In a new online Harris poll, President Barack Obama topped the list of people Americans view as heroes.

Jesus Christ finished in second place, followed by Martin Luther King Jr., Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, Abraham Lincoln, John McCain, John F. Kennedy, Chesley Sullenberger and Mother Teresa.

The inclusion of several other presidents on the list, along with Obama, indicates that Obama’s position atop the list is partly a reflection of the high regard Americans have for the office of the president.

But still, it’s a bit disturbing that in a country where the vast majority of people identify themselves as Christian Obama was picked as a hero by more Americans than Christ himself. It’s yet another indication of the widespread cult of Obama worship that currently pervades the nation.

Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver recently warned of the perils of this kind of adulation of Obama, who remains as humanly fallible as every other American, despite his recent elevation to the Oval Office.

Speaking yesterday in Toronto, Archbishop Chaput warned that Catholic Americans need to act on their faith — particularly regarding Church teachings about the sanctity of all human life — and to guard against “a spirit of adulation bordering on servility” that exists among some Catholics towards the Obama administration.

“President Obama is a man of intelligence and some remarkable gifts,” Archbishop Chaput said, Catholic News Agency reported. “He has a great ability to inspire, as we saw from his very popular visit to Canada just this past week. But whatever his strengths, there’s no way to reinvent his record on abortion and related issues with rosy marketing about unity, hope and change.”

Said Archbishop Chaput, “Of course, that can change. Some things really do change when a person reaches the White House. Power ennobles some men. It diminishes others. Bad policy ideas can be improved. Good policy ideas can find a way to flourish. But as Catholics, we at least need to be honest with ourselves and each other about the political facts we start with.”