Fresh from the Senate: How a Shared Faith Supports Bipartisanship

On June 3, 2025, Faith and Law held its annual Evening Forum at the Museum of the Bible. In a fascinating conversation, Faith and Law board president, Bill Wichterman, spoke with Senators Chris Coons (D-DE) and Kevin Cramer (R-ND) about how they draw on their shared Christian faith in both developing legislation – and working across the aisle to pass it. 

“I try to approach my service as a calling and with humility,” said Coons. “To me, humility means accepting that I don’t have the answers. And to begin every day reading Scripture and in prayer. 

“It also means that I recognize that the Gospel is not a political document – neither a Republican campaign pamphlet nor a Democratic campaign pamphlet,” he said. 

“The Gospel calls us to do a lot of bold and difficult and challenging things. Neither party, I would argue, fully carries out the gospel calling, so we have to make choices.”

Cramer noted how a robust understanding of the doctrine of the image of God leads Christians to take policy positions ranging from life to social justice. “The things that bring us together are issues that are rooted in each of our faiths,” he said.

Both Senators lamented how polarization makes their work much harder. “There is this cheering crowd that wants us to fight with each other,” said Coons. “Our challenge is demonstrating that we can get more done for our states and our country by working to find the areas we agree on.”

“Being gracious to each other, being kind to each other, is something our nation needs to see us doing,” he said. “I try to hold on to a vision of what this country could be and should be if we all have the humility to love each other more and fight each other less.”

“The opportunity Chris and I have is not just to make laws…but to be a testimony to the goodness of relationships,” said Cramer. “To the degree we can proclaim our faith in that, that becomes a true witness.”

Thank you, Senators Coons and Cramer, for this frank conversation about the challenges and opportunities for bipartisanship helped along by a shared faith.