Obama stresses role of fathers

BESIDES JOBS AND OPPORTUNITIES, 'WE ALSO NEED FAMILIES'

By Jeff Long And Christi Parsons - CHICAGO TRIBUNE

CHICAGO -- In a Father's Day address, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama told worshipers at a Chicago church Sunday that government must do more to help families --but he also exhorted parents, especially fathers, to do their part.

America needs more than jobs and opportunities in its communities, the presidential candidate told the hometown congregation. "We also need families to raise our children," he said. "We need fathers to realize that responsibility does not end at conception. We need them to realize that what makes you a man is not the ability to have a child. It's the courage to raise one."

His words came in the aftermath of a painful separation from the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., who, as Obama's longtime pastor, played a crucial role in his spiritual maturation. A few weeks ago, Obama publicly broke with Wright after controversy about the minister's strident sermons.

As the first stop in Obama's quest for a new religious home, Chicago's the Apostolic Church of God offered a symbolic new beginning.

"Of all the rocks upon which we build our lives, we are reminded today that family is the most important," Obama said. "And we are called to recognize and honor how critical every father is to that foundation."