. . . are too rich for some people, especially the one that might have involved praying in a mosque in Indonesia.  (It seems to have been a kind of everyday neighborhood thing at that time and place.  Obama did not attend a radical madrassa, as was rumored in an early attempt of unknown provenance to cut his campaign off at the knees.)  He also attended and prayed in Catholic school.

I’m reminded of the scene in Life of Pi where the ministers of three religions are scandalized because the boy, Pi, who will later endure shipwreck with a tiger, wants to worship in all three of them. 

This account of the pros and cons of being a "Global Nomad" — what you are if you did part of your growing up in another culture or cultures — is extremely pertinent to understanding Obama’s "both/and" style and strategy and the way his identity and positions are hard to pin down.  For example, pro:

[A]s the world becomes ever more fast-paced global nomads come already equipped with the necessary skills to change adjustment stress into success. As cultures and communities come increasingly into contact, global nomads know how to respect, observe and learn from cultural differences. We don’t assume that our way is the best or only way. We are life-long learners, and the world is our classroom. These are critical skills in a world looking for economic prosperity and peace, when in the past there has been a tendency to destroy what we don’t understand and annihilate those who are different.

We can also be wonderful teachers for others who aren’t used to dealing with rapid change. Global nomads tend to think quickly on our feet and can take the initiative to troubleshoot — but we often do so in a context of understanding the currents and observing the situation first. Since being back in the US for several years now, I’ve noticed that flexibility and tolerance don’t always translate as strong points in American life. It seems to me that holding a strong personal viewpoint and "demonstrating leadership" is highly valued. A person’s forceful thinking and handling of a situation garners kudos. Observation in particular seems to be underrated. [...] Global nomads try to figure out which way the river is flowing before we jump in. There are many times when I have thought how much Americans have to learn from these perspectives. [...]

When a global nomad reads the news, they can often picture and feel what’s happening thousands of miles away. [...U]nlike kids who grow up in one place, a global nomad feels connected to events taking place all over the world. [...] Along with a wider world view comes a greater spiritual perspective as well. [...I]t’s easy for the global nomad to question those who promote a belief that there is only ONE way to nourish a spiritual life. Rather than be threatened by different belief systems, global nomads often relish the beauty in the diversity of religious systems, taking something from everything.

And from "the darker side":

One of the drawbacks is a sense of rootlessness.
The belief that you belong simultaneously everywhere and nowhere. [...]  The struggle in answering the question "Where are you from?" is a common experience [...]  It took me until my late twenties to acknowledge the deep sense of rootlessness and insecurity that my "exotic" overseas life masked. [...]

[G]lobal nomads know how to keep emotional distance. Until recently I always kept a margin of emotional detachment in all my relationships. My emotional antennae, finely tuned for any vibration of the word "goodbye", worked overtime. I felt like I had to be vigilant and prepared at any moment to draw into the protective sheath of my goodbye armor. Global nomads say goodbye multitudes of times — not only to people, but to schools, to homes, to cultural identities, to aspects of a country
they have come to love. Trusting a relationship to stay the course through the joy and the pain of life flies in the face of accumulated global nomad experience. [...]

[F]or those of us who have moved around a lot, stable community is a new concept, and it takes time to really understand or trust it. [...]

Here Obama’s belonging to the African American community should not be questioned. It’s his home community of choice, the one he has cast his lot with by commitment, time put in, marriage, and worship. If choice is in some ways a weaker bond than birth, in other ways it is stronger.

Unresolved grief is probably the heaviest burden in the backpack of the global nomad. [...] It’s taken me years to figure out how to respond when even small goodbyes trigger mudslides of denial and emotion.

There’s lots more.