If not Rick Warren, then who? Post your suggestions here.

I was inspired by this suggestion.

Post your own suggestions in reply.

http://www.beliefnet.com/Faiths/Christianity/2006/02/Whats-A-Red-Letter-Christian.aspx?p=2

In those red letters, He calls us away from the consumerist values that dominate contemporary American consciousness. He calls us to be merciful, which has strong implications for how we think about capital punishment. When Jesus tells us to love our enemies, he probably means we shouldn’t kill them. Most important, if we take Jesus seriously, we will realize that meeting the needs of the poor is a primary responsibility for His followers.

... who is a Presbyterian minister.

Unless God themself descends from on high, then everyone else is just repeating different versions of the same superstition.

And, hopefully, God wouldn't turn out to be a homophobic bigot.

Sid

I suppose that after that Obama could certainly argue he had a mandate.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7KexudBb_oc

at about 0:59 ...

Short and to the point for an invocation, anyway. :D

"Get on with it!" :hi:

Sid

Him...or Christopher Hitchens.

I would not recommend either, but that is one possibleanswer to your question.

giving a prayer at a government function be oxymoronic?

Evangelical Minister of 20 years.

At least it would be funny on purpose.

... very representative of the new American family!

Good pick.

another pretty cool guy - though not, to my knowledge, gay!

I've read that Gene Robinson and Obama have spoken already. It would have been a nice gesture, for sure.

It is, after all his own expression.

I think he's making an embarrassing and hurtful mistake in allowing an overt overtone of politics to dominate his expressions of spirituality.

I do agree, however, that is should be someone he agrees with and is comfortable with.

There's nothing mandating a spiritual invocation. It's his choice to continue that tradition -- which started God knows when.

I'm pretty sure he welcomes the impression from the religious acts that he gives great value to that form of open display of (western?) spirituality. The choice to allow a political undertone in that display is regrettable, I think.

The folks he's chosen to present that spirituality represent his own 'expression' in these religious acts as well.

was it Nashville?.... where an anti-gay, anti liberal loon started killing people 'cause the Unitarians are pro-gay/liberal/progressive?

... instead of allowing the narrow-minded to make their assumptions about them.

I think he should still choose a Christian - after all, that is his faith and not doing so would just cause the "Obama is a Muslim" group to grow another fang or two. This is just a convocation. It's not a referendum on social issues, it's not a sneak peak into Obama's policies on hot-button topics, it's just an inspiring speech that is supposed to bring courage and hope for the next term. That is why I think he should have picked someone that few people have heard of who wouldn't be causing such a controversy.

One of the reasons I hate the Rick Warren pick, is it feels so Hollywood.

Like his people got in touch with Obama's people, they did lunch and the agents wrote up a contract.

Warren gets to host the Saddleback forum, speak at the inaugural and a few future appearances.

Warren is one of those "Prosperity Gospel" bastards and this just pads his wallet. Not the best thing to do with the economy the way it is.

I mean, come on. I don't want a "purpose-driven President."

Agent Smith from the Matrix trilogy was purpose-drive, too, and just look how he turned out. Handsome, yes, but ruthless and diabolical.

I would be OK with someone who says they do not agree with gay marriage and that they believe that marriage is an institution between a man and woman.

I am not OK with someone who says that gay marriage is akin to pedophilia.

Without benefit of Warren's publicity.

So he must be gambling in a high risk game for 2012, and it's going to backfire

That'd be a convocation to remember.

...gonna give you up!

Let's hear something from a true visionary instead of trite and meaningless magic words.

I didn't know Sykes was a Reverend.

Someone told me above that Richard Dawkins can't do it because he's British.

Neither of your guys are American either.

I still like the idea. Everyone knows who Bishop Tutu and The Dalai Lama are.

Even if they are furriners.

:shrug:

Archbishop Tutu would actually be a really good choice. Though the xenophobes would flip out, honestly there's probably no avoiding that.

