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The recent dispute between J.D. Vance and Pope Leo illustrates a longstanding tension between public and private Catholic life.
The recent scuffle between Pope Leo XIV and the Trump administration, Vice President J.D. Vance in particular, reveals a great deal about the role faith principles play in shaping (and not shaping) those in public life. This ugly episode confirms what our era has been teaching us: America would be far healthier if more of our leaders were faithful to principles instead of partisanship, pique, or personal ambition.
For those of us born and raised into the Catholic Church, it’s tough to separate the teachings of the faith from the views we hold as adults. When your parents and extended family members are Catholic and when you’re going to weekly Mass and Sunday school, you are continuously, if subtly, shaped by the church’s principles and practices.
Sure, my ego wants to believe that I’m pro-life, favor school choice, support a strong civil society, and feel a duty to serve the public thanks to my reason. But the truth is I was formed by a religious tradition. And this particular religious tradition has values informed by centuries of scholarship and on-the-ground experience with the human condition and the challenges of public life.
Continue reading the entire piece here at The Dispatch (paywall)
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Andy Smarick is a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute. Follow him on Twitter here.