The “Catholic Case for Biden” That Never Was, by John A. Monaco

By John A. Monaco, Crisis Magazine, July 20, 2022

John A. Monaco is a doctoral student in theology at Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA, and a Visiting Scholar with the Veritas Center for Ethics in Public Life at Franciscan University of Steubenville.

Prior to the 2020 U.S. presidential election, Catholics were bombarded with think piece after think piece on the appropriateness of one candidate over another. The fault lines were obvious, as usual. “Conservative” Catholics tended toward voting for the incumbent, Donald J. Trump, despite whatever personal vices, uncouth language, or policy limitations he harbored. Moderate and “progressive” Catholics tended toward voting for Joe Biden.

Similar to the 2004 presidential election in which the Protestant Republican, George W. Bush, ran for reelection against the Catholic Democrat, John Kerry, the 2020 election featured the Protestant GOP candidate, Trump, against the Catholic Democrat, Biden. Thus, the 2004 and 2020 elections brought to the national conversation this question: “To what extent is a Catholic candidate truly ‘Catholic’ if their views and positions contradict Catholic teaching?” …

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