He has spoken before the Democratic National Convention in the past:

Some Black Preachers Embrace Homosexuality

by David B. Caruso
Associated Press

The words that the Rev. James A. Forbes chose to share with the roomful of black gay and lesbian faithful might have come straight from the civil rights struggles of the 1960s. Forbes reminded his listeners that discrimination has no place in this world and urged them to lay down the notion put forward by some black ministers that they are less favored by God.

"Your job is to get up every day and be grateful to God for your DNA," Forbes said. "It took an artist divine to make this design!"

Forbes, senior minister at the Riverside Church, was among several religious leaders and politicians who attended a revival meeting Sunday aimed at countering what organizers said was a surge in anti-gay rhetoric coming from pulpits in conservative parishes.

The program for the event bore the pictures of 10 black men and women who were murdered, or severely injured, in recent years in attacks believed to have been motivated by their sexual orientation.


http://pewforum.org/news/display.php?NewsID=5154

http://www.theriversidechurchny.org/about/?minister-emeritus

He is a deacon, thus authorized by his congregation to lead public prayer. He also one of the leaders in the New Baptist Covenant movement, which seeks to retain basic Baptist theology while at the same time promoting environmental responsibility, social justice, religious liberty (ie the separation of Church and State) and inclusivity at all levels of society. In addition, Mr. Carter won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002 for his work in resolving international disputes, and is very well known for his work with Habitat for Humanity. Plus, as a layman (in most Baptist denominations, the diaconate is a lay office), he would allow Obama to retain the tradition of an inaugural invocation while reducing the appearance of conflicts with church and state.

I think he would have been an excellent choice.

Is it really needed??

Just kidding.

:hi:

A true believer in peace and justice; a constant advocate for the poor and the disenfranchised; a voice for the best human instincts.

Here's part of his latest message, just received by e-mail.

.......And as we affirm hope, so we must also remind ourselves to not allow our hopes for the Obama presidency to silence our prophetic critique of the powerful should it turn out that those hopes are not realized in the actual policies followed by Obama and his array of establishment-oriented politicians appointed to high offices in his Administration. We can at once celebrate the incredible advance of having white America vote into the presidency a Black man, and yet still insist that this new Administration embrace policies that favor peace and abandon the fantasy that security will come through domination or military victories, that economic and environmental well-being can be consistent with endless "growth" and expansion, or that the quality of human relationships can be improved while living in an economic system that values selfishness, materialism and "looking out for number one." So just as Christmas and Chanukah represent ideals that were quickly distorted by those who tried to make them consistent with the power-structures of a world based on inequality and domination, so too our contemporary victory of the Obama forces can be distorted. Our job is to stay true to the ideals and challenge the distortions, even while celebrating the moments of hope.

Nice to have a non-Christian give the invocation...

(Although can you imagine how many heads would explode if he asked a prominent Muslim to do it? Fun just to contemplate, actually.)

:thumbsup: Rabbi Lerner (and the NSP) is terrific.

seventh representing all the others - I would like to see them share a prayer - I would like the representatives to be non-famous and (preferably) no millionaires or billionaires.

My alternative would be someone recognized for the most innovative idea that would help all people. This could be timed with an announcement of a new medal of recognition to be given annually by the White House.

I especially like the part where you exclude the attention whores and filthy rich.

I would love to see that most of all.

And would different Christian denominations be counted seperately or together?

In the US, we're 78.5% Christian, 1.7% Jewish, 0.7% Buddhist, and 0.6% Muslim, with the rest being "other."

Of the Christians, 44% are Catholic, 25.3% are Baptist, 8.9% are Pentecostal, 5.1% are Lutheran, 4.1% are Mormon, 3.8% are Presbyterian, 3.7% are Orthodox, and 3.6% are Methodist.

To put it in perspective, according to some estimates there are about as many Mormons as Jews in the United States.

So you'd put a Catholic, a Baptist, a Pentecostal, a Lutheran, a Mormon, and one lonely Jewish dude up there together. And of those groups, how many would be as or more conservative than Warren?

