Mennonite Weekly Review

I urge then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone — for kings and all those in authority … — 2 Timothy 2:1-2 NIV

EDITORIAL

Around the world, a hopeful view

Every president seeks a mandate, and Barack Obama’s, at least for now, is not only national but global. Enthusiasm around the world for America’s first black president left no doubt that the nation can inspire and lead with its ideals of democracy and equality.

The United States’ unique resources and influence make global involvement a moral obligation. The potential for a new era of good will and of mending frayed relationships brings opportunities for using that power in positive ways.

Christians who place loyalty to the worldwide reign of God above national identity can especially welcome the possibilities for cooperation and reconciliation. We place our faith not in any government or president, but in the church as God’s agent of change. Yet political leaders can help create the conditions for and contribute to the work of God’s people to bring justice and peace.

“The true strength of our nation comes not from the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity and unyielding hope,” President-elect Obama said Nov. 4. This is the revived self-image the nation seems ready to carry forward. There is a hunger to replace pervasive doubt and fear with reconciliation and a greater measure of unity.

People around the world share a desire for a new relationship of trust with the United States. Many had turned their back on a nation that launched a pre-emptive war in Iraq, that tortured prisoners and that lags in protecting the environment. But the world’s warm reception of the president-elect shows that much animosity is reversible if America offers moral leadership on such concerns as human rights, poverty reduction and climate change.

Potential exists as well for overcoming political and religious divisions in tackling U.S. domestic problems. Obama made gains among religious voters in almost every category, though 75 percent of evangelicals still voted for John McCain. Some observers noted a generational shift, with young evangelicals defying expectations from previous elections. Whether Obama can forge a broader religious coalition of support will depend largely on whether he keeps a pledge to pursue policies that reduce abortions.

“If President Obama delivers on his promises — such as seeking real solutions on abortions, [setting a goal of] abolishing nuclear weapons, ending torture, caring for the poor and stewardship of creation — then the myth that Christians are a reliable partisan base will vanish in our generation,” said Tyler Wigg-Stevenson, director of the Two Futures Project, a nuclear disarmament initiative centered around young evangelicals, in a news release. “That would reshape American politics.”

Any leader invested with such expectations, especially in a time of huge challenges, is fated to disappoint in some ways. All Christians, particularly those who reject participation in military power and coercion, must remember the limits of government and the primacy of God. It is a time to hope and to pray, knowing that people around the world are doing the same. — Paul Schrag