In the realm of politics, memoirs often serve as a strategic tool for presidential hopefuls. They offer a glimpse into the author’s personal journey, beliefs, and vision for the future. Vice President JD Vance’s latest book, Communion is no exception. This introspective work traces Vance’s faith journey and his relationship with Christianity, providing insights into his political aspirations and the role of religion in public life.
For those curious about how Vance reconciles his Christian faith with his role as Vice President under Donald Trump and his leadership of the right-wing political movement, Communion offers a revealing perspective. It’s a book that invites readers to explore the nuances of Vance’s beliefs and the future of American conservatism.
Vance’s Faith Journey and Political Ambitions
Vance’s memoir is more than just a political PR effort. It’s a deeply personal account of his faith journey, from feeling lost and betrayed by the establishment to finding purpose and meaning in the Catholic Church. Vance, a cradle Catholic, recounts his conversion story, which mirrors the experiences of many young men seeking spiritual renewal in America.
The book is significant not only for understanding Vance but also for addressing big questions about his future and the future of American conservatism. Can an intellectual Christian lead a movement birthed by a very un-intellectual, un-Christian president? How sincere is Vance about his beliefs?
The Contradictions Within
Vance’s memoir doesn’t resolve the contradiction between his faith and his politics. Instead, it lays bare a problem shared by millions of Republican voters. In explaining how he came to serve God, Vance also shows how easy it is to subordinate faith to politics in modern America.
A central theme in Vance’s memoir is the parable from the Gospel of Matthew, where Jesus teaches that faith is shown through actions and behavior. Vance uses this parable as a test for modern Christianity, meritocracy, liberalism, and the secular West. He repeatedly asks: are these things bearing the fruit that we, or Christ, want?
Vance’s Intellectual and Emotional Journey
Vance’s conversion story is an intellectual journey as much as an emotional one. He discovered which church was ‘true’ while realizing that going to church was ‘good’ for him, as his wife Usha Vance told him. ‘Therapy didn’t work for you, but church does,’ she recalled.
However, Vance’s memoir also highlights a significant contradiction. He spends much of the book deriding the individualistic nature of a world where organized religion has receded, replaced by egotism, workism, secularism, and woke culture. Yet, he talks about faith in profoundly individualistic terms, focusing on personal growth and understanding doctrine at an intellectual level.
The Role of Catholic Social Teaching
Vance introduces Catholic social teaching, which guides individuals and leaders toward creating a more just world. He recalls reading Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical Rerum Novarum, which discusses the relationship between workers and market economies. However, Vance mostly sidesteps these ideas, exploring the church’s economic teaching but failing to engage with it beyond using it to justify his vision for economic policies.
The Trump Question
Hanging over the entire book is the question of Donald Trump, the very secular strongman who chose Vance as his vice president. Vance doesn’t write much about Trump, which makes sense given Trump’s irreligious nature and his clashes with Catholic leaders like Pope Leo XIV.
Vance has taken an active role in educating the world on his version of Catholicism and serving as Trump’s go-to communicator to the various factions of MAGA and the religious right. He has argued repeatedly about how Trump’s immigration agenda is morally permissible and why Pope Leo XIV should ‘be careful when he talks about matters of theology.’
However, Vance’s unwillingness to admit any Christian errors in his service to Donald Trump or in Trump’s administration is a significant issue. He speaks of infusing public service with Catholic charity and saving the West from ‘secular global liberalism’ while standing proudly at the side of a president whose works have been definitively un-Christian in their effects.
It’s a book that invites readers to explore the nuances of Vance’s beliefs and the future of American conservatism.
