Our Catholic President, by Stephen P. White

Daily Scripture Reading and Meditation: All Pressed upon Jesus to Touch Him
January 21, 2021
Founder’s Quote
January 21, 2021

By Stephen P. White,  The Catholic Thing, Jan. 21, 2021

Stephen P. White is executive director of The Catholic Project at The Catholic University of America and a fellow in Catholic Studies at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.

Stephen P. WhiteJoe Biden was sworn in yesterday as the 46th President of the United States. By virtue of the office he now holds, he is the most powerful and influential Catholic layman in the world. Arguably, he is now the most powerful lay Catholic head of state since Napoleon Bonaparte – a comparison we ought not to read too much into, but not neglect either. The point is that having a Catholic at the head of the most powerful country in the world is, for better or for worse, no small thing. And of course, Biden’s presidency will have a tremendous impact on the Catholic Church here in America.

For better or worse, Biden’s words and actions as president will shape how the Catholic faith is perceived and understood. For tens of millions of Americans, even a modest return to “normalcy” – to the familiar ways of our politics – will be a welcome change after the tumultuous years of the Trump administration. The outgoing president, and especially the events of recent weeks, has set that bar very low.  …

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