U.S. Vice President JD Vance, America’s second Catholic vice president, laid out a distinctly Christian vision for American politics in a speech this week, declaring that “the only thing that has truly served as an anchor of the United States of America is that we have been and, by the grace of God, we always will be a Christian nation.”
Speaking to more than 30,000 young conservatives at Turning Point USA’s AmFest 2025 some three months after the death of TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk, Vance called for a politics rooted in a Christian faith that honors the family, protects the weak, and rejects what he described as a decades-long “war” on Christianity in public life.
The Christian faith has provided a “shared moral language” since the nation’s founding, the Yale-trained lawyer argued, which led to “our understanding of natural law and rights, our sense of duty to one’s neighbor, the conviction that the strong must protect the weak, and the belief in individual conscience.”
“Christianity is America’s creed,” the vice president said to loud cheers, while acknowledging that not everyone needs to be a Christian and “we must respect each individual’s pathway” to God. Even so, he said, “even our famously American idea of religious liberty is a Christian concept.”
Vance described how, over the past several decades, “freedom of religion transformed into freedom from religion” as a result of the cultural assault on Christian faith from those on “the left” who have “labored to push Christianity out of national life. They’ve kicked it out of the schools, out of the workplace, out of the fundamental parts of the public square.”
He continued: “And in a public square devoid of God, we got a vacuum. And the ideas that filled that void preyed on the very worst of human nature rather than uplifting it.”
Vance said cultural voices opposed to Christian faith “told us not that we were children of God, but children of this or that identity group. They replaced God’s beautiful design for the family that men and women could rely on … with the idea that men could turn into women so long as they bought the right bunch of pills from Big Pharma.”
The former U.S. senator and Catholic convert credited President Donald Trump for ending the cultural “war that has been waged on Christians and Christianity in the United States of America,” touting the administration’s policy priorities as the fruit of Christian motivation.
“We help older Americans in retirement, including by ending taxes on Social Security, because we believe in honoring your father and mother rather than shipping all of their money off to Ukraine,” he said. “We believe in taking care of the poor, which is why we have Medicaid, so that the least among us can afford their prescriptions or to take their kids to see a doctor.”
Speaking of the despair he felt after the assassination of Kirk, his friend and TPUSA founder, he said: “What saved me was realizing that the story of the Christian faith … is one of immense loss followed by even bigger victory. It’s a story of very dark nights followed by very bright dawns. What saved me was remembering the inherent goodness of God and that his grace overflows when we least expect it.”
Of masculinity, Vance said: “The fruits of true Christianity are good husbands, patient fathers, builders of great things, and slayers of dragons. And yes, men who are willing to die for a principle if that’s what God asked them to do.”
He described how he saw the fruits of Christian men living out their faith during a recent visit to a men’s ministry that aids those who struggle with addiction and homelessness: “They feed them. They clothe them. They give them shelter and financial advice. They live out the very best part of Christ’s commission.”
After eating lunch with some of the men who were “all back on their feet” after receiving help, Vance said he saw that the answer to “What saved them?” was not “racial commonality or grievance … a DEI prep course” or “a welfare check.”
“It was the fact that a carpenter died 2,000 years ago and changed the world in the process.”
“A true Christian politics,” Vance said, “cannot just be about the protection of the unborn or the promotion of the family. As important as those things absolutely are, it must be at the heart of our full understanding of government….”
From Catholic News Agency
I enjoyed watching his speech. Looks like TPUSA has some internal problems, and the Republican Party, also. Hope these problems soon get resolved. It would be a tragedy to see the Democrats win the next Presidential election, if the Republicans can’t fix their problems, and voters get discouraged with them.
I am reminded of Obama’s declaration that we were not a Christian nation, thus cheering on the forces of spiritual wickedness. And this he called hope. Vice president Vance placed the locus of hope where it ought to be– Christ our Lord and obedience to the Same.
As the Lord tells us, let’s pray for all those in authority (1 Tim. 2:1-3). May Mr. Vance, like all of us, continue to grow in our Catholic faith. And, may Mr. Trump focus on continuing to do good things and leave the name-calling and other juvenile behavior behind. May he ultimately come to know the truth, the Person of Jesus Christ, and enter into His Church. And, may God bless Mrs. Kirk and her children, as she now guides TPUSA.
Witness Pres. Trump’s response to the murders of Rob Reiner and his wife. He wouldn’t just once take the high road, but instead blamed their deaths on Reiner’s “angry words” and TDS. Trump’s callow remarks serve only to embolden his political enemies — and to also alienate his supporters.
Oh, and the left media and politicians calling Trump Hitler every day was okay? Accept that political discourse in this country is in the toilet. That’s the way it is. I, for one, am proud to see Trump not taking it lying down and dishing it back to the left as they serve it up. As a result, the left has never polled so poorly over the past 50 years. Politics is about winning, and Trump has won. Democrats have never been as uncool and mocked as they are now. Face it, you have to mock your opponent to gain ground. That’s just the way it is. I relish calling Democrats evil left wing scum losers. That’s what they are. I’ve told my left wing relatives off. That’s the way to deal with them.
Mr. Uncool, it’s not right that Mr. Trump was called Hitler. Just because political discourse in this country is in the toilet doesn’t mean that we should stoop to that level. When others behave badly, that’s not an excuse for us to do so. If you’re a Christian, look to the teachings of Christ. There are many that address this (… when others curse you… lie about you… love of neighbor, et al); too many to note in an internet post. God sees none as “scum losers.” All people are created in His image, as much as they’ve tarnished that with sin. They still have human dignity, which is to be respected. God never wrote us off. Nor should we others. If someone damns you and gives you “the finger,” do you do the same? I hope not. Let’s not get into the gutter just because some do. Let’s build up, rather than tear down. I am all for speaking the truth, but that’s not an excuse from being obnoxious, arrogant, juvenile, hurtful and rude. You, and the President, are both better than that.
Uncool and mocked, is that you Mr. President, posting anonymously? I didn’t know you read the California Catholic Daily! We support you, but you do need to tone it down considerably. God spared your life. And, you can get to heaven, but not by what you do, but because of what Christ did. Follow the example of Jesus, Saint Stephen (whose feast day we just celebrated), other saints and Erika Kirk. Take the high road, love your enemies, take and give less offense. The Truth prevails.
To uncool and unmocked:
I want to be clear that I have always supported Trump and his policies. However, there are aspects of his personality that are puerile and cringeworthy. As President he should be dignified and temperate instead of being crass. His enemies gloat when he responds like a child.
And Trump beats them in elections and in governing. They can gloat and cringe all they want. Trump is winning.
There’s something more sinister at work here. The difference in opinion between Evangelical Christians and Catholics over Israel is a wedge issue being used to divide, and thus defeat, conservatives. I’d love to know the identity of the political operative on the Left who is driving this.
Robert, the divides are real but there is plenty of time for competent leaders adept at compromise to rise to the top. We are not even at the midterms. The specter of another Democratic president regaining control in the end, I do hope, is sufficient for conservatives to bring their peacepipes with them when it counts.