant that we together this nation under God may have the will to bring about the change we need” and ensure that “those who cast their sacred vote will not be deprived this right”. You do remember that the McCain campaign mocked Obama as a Moses figure in an ad entitled “the One” in August.
Michelle Obama said that “there’s this beautiful thing about my husband.” “He thinks he can really do everything, he does, with his own power and will.” She continued: “Barack has built one of the most powerful political organizations, recruiting folks from all different kinds of backgrounds. In addition to that, he has built one of the most powerful political fundraising machines that has raised millions and broken records, not just with big donations but with folks writing $5 cheques, $10, $20, $30 cheques.
“Barack has selected a phenomenal running mate in Joe Biden. Barack has helped unify a party that some said could not be unified. He’s participated in three national debates and has been outstanding in every single one of them. “And to top it off, he has done it, if I might just brag a bit, with a level of grace and poise and honesty and respect and consistency.”
A very close family friend who resides in Jamaica, told my mother several weeks ago that Barack Obama reminded her of Moses. Not because he exudes charisma, but his ability to rally so many people to vote and work for his organization. She also said that he has a calming spirit in the face of relentless criticism and attacks from the right wing. She also said Moses as able, with all his faults, to become one of the greatest people in biblical times. So, too, will Barack Obama become one of the greatest people in our time. He has shown our young black males that it is okay to hope and strive for greatness, even run for the highest office in this country. I have to echo the sentiments of the young man hawking his t-shirts at the rally, “In Obama we trust,” for new hope in America and a new sense of respect throughout the world, should he prevail in the elections tomorrow. To be honest, I wouldn’t go as far as comparing him to Moses, but I will say that he is a transformational leader who knows how to rally the troops. That says a lot in my book.
Filed under: Barack Obama, Cornal Garnett Henning, Joe Biden, Michelle Obama, U.K. Telegraph
Black Political Thought 