In Mason City, Iowa, Senator Barack Obama addressed the congregation of United Church of Christ Sunday. “I see that we have with us, and I’m sure it’s a shock for everyone, that we have Senator Barack Obama,” Pastor Patty Aurand said to her small, mostly caucasion congregation.

Obama spoke from the pulpit for just over five minutes, where told the church goers that he found religion, not because he was raised in a religious family, but through his work in Chicago communities. “The values of honesty and hard work and empathy and compassion were values that were spoken about in church, and that I wanted to connect with a larger community than myself, and realized that scripture and the words of God fit into the values that I had been raised in,” he said.

He also acknowledged that, just two weeks from the Christmas holiday, Iowans are being “bombarded” with politics. He assured them that he has not forgotten what this holiday is really about.

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After watching the church’s children put on a Christmas performance, Obama, candidate for president and former basketball player, used his skills to participate in the church’s annual mitten toss.

Members of the congregation invited Obama to throw a pair of mittens on a Christmas tree in the corner of the church - the goal being to throw the mittens at the tree and have them stick, the higher up the better (the congregation rewarded good tosses with “oohs and ahs”). The mittens - and scarves and hats - will be donated to local charities.

Pastor Patty gave the ground rules: “You cannot toss them repeatedly. It’s a one chance shot.”

Obama confidently told the group, “I used to play basketball; I’m confident in my skills and think I’m gonna do just fine.”

Here’s how that went for him.

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