This has been around for about a year and I’m just recently becoming aware of it.

Barak Obama attends Trinity United Church of Christ in Chicago, IL. This is the largest congregation in my denomination, the United Church of Christ and a church I live in fairly close proximity to.

There’s an e-mail that shows up on the www.snopes.com website http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/church.asp that attacks the church, claiming that it’s interest in Africa and African American Heritage indicate a racist attitude. The e-mail claims that only Black people are welcomed as members and even questions the church’s Christianity and wonders if Obama isn’t “…a covert worshipper of the Muslim faith, even today!”

A quick web-search on the words “Obama Trinity Church” yielded quite a few web pages where the charges were repeated and expounded on. The most interesting for me was this page http://mediamatters.org/items/200703010012 reproduced an interview with Erik Rush, a columnist for the website www.WorldNetDaily.com on the Fox News program Hannity & Colmes. Rush refers to a number of points on the website that talk about commitment to the Black community, Black family and Black work ethic. He says, “It was something that you'd see in more like a cult or an Aryan Brethren Church or something like that.”

All of this is so inaccurate, and so bizarre that it really threw me. While I haven’t visited Trinity yet I’ve known many people who have and a few who are members. It is a warm and inviting congregation where anyone can be a member regardless of color or ethnicity. The membership is mostly Black but that has to do with the history of the church and the part of Chicago where it grew up. There is not and never has been any attempt to exclude Whites, Asians, Latinos or anyone else from membership.

The church does have a special focus on the needs of the African American community but that’s just a way of responding to the immediate needs of its members. Inspiring people to take an interest in their community, their families and their work ethic is a good thing for a church to do. The focus on Blackness and Africa are can be are no more sinister than a church in a Polish-American, Irish American or Chinese American community taking pride in their ethnic roots. The church wants people to take pride in who they are and where they come from.

All of that may be hard for White visitors to the website to relate to, but there’s no racism in it. Trinity Church may have a special focus for their ministry but they express a deep sense of the brotherhood of all people, a desire for justice and peace that benefits people of every race, and a warm fellowship that extends to all visitors and potential members.

It’s absurd and disgusting to compare this church with the Aryan Brotherhood. The AB actively preaches hatred and sanctifies racial violence. It’s equally offensive to hear the patriotism or the Christian faith of members of Mr. Obama or any of the members of the church questioned because of their affiliation. There’s no truth in it.

But, don’t just take my word for it. First hand evidence is always best. The church has a website http://www.tucc.org/home.htm, broadcasts its worship services, and welcomes visitors. IF you have concerns, it’s easy to learn the truth first hand.