Is there a way to explain the reaction, the relentless, sickening, over-the-top media coverage of some of the Reverend Dr. Jeremiah Wright's remarks from his Chicago pulpit? Is it gloating? Is it a ratings rage? Of course, it is propaganda — an attempt to tar and feather Barack Obama with the views of someone else. Although I, for one, am a bit perplexed why there is outrage over an observation by Dr. Wright that says, "Barack Obama knows what it is like to be a black man in America" and "Hillary Clinton has never been called the 'n' word." Seems self-evident on the face of it, doesn't it?

I've had the privilege — often dubious — of attending churches both black and white (and not a few ceremonies of other religious faiths), and all the sermons and addresses were meant for the audience—not YouTube or CNN or Fox or MSNBC. Not that the pastor was hiding anything but was in fact "preaching to the choir." One pastor's Pentecostal sermon is another person's flame war? Pat Robertson is quoted as saying in response to Disney World's hiring gays: "I would warn Orlando (Fla.) that you're right in the way of some serious hurricanes, and I don't think I'd be waving those flags in God's face if I were you. This is not a message of hate — this is a message of redemption. But a condition like this will bring about the destruction of your nation. It'll bring about terrorist bombs; it'll bring earthquakes, tornadoes and possibly a meteor."

And, for all women who would like equal pay for equal work: "The feminist agenda is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, kill their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism, and become lesbians."

According to ABC News, "In February, McCain distanced himself from supporter John Hagee, a televangelist and San Antonio megachurch leader who has referred to the Roman Catholic Church as 'the great whore' and called it a "false cult system."

Hagee's views have become a political problem for McCain, who stood with the televangelist and said at a news conference that he was "very honored" to receive his endorsement. Catholic groups are pressuring McCain to reject the endorsement. And just to indicate that churches and religions can be downright "mainstream" and still have "issues," ABC News also notes that the Methodist Church that Bill and Hillary Clinton attended when he was the president now honors homosexual unions. That might disturb some people?

As long ago as 2003 the British newspaper The Guardian printed: "To understand why this (Iraq) failure persists, we must first grasp a reality which has seldom been discussed in print. The United States is no longer just a nation. It is now a religion. Its soldiers have entered Iraq to liberate its people not only from their dictator, their oil and their sovereignty, but also from their darkness. As George Bush told his troops on the day he announced victory: 'Wherever you go, you carry a message of hope — a message that is ancient and ever new. In the words of the prophet Isaiah, "To the captives, 'come out,' and to those in darkness, 'be free.'" So American soldiers are no longer merely terrestrial combatants; they have become missionaries. They are no longer simply killing enemies; they are casting out demons."

According to Jim Wallis, the founder of the Christian magazine Sojourners, President George W. Bush has made numerous references to his belief that he could not be president if he did not believe in a "divine plan that supersedes all human plans." As he gained political power, Bush has increasingly seen his presidency as part of that divine plan. Richard Land, of the Southern Baptist Convention, recalls Bush once saying, "I believe God wants me to be president." We don't think that is ego speaking, do we? Or do we?

"Putting Rev. Wright's Preaching in Perspective" by Diana Butler Bass is the wisest and most accurate piece I have read explaining Dr. Wright's sermons. Bass says, "As MSNBC, CNN, and FOX endlessly play the tape of Rev. Wright's 'radical' sermons today, I do not hear the words of a 'dangerous' preacher (at least any more dangerous than any preacher who takes the Gospel seriously!). No, I hear the long tradition that Jeremiah Wright has inherited from his ancestors. I hear prophetic critique. I hear Frederick Douglass. And, mostly, I hear the Gospel slant — I hear it from an angle that is not natural to me. It is good to hear that slant.

"That is not, of course, comfortable for white people. Nor is it easily understood in sound bites. It does not easily fit in a contemporary political campaign. But it is a deep spiritual river in American faith and culture, a river that — as I had to learn — flows from the throne of God."

As the throne of God is where all true government rests, perhaps it is time to take a closer look at the media and not the pastors?

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Lynne Bundesen is the author of five books addressing religious issues including "So the Woman Went Her Way," "One Prayer at a Time" (Simon and Schuster) and "The Feminine Spirit: Recapturing the Heart of Scripture" (March 2007:Jossey_Bassey). She was the manager of the Microsoft Network Religion Communities (1995-2000) and is currently the spiritual expert and community manager for www.drweil.com. From 2000 to 2003, she taught writing at the Boston Theological Institute - the consortium of Boston area Divinity Schools. She has lived in Hong Kong, Thailand, the Philippines, England, France, Sweden and Norway and the United States. Her email address is {email http://www.drweil.com/}lynnebundesen@hotmail.com{/email}. Copyright 2008 Lynne Bundesen.