Recent articles in both Newsweek and The New Yorker have discussed the changing face of evangelicals in the American political landscape–particularly younger evangelicals who seem unwilling to carry on the hard-line, single agenda politics of their predecessors…

Recent articles in both Newsweek and The New Yorker have discussed the changing face of evangelicals in the American political landscape–particularly younger evangelicals who seem unwilling to carry on the hard-line, single agenda politics of their predecessors. A surprising number of younger self-identified Christians are active Barack Obama supporters. As I’ve traveled and spoke at Christian colleges and interacted with younger people over the last year I’ve been impressed with the combination of their hopeful and sincere faith and a longing to seek sustainability and justice both politically and personally. It seems as if the old categories of “right” and “left” are disintegrating and reforming in new ways. Fifteen years ago hardly anyone would have imaged that evangelical leaders would be so concerned about issues of justice, ecological sustainability or the global crisis of A.I.D.S. I hope that we are moving beyond a partisan view in our society to recognize that we are called to wrestle with how to best live and make decisions together in an increasingly complex and consciously connected world. One of the things that make me believe that God is at work in our world is the way we ardently struggle and debate with one another about how best to see things become “on earth” as they are “in heaven.”