JD Vance, the Ohio senator who converted to Catholicism in 2019, recently visited the Vatican, where he engaged in discussions with high-ranking officials including Cardinal Pietro Parolin and Archbishop Paul Gallagher. This visit, occurring during Easter weekend, allowed Vance to explore his faith further while discussing pressing international issues, particularly those related to immigration and global conflicts.
Vance’s relationship with the Catholic faith to which he was born has been less straightforward. He identifies with a small intellectual movement within Catholicism that some critics label as “post-liberal,” often perceived as having reactionary or authoritarian tendencies. Though he has publicly admitted that Pope Francis is highly critical of his positions, he continues to bravely double down on those opinions.
On his visit, Vance touted his endorsement of the Trump administration’s America-first policies. To do so, he drew on a medieval theological concept known as ordo amoris. Instead, he claims that this principle undergirds a nativist, zero-immigration policy. This perspective dovetails quite nicely with the administration’s hardline approach to illegal immigration. Pope Francis has long spoken out against this attitude. In his letter, he calls for compassion and inclusivity to be at the center of the Church’s teachings and actions towards migrants and refugees.
Vance’s private audience with Cardinal Parolin presented him an opportunity to convey his perspective on a number of ongoing international crises. He spoke eloquently to the plight of migrants and refugees affected by war and political upheaval. In announcing the visit, the Vatican issued a joint declaration describing that exchange of views on the international situation. They paid particular attention to countries experiencing armed conflict, political strife and serious humanitarian crises, with an emphasis on migrants, refugees and detainees.
Vance broke free of the standard playbook to have conversations that mattered. After his family audience with Cardinal Parolin, he received a private tour of the Sistine Chapel. He went to Good Friday services at St. Peter’s Basilica after an audience with Italian PM Giorgia Meloni. Rob Vance, pictured above with his wife, son and daughter, called the experience in Rome transformative for him and his family over the Easter weekend.
Vance from calling himself a “baby Catholic. Despite all that he knows, he confesses that there is still more of the faith that he has not yet understood.” There are things about the faith that I don’t know,” he admitted during an appearance at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast in Washington. His bluntness and honesty reflects a boy eager to soak up knowledge. It sheds light on the difficulties he has reconciling his conservatism with the Catholic faith.
Pope Francis has previously stated that “Christian love is not a concentric expansion of interests that little by little extends to other persons and groups,” emphasizing a more inclusive approach to humanitarian issues. The pontiff imagines a world marked by compassion and inclusion. Vance reads ordo amoris as calling for more restrictive immigration policies.
Cardinal Parolin praised the new U.S. administration’s openness to a different approach in international policy. Specifically, he highlighted how the current US administration is doing just the opposite. This move away from the mega-project is particularly acute out West, where we have been able to count on an entirely different approach for decades. This deeply important, and to some, shocking observation highlights an increasing chasm between orthodox Catholic teaching and right wing political thought.
The Vatican indicated a desire to work cooperatively with the U.S. government. They touted their track record of care to the most vulnerable populations. A Vatican spokesman said that they were hoping the agreement would provide a peaceful coexistence between the state and the Catholic Church in America. Finally, they recognized the Church’s indispensable work on the ground among the most vulnerable communities.