A pediatrician from South Carolina. A seminarian from Texas. A Paralympian from Iowa. A Methodist pastor from Kansas.

As election results poured in, a remarkable wave of Democratic victories swept across the country, including in states long considered safely Republican. Progressives will celebrate, and conservatives will mourn. But what I hope emerges from this election is something much bigger than a partisan victory or defeat: a recognition that Americans are ready to turn the page on an era of toxic politics that has dominated our national discourse for the better part of this century.

These victories represent both a rejection of the cruelty, crassness, and corruption that have characterized too much of our politics in Washington and an affirmation of the individual qualities of the candidates who ran in their respective states. This is not necessarily a rejection of conservatism or conservative values. Rather, it may be an acknowledgment that many of the values conservatives hold dear have been neglected by political elites within the Republican Party.

Americans appear increasingly interested in a politics rooted in pragmatism rather than character assassination. Voters have demonstrated that even when they may not understand or agree with every aspect of their neighbors’ identities or beliefs, they can still support policies that improve their neighbors’ lives. They may disagree about pronouns, but they can agree that their neighbors and children deserve access to affordable healthcare. That distinction matters.

Ultimately, I believe these results reflect something deeply rooted in the moral character of the American people.

For the past twenty years, I have listened to and read the works of Rev. Adam Hamilton, founding pastor of Resurrection United Methodist Church in Kansas. His ability to articulate complex theological issues with empathy, humility, and grace has been formative in my own Christian development. It is therefore particularly meaningful to see him elected as Kansas’s first Democratic U.S. senator in nearly a century. His victory reflects the possibility that faith, compassion, and mutual respect can bridge political divides previously believed to be impassable.

Over the past decade, the United Methodist Church has weathered a significant division over human sexuality, particularly concerning the conduct and ordination of clergy. I have no interest in re-litigating those debates, but I have learned something important from the experience: there is far more to be gained from Christian unity than from winning any particular theological battle.

Christ called us to make disciples by feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the prisoner, and welcoming the stranger. We are called to experience an internal transformation through the gift of personal salvation, a transformation that should make us more willing, not less, to stand alongside the vulnerable.

The election of James Talarico in Texas and Adam Hamilton in Kansas is not a rejection of conservative values. Rather, it is an opportunity to reconsider what compassionate conservatism, and indeed compassionate politics, should look like. Compassion has been missing from too much of our political conversation for far too long.

This compassion and empathy are central to what I would call America’s moral majority. They are rooted in the fruits of the Spirit that the Apostle Paul describes in Galatians 5:22-23: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

America has been profoundly shaped by Christian values, but it is not a nation that should mandate a particular theology. Our commitment to religious freedom means that people of different faiths, and those of no faith, can participate equally in building a better society.

We see an encouraging example of this in the election of Dr. Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan, who will become the first Muslim elected to the United States Senate. His campaign emphasized universal healthcare, economic opportunity, and an end to unnecessary foreign wars. These are issues that resonate deeply with Christian teachings about caring for our neighbors, protecting the vulnerable, and pursuing peace.

He did not need to share the faith of every voter to earn their support. His victory demonstrates that people of different religious traditions can find common ground in their commitment to human dignity and the common good. He will serve alongside Elissa Slotkin, a Jewish woman, in representing Michigan in the United States Senate.

What if this is part of the deeper meaning of Ephesians 2:14-16?

“For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by setting aside in his flesh the law with its commands and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new humanity out of the two, thus making peace, and in one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility.”

What if we accepted Christ’s ability to reconcile people across differences of color, creed, race, and religion? What if we allowed Christ’s light to shine so brightly within us, through our words and actions, that we could help heal a nation and a world desperate for belonging, acceptance, and community?

What if we stopped viewing our differences as barriers and started seeing them as opportunities to practice the love Christ calls us to share?

That is the vision of the Beloved Community: a community in which all people are treated with dignity, where the vulnerable are protected, and where love is stronger than division. It is the vision of the Church at its best.

I would encourage conservatives and Republicans to take a deep, honest look at what may have been sacrificed over the past decade in the name of winning cultural and political battles. Has our political discourse reflected the love, hope, joy, and mercy Christ calls us to demonstrate? Have our leaders, particularly those closest to the White House, consistently demonstrated through their words and actions a commitment to protecting widows, orphans, and strangers? Have our policies produced the results we hoped for, or have demagoguery and blind loyalty led us astray?

At the same time, I would encourage progressives and Democrats to use this moment to restore protections for vulnerable Americans rather than dismissing or attacking the sincerely held values of the conservatives who may have helped elect them. Political victories should create opportunities for reconciliation, not new opportunities for retribution.

I pray for an age of civility and mutual respect, rather than one defined by defamation and distrust. Most of all, America desperately needs an era of constructive pragmatism.

We have ignored real problems for far too long. Healthcare remains unaffordable for too many Americans. Wars continue to devastate communities in Europe and the Middle East. Social Security faces significant long-term funding challenges, and our federal debt continues to grow at an unsustainable pace. These are not problems that will be solved by attacking our political opponents. They require thoughtful leadership, difficult conversations, compromise, and a willingness to work together.

We cannot continue to fight with one another while these challenges go unresolved. We need to listen to one another. We need to pray with one another. And we need to remember that our political opponents are our neighbors, too.

The election is over, but the real work is just beginning.

I hope you will continue to engage with the issues you feel called to address, doing so with the compassion and love that are central to the teachings of Christ. Respect your neighbors, even when you disagree with them. Hold your political leaders accountable, regardless of their party affiliation. And keep your mind and heart focused on building a future that belongs to all of us.

I pray that our leaders will reflect the values central to Christ’s teachings and to the best of our American moral traditions.

Are you ready to build a better future together?

My Post-Election Prayer

Gracious and loving God,

We are thankful for the mercy You have shown us. We come before You with hearts of gratitude for a new day and a new opportunity to build Your Kingdom on earth as it is in Heaven.

We pray that our hearts will be softened to hear Your voice and that You will speak into this moment, guiding us toward a greater expression of Your love, which You have made available to all people.

Give us ears to listen to one another, hearts to feel compassion for one another, and minds willing to seek solutions that bring us closer to You and to one another.

We pray for our political leaders, that they may be guided by Your hand and find the wisdom and humility to work together for the benefit of all Your children.

We pray for peace and an end to war. We pray for the protection and provision of orphans and widows, for the acceptance and welcome of strangers and immigrants, and for the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ to heal our nation and our world.

Help us to be instruments of Your peace, examples of Your compassion, and ambassadors of Your love.

In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.