Jeremiah Wright: A Quick Observation

The Rev. Jeremiah Wright, Senator Obama's "Spiritual Mentor," is doing a question-and-answer session at the National Press Club right now. The moderator asked him a question regarding a passage from the Gospel of John: "...I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). In the light of this well-known passage, she asked him, what did he think about Islam and Judaism?

Wright's response was brief and illuminating. He said, "Jesus also said, I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold." This generated cheers and applause from the audience, and seemed to suggest that Wright feels there are other paths to salvation. Now while this is a valid topic for theological debate, I find Wright's use of this passage very disingenuous--because he only quotes the first half of the verse. Here is John 10:16 in full (emphasis mine):

I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold. These also I must lead, and they will hear my voice, and there will be one flock, one shepherd.

You can read it yourself; it's part of the famous parable of the "Good Shepherd".

So here's the thing: Wright is a pastor, and he knows exactly what John 10:16 says...yet he rips a piece of it out of context in order to give a "politic" answer to a question (or perhaps more accurately, he gives a politic response to avoid answering the actual question). He insists that he is a servant of the truth. What does his response to this query tell us?