Devinmom, you really should read prdnme's post again....particularly the lines "Of course if you are catholic and love the church you didn't leave or denounce your faith." and "It is their relationship with the teachings of the church and the members of the congregation that feed their soul. The priests were only a part of their spiritual life." You're actually in agreement.

The point is, even members of the church were shocked by how virulent Wright became when he had his moment in the media. We can't know what he was preaching week after week because we weren't there. In the same way that a priest might preach one thing and secretly practice another, we can never really know what's in someone's heart...only what they say. In the same way that you worship your God and not your priest, Obama wasn't worshiping Wright.

Personally, I'd love to see a presidential race where religion can't even be mentioned. I want to know their political beliefs, not their religious beliefs. Last time I checked, it was a secular position...he's not running for head of the American church. Maybe if that were the way, we'd have had more than one Catholic president too!

Maureen