The Most Revolutionary Phrase of Obama's Inaugural Address
I never thought I'd enjoy a Presidential Inauguration as much as I did JFK's in 1960, when I was a kid and I saw it on a black-and-white television, but Barack Obama's today was every bit as good on the big color screen, and even more revolutionary. The son of an African and an American being sworn in as President.
The single most daring words in Obama's inaugural address, I thought, was his inclusion of "non-believers" in his citing of Christians, Muslims, Jews, and the other faiths of our nation and world. That one phrase shows the profound inclusionary quality of President Obama's vision. It represents a revolution indeed. Non-believers are people, too.
His statements of what America would be doing different from now on, with George W. Bush just a few feet away, were inspiring, too. The speech was strong and straightforward.
The audience - on the stage and in the crowd - was extraordinary. It was good to see Ted Kennedy walking in at the beginning. He made it. Witness to JFK and now Barack Obama taking the oath of office.*
The first day of a new America, and a new world.
*3pm: Breaking news that Ted Kennedy and Robert Byrd were taken out on stretchers from the Inaugural luncheon. Let's hope for the best.
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Comments
GMTA!
Also sweet was the part about being judged by what you build, not what you destroy. Dubya might have gulped hard at that moment.
To all the naysayers--these are many of the things he spoke of while campaigning. He asks us for nothing less than a change of minds and hearts. Grand!
It is as exciting as it was when Kennedy took the oath. He was a thinking man as well.
Rated!
That was powerful for me as well as his entire speech.
But, yippee, some kind of acknowledgment of those of no faith as equal human beings was nice.
And on Sunday, he included ...Gay and Straight, Disabled and those who are Not
He's doing a beautiful job. I could not ask for much more.
It's a new world, that's for sure, and WE must set the course! Obama's greatest accomplishment may be in re-igniting and inspiring complacent Americans to build a new society!
That phrase "welcoming non-believers" is used as a standard welcoming in many UCC churches---like the one I belong to and---up to just a little while ago---so did the President.
But an awful lot of preachers say it with a catch in their throat.
He did not have that catch in this voice when he said it. He MEANT it.
As an agnostic, I've always wondered why it seemed as though I had to subscribe to some dogma to be considered fully American. I guess I don't have to after all.
His father, who died long ago in an auto accident, was Kenyan. His mother was originally from my home state: Kansas.
We also noted it on my live-blog...
btw - on the subject of religion - Rev. Lowery's benediction was a fitting conclusion and made Warren's invocation look as ill-suited to the occasion (and tied to the previous administration POV) as it was
For my part, I generally thought the speech was good--not great--but appropriate in the situation. What disappointed me was, if I'm not mistaken, the lack of a single use of the word 'law', as in, we shall endeavor to reestablish that we are a nation of laws first.
First-- If you take Obama for saying what he means---and I think he's pretty good at that--the reason that "non-believer" communicates a more powerful message than athiestists or agnostics or really ANY other "ism" is that "non-believer" MEANS the absence of belief.
That means that the lines we draw around our belief systems---often saying mine are better than yours---are simply GONE.
Belief systems (even more than religions. often tend to STOP one from thinking. From questioning. Why do I have to think? I know what I believe. That is enough.
There is a wonderful book "The Religious Case Against Belief" that explains this much more eloquently than I could. Bottom line though---if you see the phrase "non-believers" as being anything but as INCLUSIVE as inclusive can be---- you might want to examine the rigidity of your own beliefs. Non-believers really does mean ANYONE can get on the bus.
Point 2---As to us being first a nation of laws. My take on the address was that there are principles upon which all those laws were founded. Principles as old as time. Much older than our young country.
I don't like the term "non-believer" because it implies something less than "believers." But just to be included in that list is pretty darn refreshing.
Perhaps this is what you get from someone who pals around with academics (going solely on the rather limited percentage of my friends with PhDs who also go to church or temple).
Thank you, President Obama.
(rated)
Greg
I was relieved, actually, that there was no intentional sound-bite comparable to any other inaugural address, even though I suspect we'll be seeing a lot about the "New Era of Responsibility". Sound bites are among those childish things Obama put away in this speech.
There's much more I could say -- about how he managed to touch on so many aspects of our world so lightly but memorably, about how gracefully he addressed "the issues." But instead I think I'll go back and watch and relish it again and mine it for new treasures.
Michael Shermer makes an interesting philosophical observation on the relation between believers and atheists:
"So it turns out there are 10,000 gods and yet only one right one. That means we're all atheists on 9,999 gods. The only difference between me and the believers is I'm an atheist on one more god."
But still, it's a tiny movement in the evolution of consciousness, for which I'm grateful.
www.nytimes.com/2009/01/22/us/politics/22oath.html?_r=1