Speaking about the context into which Prime Minister Johnson steps, Andy Flannagan, the Executive Director of Christians in Politics, told Premier Christian Radio's News Hour: "I've never known the public square to be quite as toxic as this and I think the new Prime Minister has a huge job to do.
"We are in real danger in this country of sliding towards an American style situation where it's almost like two separate cultures operating into one country, two separate tribes who are watching different TV programmes, who are reading different newspapers, who are going to different events, who are starting to not even have the same vocabulary, or the same agreed set of facts to be able to even begin a conversation and that's a perilous direction for a country to go in."
He added that the new leadership team therefore have a huge responsibility in the language they use and the atmosphere they pursue.
When asked if he thinks Boris Johnson will unite the country he replied: "We will see. There are many folks involved in Christian politics who would believe that that is the case and there's plenty involved who would believe that that is not the case, but as believers our primary call is not just to sit here being consumers, we should not just be involved in the same commentary as everyone else."
Prayers for @BorisJohnson as he becomes our new Prime Minister and for the government being formed in the coming days.
— Archbishop of Canterbury (@JustinWelby) July 24, 2019
We pray for wisdom and courage at this time of great challenge as we work to build a shared vision for the future of our country and all its people.
Mr Flannagan explained how Christians should pray for politics: "I think Jesus made it pretty clear how he instructed his disciples to pray... to pray your will be done and your kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven. We have to be on our knees and saying, 'Okay, Lord, you've given me passions, this is what I believe, but here I am on my knees because I don't know everything.
"That gift of unity is something that the Church can offer the nation at this time, I think that's really true and the reality is, whether it's between churches or between parties, you can't get to that unity without humility.
He described this unity as "when church leaders have come together in humility and put their own empires and put their own agendas aside, to come together for the good of their time to pray together.
"You cannot get to unity without humility and that's one of the other reasons we need to be on our knees in prayer, not just because our prayers will change the situation, but because our prayers will change us and only when we spend time, in the presence of the one who knows it all, do we realise that we don't know it all."
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