Like the rest of the country, French evangelicals went to the polls on Sunday for the second round of parliamentary elections in what became a showdown between the far right and the rest of the country. The Nouveau Front Populaire (New Popular Front), a fragile new coalition of leftist parties, formed a Republican front with the centrist parties allied with President Emmanuel Macron. While this strategy successfully kept Marine Le Pens Rassemblement National (National Rally) in third, neither the leftist nor centrist parties won an outright majority in the National Assembly, a situation which may result in numerous political stalemates in the months to come.

　　French evangelicals represented only a tiny number of Sundays voter turnout; about 60 percent of all voters in the country of nearly 68 million showed up, the largest turnout since 1981. At 745,000, the number of evangelicals has grown by nearly 100,000 in recent years but remains squarely on the margins.

　　Despite their communitys size, French evangelical leaders have regularly engaged the challenges affecting their country, such as weighing in on concerns over Islam and free speech, speaking out about a bill trying to end Muslim separatism that could make churches collateral damage, and articulating their pro-life values after the country enshrined abortion into the constitution.

　　Prior to the June 30 first-round election that preceded yesterdays runoff, the Conseil National des Evangliques de France (CNEF, National Council of Evangelicals in France) called on believers to pray, to be discerning, and to vote.

　　Politics cannot do everything, the press release stated, noting that in such troubled times evangelicals whose ultimate hope is in God should act in accordance with their hope and be catalysts of peace, seeds of life, actors of reconciliation and hospitality.

　　Given the historic moment in French politics and evangelicals miniscule electoral presence, Christianity Today asked Christian leaders what role French evangelicals can play in such a fraught era.

　　Erwan Cloarec, president of CNEF In this time of division and national confusion, the churches in France must, more than anything else, show by what they are that another society is possiblea society in which the divisions of origin, gender, and social condition that fracture humanity do not prevail.

　　This is the meaning of neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free, neither male nor female of which the apostle Paul speaks in his letter to the Galatians (3:28, NASB). We owe this example to the world, and we owe it to ourselves to ensure that the divisions and invectives that plague global society are not imported into our communities.

　　Rachel Calvert, president of A Rocha France Many French evangelical churches bring together people from diverse political, ethnic, and socioeconomic backgrounds. In this fractured political climate, our contribution must involve serving those who are not like us as well as practical care for Gods creation.

　　We grieve at the rise of a party which has seduced voters by promising short term relief, while scapegoating migrants and largely ignoring longer term issues such biodiversity loss, environmental degradation and the impact of climate change. Yet we can and will continue to bear witness to the God who is reconciling all things to himself in Jesus.

　　Matthew Glock, missionary, pastor, and coordinator of CAEFs (Communauts et Assembles vangliques de France) church planting commission The snap election called for by President Macron offers a window to the disorder of French politics and the ineluctable movement of many voters to the extremes of the political spectrum. It is difficult to imagine, within this reality of national politics, how the evangelicals in France could have a role, but on a local level there is much to do.

　　The way to offer hope in these confusing times is to follow Jesus Christs command to love your neighbor as yourself. By following Christs example of sacrificial love, the church has much to offer.

　　Caroline Bretones, pastor of glise protestante unie de France (United Protestant Church of France) Persecuted for more than two centuries and very much a minority, Protestants have learned to live discreetly in France while developing a keen sense of responsibility, freedom of conscience, and social commitment. If they have a decisive role to play today, it is not by making public statements that demonize certain parties while implicitly stigmatizing their voters but rather by continuing to unite extremely diverse men and women (ethnically, culturally, socially, and professionally) around a Christian hope that transcends [not only] human divisions but also frustrations and easy solutions.

　　As Christians, our belonging together to the kingdom of God must take precedence over any other citizenship of this world and enable us to open up spaces for dialogue and communion where divisions threaten.