High culture meets 'homophobia' at Obama inauguration

President-elect forced to defend himself for asking proponent of ban on same-sex marriage to deliver invocation

(AP)

Barack Obama has been forced to defend his decision to invite the evangelical preacher Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at his swearing-in ceremony on the steps of the US Capitol after the choice caused outrage in the gay community.

Mr Obama surprised many by inviting Pastor Warren to deliver the invocation on 20 January. He was busy trying to minimise the outrage yesterday, saying it was "important for Americans to come together even though we have disagreements".

"Pastor Rick", as he brands himself, supports the banning of gay marriage and is an opponent of abortion. The gay rights movement was already spoiling for a fight in the wake of a gay marriage ban in California, and activists are being vocal in their outrage.

The row has overshadowed the announcement of a star-studded, politically correct line-up for the historic inauguration led by Aretha Franklin, the gospel and jazz singing "Queen of Soul". Mr Obama says he wants it to be "the most open and inclusive inauguration in history", and he has invited a rainbow of famous artists, preachers and celebrities to sing, perform, read poetry and bless him at the ceremony.

Asked about gay opposition to Pastor Warren, Mr Obama said: "There's going to be a wide range of viewpoints and that's how it should be. That's what America is about. We are diverse, noisy and opinionated. That's the spirit in which we have put together what I think will be a terrific inauguration."

He recalled that he was well received when he spoke at Pastor Warren's Saddleback Church in Southern California a few years ago, although he sharply disagrees with the celebrity pastor on such issues as abortion and gay rights.

"Dialogue is part of what my campaign was all about," Mr Obama said at a Chicago press conference. "We're not going to agree on every single issue but we have to create an atmosphere in which we can disagree."

The inauguration is expected to be the biggest gathering in US history, with more than four million people crowding onto The Mall in typically freezing winter weather to catch a glimpse of Mr Obama being sworn in.

The line-up for the ceremony is a veritable who's who of America's cultural melting pot and includes the musicians Itzhak Perlman, Yo-Yo Ma and the pianist Gabriela Montero. It also includes the black poet and playwright Elizabeth Alexander, who will deliver a poem. The San Francisco Boys Chorus and the San Francisco Girls Chorus will both be singing.

The civil rights movement is also represented, although in a less prominent way than many black leaders wanted. Mr Obama has asked the Rev Joseph Lowery, who co-founded with Martin Luther King the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, to deliver the benediction.

More than a historic ritual, the inaugural programme is these days seen as a deeply personal statement by an incoming president and a way to set the tone for a new administration.

Ever since George Washington in 1789, every president has delivered an inaugural address, ranging from 8,445 words, to just 135. Some, like Abraham Lincoln's second inaugural address, after the Civil War, have gone down in history as masterful political acts of reconciliation.

Despite the uproar in the gay community, Pastor Warren's selection is being viewed as a shrewd gesture by the Obama transition team. He is the most popular religious figure in the US, bar the Pope. He wrote the 20-million-selling The Purpose Driven Life, with the much quoted opening line, "It's not about you". Time magazine calls him "America's New People's Pastor", and he likes to present a softer, gentler face of evangelism, taking a supporting role of the government's efforts to fight poverty in the US and drawing attention to Africa and the need to fight HIV/Aids.

Almost alone in the evangelical movement, he is also outspoken about global warming. He remained scrupulously neutral during the election, despite pressure from fellow evangelists to join in attacking Mr Obama. But his unbending support for the California constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage has become a lightning rod for gay rights activists. The president of Human Rights Campaign, Joe Solomonese, wrote to Mr Obama saying: "We feel a deep level of disrespect when one of the architects and promoters of an anti-gay agenda is given the prominence and the pulpit of your historic nomination."

* Former President Bill Clinton's foundation has raised tens of millions of dollars from foreign governments, including Saudi Arabia, that his wife is expected to confront as the next US Secretary of State. The former President's foundation released a tightly held list of donors yesterday under a deal that cleared the way for Hillary Clinton to be named US Secretary of State.

Pastors and presidents: A short history

* Billy Graham, 90, who is known as the "pastor to presidents" for the number of times he has been called on to officiate at an inauguration, gave the invocation for both of president Bill Clinton's swearing in ceremonies in 1992 and 1996.

* Franklin Graham, Billy's son, gave the invocation at George Bush's swearing-in ceremony in place of his father in 2001. Billy was too ill to attend. Kirbyjon Caldwell, a black clergyman who supported Mr Bush's faith-based initiatives programme, gave the benediction.