Obama speaks on fatherhood at church

By Deborah Charles

CHICAGO (Reuters) - Two weeks after breaking with his long-time church after pastors there made inflammatory and anti-American sermons, Democratic White House hopeful Barack Obama went to a new church on Sunday to discuss fatherhood.

Obama, accompanied by his wife Michelle and daughters Sasha and Malia, took part in Father's Day services near their house at the Apostolic Church of God -- a large, predominantly black church in the South Side of Chicago.

This was Obama's first time attending a church service since he announced last month that he had quit Trinity United Church of Christ, which he had attended for 16 years, as he sought to calm concerns about comments by pastors there.

The presumptive Democratic presidential nominee heads back to the campaign trail on Monday with a trip to Michigan, a key state in his November face-off with Republican candidate John McCain.

McCain met on Sunday in Washington with Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari. Arizona Sen. McCain has vowed to keep American troops in Iraq until the war is won while Obama wants to start bringing them home.

Applause greeted Obama as he walked onto the church stage where a huge choir sat. After shaking hands with the ministers he turned and clapped along with the choir and congregation as a brass band led them in song.

In his 30-minute speech, Obama spoke about the particular struggles of African Americans and noted that more than half of all black children live in single-parent households.

"What I've realized is that life doesn't count for much unless you're willing to do your small part to leave our children -- all of our children -- a better world," he said.

"Even if it's difficult. Even if the work seems great. Even if we don't get very far in our lifetime. That's our responsibility as fathers and as parents."

CUT TIES WITH PASTOR

Obama, who would be the first black U.S. president, had previously cut ties with Trinity's former pastor, Jeremiah Wright, who angered many with anti-American and racially charged sermons.

But just as controversy over Wright was dying down, a Roman Catholic priest mocked Obama's Democratic rival Hillary Clinton during a guest appearance at Trinity United.

When announcing his decision to quit the church -- one he said he made with sadness because it was where he and his wife were married and their children were baptized -- Obama said he realized that anything said in the church he attends would always be scrutinized and linked to him.

Since he gave the main speech of the service at the Apostolic Church of God, there was no sermon on Sunday. But the church's former pastor, Bishop Arthur Brazier, made brief remarks calling Obama a friend who has "changed the course of America."

"He has done something to this country that I never thought I would be able to see," Brazier said to applause. "I am filled with emotion because I have lived through some very tough times in America."