Barking Dog

I don’t know about other dogs, but in the case of my dog Mola, it is hard to tell the difference between the joyful barking sound he makes when his owner enters the house versus the sound he makes to guard the house against first time visitors to my house. If I listen more carefully, there is some difference in the number of barking and the tone, but naturally those who see Mola for the first time are afraid of even her welcome bark. Mola’s barking can be distinguished only when you listen intently.

April 4^th 2008, today is the 40^th year remembering the assassination of Martin Luther King who fought against discrimination. As I listened to the radio while driving to work, the sermon content of Rev. Jeremiah Wright (Trinity United Church of Christ), mentor of presidential candidate Barrack Obama, who came up as the frontrunner of the Democratic party in the primary election last month was all over the news again. A few words he delivered from the pulpit, before he retired, were heard by Americans all over repeatedly through the YouTube website as well as the mainstream news. Korean American newspapers, let alone the American counterparts as well as the Korean media, make the “thoughtless remarks of Rev. Wright, pastor of Obama, echoes all over” as headline. Pastor Wright preaches on cases about the killing of innocent people or treating the blacks as second rate human beings and claims that “America brought 911 tragedy upon herself,” “We should shout God damn America instead of God bless America.” It sounds like a curse that bashes America on the surface, but was really intended for us to look back and enlighten ourselves. With this particular sermon, media cut off the front and back of the message and sent out a distorted report using a few words.

I myself am a proud Korean and a naturalized American citizen. I am a registered Republican and a Southern Baptist. Considering my status, I can accept the words of Pastor Wright as “thoughtless remarks” carried away by the media. But if we listen carefully to his message, it is overall a very faithful sermon that shouldn’t be called “thoughtless.” Particularly, the sermon of Mr. Wright, a minority pastor, was a great sermon I don’t get to hear these days. Probably, because of such a powerful sermon he could lead the growth of the church to become one of the largest in denomination (6,000 attending).

How can we know the minds of the African Americans who experienced the extreme discrimination as a minority? I can’t help but wet my eyes when I read the story of Martin Luther King who fought for human rights of a minority people, like us, and as well as the suffering the Black people went through 40 years ago. If we go further, only when you read the background of Koreans who immigrated to the sugar cane fields in Hawaii as laborers (slaves) and went through shame and harsh treatment 100 years ago, can you understand the sermon by Pastor Wright.

Though I think my kids and I hardly feel any racial discrimination in California, I am reminded of the fact that 80% of the students in my oldest son’s college and 90% of my customers in business are whites. 80% of the trustee members in the California Baptist University where I serve as a trustee member are whites. And if you go to a local Republican election base, 80% are whites. Wherever I go, I am a minority and if I do not step up, all the situations will lead to whites’ best interest. Because of that, I contribute to the final decision in my own way by making them remember my presence, making my voice heard, and at times, using some radical words or actions to draw their attention.

I suppose I can understand his message more easily because I hear Wright’s sermon through my own Christian worldview and minority race background. Nevertheless, it is nonsense to argue Pastor Wright’s sermon, even though there are ignoramus people who had not benefitted from my worldview or experience. Among the white people, I met for months there was no one who criticized Pastor Wright’s sermon at first but didn’t agree with me when I explained my position. Some people think I took the initiative because I’m eloquent. Or the whites I dealt with were somewhat ignorant enough to change their thoughts easily. But it’s not the case. From my perspective, I believe that just like the verse in the “Good Book” says, if we know the truth, it can set us free. Though someone didn’t point it out and teach it, when we look around we can learn lots of truth about the Creator and others through nature. Though they do not have any direct experience because they are whites, those who pursue truth and justice can fully understand and realize Rev. White’s sermon through nature or the explanation of others.

Those who do not know about dogs step back in fear of being bitten when Mola barks at them. But people who know Mola or dogs realize it’s just a sign of greeting and comes close to her enjoying the absolute “welcoming party” only dogs can give to men.

The same word ‘God damn’ becomes totally different depending on how you use it or how you hear it. God damn used by Koreans who are poor at speaking English is a curse. They are thoughtless, irresponsible, unreasonable words to blame God for their own mistakes and wrongdoings. But the ‘God damn’ which Pastor Wright used in his sermon is a bitter medicine to remind Americans that they should take responsibility instead of blaming God for American government’s mistakes in policies against Americans and other nationals. Without knowing this difference, some pastors and Christian media say that his words were thoughtless. I prescribe a bitter medicine whenever necessary because I myself am proud of being an American citizen and love this country. Likewise the reason I write this is to stress the fact that Christians should also listen to words that are not pleasing to their ears to be changed.

I wish that we could all tell whether a dog’s barks were because of joy or hate even though it may not be easy.