At the neighbourhood meetings in Chicago, people recalled folk always helping each other, saying nostalgically that this morality now seemed absent. "The whole of what they recalled sounded vivid and true, the sound of shared loss", Obama wrote. "A feeling of witness, of frustration and hope, moved about the room". This complexity of feelings lodged too in his soul. "Then we all joined hands, and together we asked for the courage to turn things around". He is not yet aware to whom they are praying, but does recognize that these stories are somehow sacred. He is growing, and, before he leaves Chicago, there is one further breakthrough.

Becoming whole
Obama was evasive when once asked what church he belonged to. He should join one, someone said. "But which?" he wondered. "It doesn't matter where really", he was told. Faith in himself was important, he realized, but not sufficient. At the Trinity United Church of Christ, he met elderly professional people who taught him something about trying to live without religion: "Of having reached a spiritual dead end; a feeling... that they'd been cut off from themselves. Intermittently, then more regularly, they had returned to the church... Many of their deepest spiritual needs were being met, in a way they had not been met while working in the big institutions".

He remained "a reluctant skeptic", doubtful of his own motives, having too many quarrels with God to accept a salvation too easily won. But this was not his final position.

In 1988, shortly before visiting Europe and Africa, before going on to Harvard Law School, Obama returned for a service at Trinity. Moved by the choir's singing, he was also deeply affected by the pastor's sermon, based on the Old Testament story of Hannah, the mother of the prophet Samuel. Reflecting on this and similar Bible tales, Obama suddenly saw that, "Those stories - of survival, and freedom, and hope - became our story, became my story; the blood that had spilled was our blood, the tears our tears; until this black church, on this bright day, seemed once more a vessel carrying our story of a people into future generations and into a larger world... Our trials and triumphs became at once unique and universal..."

There is no reason to assume that he excluded anyone from this conclusion: black, white, Latino, Asian - or anyone. A small boy leaned over and gave him a pocket tissue. Only then did Obama feel the tears streaming down his face.

This new cathartic epiphany, this sorrowful cleansing, brought him further relief, healing and growth. Something shadowy, long held back, had finally been released. Obama went happily to Kenya to meet his extended family and explore his African roots, collecting more jig-saw pieces of the soul, continuing his odyssey, the search for his truest self.

Since 1988
How Barack Obama's spiritual quest has unfolded since that time must remain largely conjecture. ‘Dreams from my Father', describes a man going from the individual to the integration stage of spiritual development; yet this too is a transitional stage, not an endpoint. Much needs doing to fulfill one's renewed vision of human unity. That Obama wishes and intends to work towards that goal shows in his second book, named after the sermon he heard in Chicago: ‘The Audacity of Hope'. Here he addresses numerous difficult and important issues, attempting fairly to appreciate and reconcile all sides.

Obama is human and fallible. The point is therefore less about him than about his guiding spirit. Nevertheless, he seems authentic. That he is a true visionary is evidenced by the opposition he overcame to win nomination and the millions of votes he achieved to become President. Furthermore, the groundswell of support he attracted from all quarters speaks to me of a longing, somewhere deep within every soul, for the social, political and spiritual unification of humankind.

Obama's inauguration address bears further witness to his spiritual values and aspirations. In meeting the many serious challenges to be faced, he said, "We have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord... The time has come to re-affirm our enduring spirit". And, by saying, "Know that America is a friend to each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more", he asserted that these spiritual aspirations cover not only Americans, but everyone throughout the world.

Worthy Leader
On this evidence, President Obama is a worthy world leader. He can only, however, lead those inspired and willing to follow his guidance and direction. There are always detractors, people inclined to criticize, undermine and resist such leadership.

Barack Obama's spiritual journey continues. It is so obviously now a journey that, wherever on the planet we live, concerns us all. It is a journey, a narrative, that presents each of us too with similar questions, similar challenges. His advice is to face them with hope and virtue, with humility and restraint. "What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility", he said. "There is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task." Who among us is ready right now to respond?

Copyright Larry Culliford

*This article is based on a presentation at the International Thomas Merton Society's Twelfth Conference and General Meeting on June 11, 2011, at Lakeshore Campus, Loyola University, Chicago, Illinois. Obama quotes are from ‘Dreams from my Father' (Crown Publishers, NYC, 2004) and from President Obama's inauguration speech of 20 January 2009.

For information about Thomas Merton (1915 - 1968) see www.merton.org and links. Larry is a former Chair of the Thomas Merton Society of Great Britain and Ireland. His books include ‘The Psychology of Spirituality', ‘Love, Healing & Happiness' and (as Patrick Whiteside) ‘The Little Book of Happiness' and ‘Happiness: The 30 Day Guide' (personally endorsed by HH The Dalai Lama).