Concession and Contemplation

In an hour or so, Senator John Kerry will concede defeat in a speech at Faneuil Hall in Boston. I’m not happy to say that I predicted on this Weblog that George W. Bush would retain the presidency, but there it is. Certainly the press will clearly focus in the coming weeks and months on the role that Evangelical Christians and the groups that lead them played in this election, together with the issues they saw as important.

One thing this election result clearly does is define a set of priorities or concerns that Christian thinkers should contemplate. I believe that the powerful public relations engine that drove the Bush campaign to victory will be emboldended to escalate the culture wars in the US over at least the next two years, if not the whole of the next presidency. This is not just an issue for those involved with the US, but also outside the US, because I believe that we will see this political agenda exported through denominational and mission agencies over the coming years.

Starting this Friday, and for the following three Fridays after that I will be posting on this Weblog a series of short articles on the key issues that Christian thinkers will need to reflect upon over this time in our history.