On January 20, President-elect Barack Obama was inaugurated into the Oval Office, a ceremony that stirred quite the controversy, as Mr. Obama sought the right mix of clergy to represent the complex landscape of American Christianity.

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Mr. Obama named four different preachers and pastors to inauguration week, each representing a certain facet of the religion of the U.S. majority.

The first announced was Rev. Rick Warren, an evangelical Southern Baptist that sent waves of panic through social liberals and gay activists who had hoped Mr. Obama’s Presidency would break from the conservative Christian Right that was the heart of President Bush’s constituency. For many, the invite to Rev. Warren to deliver the inauguration address spoke of political maneuvering as Mr. Obama tried to placate the right of the country and build a sound majority of governance.

President Joe Solomonese of Human Rights Campaign, America’s largest LGBT lobby group, wrote in a note to Mr. Obama, ‘Your invitation to Reverend Rick Warren to deliver the invocation at your inauguration is a genuine blow to LGBT Americans… [W]e feel a deep level of disrespect when one of architects and promoters of an anti-gay agenda is given the prominence and the pulpit of your historic nomination.’

Rev. Warren’s involvement was offset by the invitation of Rev. Gene Robinson, the first openly gay bishop in the Episcopalian Church (what those outside America call the Anglican Church). Rev. Robinson, according to Slate.com called Rev. Warren’s invitation ‘a slap in the face,’ but nevertheless accepted the call to deliver a speech in front of the Lincoln Memorial.

In an interview with the New York Times, Rev. Robinson reported that the Obama administration told him, ‘we understand that people in the LGBT community have been somewhat wounded by this choice [Warren], and it’s our hope that your selection will go a long way to heal those divides.’

The final two appointments spoke to a moderate, yet progressive middle ground, and each carried their own symbolism. Rev. Joseph Lowery, a United Methodist, has a long history with Civil Rights and is on the record in support of civil unions, but not gay marriage, while Rev. Sharon Watkins of the Christian Church, who, aside from being from the growing ranks or ordained women, represents a less centralized Christianity where a denomination has an overarching system of beliefs, but each congregation is self-governed.

Amid these various announcements and religious political posturing, little has been said about the First Amendment’s call for a ‘separation of church and state’ or the 20% of Americans who do not label themselves a Christian.