And as far as world religions go, you really think Obama would put an IMAM up there? :rofl:

How about keeping primitive superstitions in their houses of "worship" for a change? Why does the invisible sky daddy have to be beseeched in the first place?

If they insist on injecting religion into this, I say we have some nude dancers there also (male and female, for fairness). What? You say they should be shuttered up in their "adult entertainment" clubs and have no business being present or acknowledged during this occasion?

The inaugeration is not a church nor a strip club. I suppose representatives from both should not be involved.

and everyone could look at it with pride and love in their hearts.

Five minutes with the church directory. Problem solved.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Selena_Fox

Not that they'd have a Pagan doing the opening prayer anytime soon, sadly. People would fly into a moral panic, which is quite sad.

She seems like a great person to do it, though.

Actually, my first choice would have been George Carlin...would've been the only invocation I ever would've listened to!

I DO NOT like or agree with the man! But, I am (after MUCH thoughtful reflection) upset with P.E. Obama for choosing him. P.E.Obama is doing EXACTLY what he said he wanted to do during the campaign - bring people together. I believe that this is his purpose in choosing Warren and Lowery. "Fair and balanced"! Though I definitely fall on the side of Lowery, I would be disappointed if P.E. Obama succumbed to the far left on this issue! I hope he maintains his choice with head high - as he is only living up to his campaign pledge to make this country more inclusive! I wish the far left would think about these things before they start "slamming him" for living up to what he promised during the campaign.

Fantasy picks: Cornel West, Al Sharpton.

Will Davis Campbell was a major supporter of the Civil Rights movement in Mississippi. Born July 18, 1924, in Amite County, Mississippi, Campbell grew up in Liberty, Mississippi — a town name fitting for what Campbell wanted to find through his work as a Civil Rights activist and a preacher. Campbell earned his A.B. at Wake Forest College and a B.D. from Yale.

He was a Baptist preacher in Taylor, Louisiana, for two years before taking the position of Director of Religious Life at the University of Mississippi from 1954 to 1956. Forced to leave the university because of his ardent Civil Rights participation, Campbell served on the National Council of Churches in New York as a race relations consultant. Campbell worked closely with the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., John Lewis, and Andrew Young towards bettering race relations. Today, he continues his pursuit of spiritual and racial liberty as a pastor in Tennessee.

Campbell's Brother to a Dragonfly earned him the Lillian Smith Prize, the Christopher Award, and a National Book Award nomination. The Glad River won a first-place award from the Friends of American Writers in 1982. His works have also won a Lyndhurst Prize and an Alex Haley Award.
http://www.olemiss.edu/depts/english/ms-writers/dir/campbell_will_d/

"And some day we'll apologize for what we are doing to Gay and Lesbian Christians and non-Christians. But not yet for we ride the waves of culture. I mention that, not to dramatically inject into the discussion the most explosive issue on so many agendas today--well, that, too--but to suggest that we always take our cue from culture, from Caesar. We discern the signal of culture, rush out and clothe the sight in vague and misinterpreted Scripture, never taking the Bible for what it is, a book about who God is, but as a buttress of the biases of culture. We did it with slavery. We do it with war, gender exclusionism, poverty, and now we're doing it with homophobia. And some day we'll apologize. Some day we'll call the fireman when the fire is out. We joined the Civil Rights Movement when the prophets were safely dead. Jesus was a RADICAL! There comes a time!"
http://www.christianethicstoday.com/Issue/004/A%20Personal%20Struggle%20for%20Soul%20Freedom%20Will%20D.%20Campbell_004_15_.htm

He has been in the forefront of the civil rights movement for decades.

would be the best I can think of. Here are some more that would be positive:

Rajan Zed
Mathews Mar Barnabas
William Sinkford
Shaykh Ahmed Abdur Rashid

Now I'll read your link, and see if it relates to my thinking. ;)

It could be done Holographically.