The weekend's dust-up over some over-the-top language used by Barack Obama's former preacher might just be the perfect opportunity to illustrate the transformation Sen. Obama hopes to bring about in his Presidency. I'm sure that wasn't Hannity's intent when he tried to weaken the campaign of hope and change, but if you listen, you'll understand what Barack means when he explains that a different kind of politics can help unite the country and remove the divisions of the past.

Change doesn't mean ignoring the past. It doesn't mean we should forget those who have struggled, like Rev. Wright, and who harbor anger and resentment over a past that was not always kind. Very often, anger leads to rhetoric that most of us view as inappropriate and divisive. Certainly, some of Rev. Wright's comments made me uneasy. But I haven't lived his life, and none of us can know what he feels. If the 30 seconds that were repeated in the media this weekend were all that could be condemned from 36 years in the pulpit, I'm willing to give him the benefit of the doubt on the rest. Change is not about abandoning Reverend Wright or the past. It's about making sure our children don't feel the same anger that would cause them to repeat Wright's sermon in the future.

The words of Rev. Wright are not the words of Barack Obama. Rev. Wright's words are of the past. Barack Obama's are the words of a man who has the audacity to hope to bridge the divides and heal the wounds of the past, and who believes, like Bobby Kennedy, that "we have different stories, but we have common dreams and common hopes, and we can decide to walk down this road together."

Will this controversy hurt Barack in the general election? I honestly doubt it. John McCain has embraced an anti-Catholic whack job. Let's see how that plays out.

UPDATE:
Dwahzon at Dwahzon's Village provides additional insight and a different perspective as an American who grew up as a missionary kid in Liberia. The post reminds us that this issue can not be reduced to sound bytes put out by the media. It really is one that, as Senator Obama emphasizes, should not be ignored or forgotten, but discussed and acknowledged, so that we can begin to understand that despite our differences, what unites us is much greater than what divides us, and that we can overcome the obstacles of anger and fear with compassion and strength.

Yes. We can.