Nicholas Holderman/The Falcon

You are what your pastor says.

Forget about the numerous speeches you gave citing the "greatness of America." If your pastor says, "God punishes America," you must be anti-American.

Forget about your platform to bridge racial divides. If your pastor says, "the government gives black people drugs," you must be racist.

This seems to be the message the American media are conveying to the general public through their relentless scrutiny of presidential candidate Barack Obama's connection with his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright. The "inflammatory rhetoric" of the former pastor of Trinity United Church of Christ has raised the questions on every newscaster's lips, or at least on his or her teleprompter.

"Will this affect Obama's campaign?"

"How will this affect Obama's campaign?"

"Does this mean Obama is racist?"

Like sharks circling blood in the water, or vultures hovering over a carcass, nothing drives the American media into a frenzy more than the promise of carnage.

The media need to back off.

This is not a crucial development that defines Obama's character, nor is it an issue that the American people need 24-7 news coverage on in order to make an informed vote. So why are the media focusing so much on it, or failing to scrutinize the other candidates on the same thing?

According to a CBS news article, John McCain was under some criticism for his endorsement by mega-church pastor John Hagee. Hagee whipped up some controversy "due in part to comments he's made in the past about Catholics, including suggesting in his book 'Jerusalem Countdown' that Adolf Hitler was Catholic and that the Vatican turned a blind eye to the Holocaust because of his religion."

McCain's response to all of this was, "I think it's important to note that Pastor John Hagee, who has supported and endorsed my candidacy, supports what I stand for and believe in. When he endorses me, it does not mean that I embrace everything that he stands for and believes."

And the American media were satisfied with this answer and let the McCain anti-Catholic pastor scandal fade from the spotlight. Why is it, then, that Obama can vividly denounce the anti-American statements made by his pastor and still be bombarded with speculations about his true beliefs?

Is it because it's impossible to disagree with your pastor?

I attend Mars Hill Church in Ballard. Pastor Mark Driscoll is widely controversial, mostly regarding his stance on women in the church. Attending his church does not mean that my dream in life is to marry, have lots of babies and spend all my time at home. Nor does it mean that I think women have no place in church leadership. But I still go to his church because I agree with his stance on scripture and his take on God's calling for our lives.

Is the frenzy surrounding Obama because Wright makes the American public feel uncomfortable?

God forbid that a pastor might actually talk about issues of social injustice that are going on in the world.

Jesus didn't.

God forbid that a pastor might actually talk about issues of class and racism.

Jesus didn't.

Except that Jesus did.

This is not to say that the extreme views held by Pastor Wright are in and of themselves biblical; there are some sermons on grace that he just might have missed.

But in this day and age, when it is much more common to hold no views at all, one does have to wonder if the media have a point. How much influence did Wright, who isn't afraid to rattle the cages and speak plainly, have on this historical candidate? And if so, rather than shame him for it, might we praise Wright?