Adam Hamilton, founder and senior pastor of the largest congregation in The United Methodist Church, announced in an email and video Feb. 27 he is exploring a possible candidacy for the U.S. Senate as an independent.
He said he is seeking counsel from his church, United Methodist Church of the Resurrection in Leawood, Kan., a suburb of Kansas City, and others.
If he runs, he would challenge incumbent Roger Marshall, a Republican who spread conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and who supported President Donald Trump’s false claims about election fraud in 2020.
Cynthia Astle
While Hamilton is one of the most high-profile United Methodist pastors, he’s also a polarizing figure. His theology of inclusion, especially in his biblical interpretations, angers those who hold more traditional views. Yet he also isn’t much admired by the LGBTQ United Methodist community and its allies, who have criticized him publicly for not doing enough to push full inclusion in the UMC sooner than the 2024 General Conference.
There also are those who find the marketing principles he has applied to Resurrection and his ministry to be off-putting. This is particularly true of the many videos, lectures and other appearances in which Hamilton himself is centered. Yet that quality of — dare I say it? — evangelical spirit translated through modern media tracks consistently with the Great Commission to “go and make disciples of all nations.” After all, neither the Apostle Paul, Christianity’s greatest evangelist, nor John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, could be called “meek and mild” personages.
So, like all humans, Adam Hamilton is a “sacred fusion of sorrow and celebration,” as Rabbi Sharon Brous wrote in the Feb. 28 newsletter of Center for Action and Contemplation. As such, it seems to me the duty of all Christians who have been touched by Hamilton’s ministry to help him and his wife, LaVon, in their discernment whether he should run as an independent for the U.S. Senate from Kansas.
I confess my own trepidation at his announcement. I cringe to think of him — who if nothing else is a genuinely moral man — set down inside the cesspool that is the U.S. Congress these days. National political contests cost millions, and raising such amounts often comes with significant quid pro quos. A Senate battle in his state likely will be brutal, recalling the history of “bloody Kansas” when it was a battleground over slavery.
No doubt that history plays a role in Hamilton’s plan to travel his state and listen to the people who might become his constituents. His intention to run as an independent, should he choose to campaign, speaks to his desire to overcome the political polarization of our time, as he said in his announcement.
“His intention to run as an independent, should he choose to campaign, speaks to his desire to overcome the political polarization of our time.”
At the same time, when the Pharisees criticized Jesus for consorting with “sinners,” Jesus replied that the healthy have no need of a physician. Lord knows that’s certainly true of the U.S. Congress at this time in our history. Hamilton could conceivably join Raphael Warnock, a Baptist pastor and U.S. senator from Georgia, as a voice for all people made in God’s image.
Hamilton’s decision will depend upon many factors, but I believe his promise that his faith will be at the core of his discernment. Given the state of our nation, he deserves to have unvarnished support for his exploration. For what’s at stake here isn’t solely one man’s decision, it’s a challenge as to what kind of leadership we want in the United States.
Do not mistake me: Adam Hamilton is no political savior any more than Barack Obama was a savior when he first ran for president. Nonetheless, Hamilton is a committed, compassionate minister of Christ who has had an extraordinary career encompassing both failures and successes. He has shown himself to be an adept politician within The United Methodist Church, with an emphasis on achieving compromise for a common good — a trait that upsets both political extremes.
Like all candidates, he comes to the possibility of election with baggage. We should remember that, save for Jesus our Christ, every servant God called in the Bible came with baggage, some far more horrific than anything Hamilton ever has borne.
So let’s help Adam Hamilton with our prayers, our critiques and our counsel for his discernment. We owe him that much as our brother in baptism, and we American United Methodists owe him that for the sake of our country’s soul.
Cynthia B. Astle is a veteran religion journalist who writes about The United Methodist Church for BNG.