Oprah Winfrey came out of the closet this week.
In the final hour of her iconic talk show she revealed that she is not the generic new age seeker she has presented herself to be. Underneath the public persona she has nurtured so religiously (as it were) over her two and a half decades on the air, Oprah is, it turns out, an unmitigated, “To God be the Glory” Christian. Wowsers!
Early on in her sermon – there’s no other word for it - Oprah said, “My team and Jesus are the secret of my success.” Whoa! What’d she just say?
Americans love that Old Time Religion, and so Oprah’s unveiling will only seem natural to most of her viewers, or should I say followers? I don’t know where I heard it but someone mused that Oprah would eventually become a religious figure. On May 25, 2011, the Divine Ms. O threw her hat in the ring and came out as a straight up Jesus loving preacher woman. I’d say amen and hallelujah if it didn’t make me feel just a little bit queasy.
That didn’t surprise me much, since she seems to hint at it fairly regularly. Maybe I missed it but I didn’t remember hearing her say she was opposed to New Age concepts. Just because someone’s devoted to Christianity doesn’t necessarily mean they’re anti-everything else – or did I miss her saying that she was? In any case, I often find that people with a burning sense of mission to help others are very religious and often very traditionally so.
I wonder if she’ll consider running for office some day??
Thanks Wendy for your comment. It surprised me, not that she has a powerful spirituality – that was always evident – but that she clearly identifies as a straight up Christian. She kind of kept that under wraps before. Not that there’s anything wrong with it … as Seinfeld would say.
lol @ alien image. I’m going to have to watch it again. Maybe I missed the extent to which she “unveiled” her true beliefs.
For those who wonder about the “alien image” Wendy refers to, she’s referring to something I said on Facebook, ie, “Somehow her unveiling reminded me of those scenes in the sci fi movies where aliens take off their disguises to reveal who they really are. It made me a bit queasy.”
Oops! Sorry, I shouldn’t split my comments.
As long as you don’t split your infinitives.