LAST FALL, I went on a 20-city book tour for my new book, Christ in Crisis: Why We Need to Reclaim Jesus. I was deeply encouraged by the “new and needed conversations about Jesus,” as they were often called, that we had with diverse gatherings of thousands of people. Most events produced a public discussion on the meaning of faith and public life in America.
As a result of that tour and the national events that were unfolding alongside it, I came to three principal conclusions:
First, between the impeachment process and the upcoming election, we are facing a test of democracy.
Second, we are facing a test of faith in how religious communities respond to this moral, political, and constitutional crisis.
Third, a new generation is watching and will decide their future relationship to the faith community on the basis of that response.
Where were the voices of faith? This will be the question when people look back on this period in history, and that makes it an urgent question for all of us right now. That is the key question I will be asking as this new year unfolds. I have put my voice out there with the new book, to a deep response so far, and will continue to do that in the weeks and months ahead.
Now I am asking others—all of us—to raise our voices in each of our circles of relationships and influence. I believe more voices of faith need to enter the public narrative all over the country in this impeachment and election season.
Convening conversations about what Jesus taught and how it applies to this moment is something concrete we can all do as we enter into 2020. This is about Jesus, and not just politics, and I am now convinced that going back to Jesus is the best way forward for Christians in our bitterly divided country.
This is a period like no other in our lifetimes. But I would invite us all to take heart from the knowledge that Christians in other historical eras have often gone back to their obedient discipleship to Jesus Christ—both personal and public—in times of crisis. It’s called coming home. Proclaiming what that means to each of us, and calling all our siblings in Christ to do the same, has the potential to help break down the traditional political barriers that threaten to tear this nation apart.
The good news that I can enthusiastically share after a month on the road is this: Jesus has survived us Christians, and many people—both inside the churches and outside—are hungry to talk about him.
I always listen carefully to the words I hear after speaking or preaching—when people come up, shake hands after a service, or ask me to sign their book. The two words I consistently heard on this tour were encouragement and hope. People often said they came to the event feeling discouraged and hopeless—and left feeling inspired and hopeful. That’s what a focus on Jesus can do for us, even in the direst times.
Jim Wallis is the founder and former president of Sojourners. He is the inaugural holder of the Archbishop Desmond Tutu Chair in Faith and Justice at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy and director of its new Center on Faith and Justice. His latest book is The False White Gospel: Rejecting Christian Nationalism, Reclaiming True Faith, and Refounding Democracy.
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