The ‘Ordo Amoris’ and the Bottom Line, by Phil Lawler

By Phil Lawler, Catholic Culture, Feb 20, 2025

Phil Lawler has been a Catholic journalist for more than 30 years. He has edited several Catholic magazines and written eight books. Founder of Catholic World News, he is the news director and lead analyst at CatholicCulture.org.

Thanks to Vice President J. D. Vance—with a strong assist from Pope Francis , the concept of the ordo amoris has been much in the news this month. Unfortunately, as so often happens when politicians dabble in theology, and vice versa, the discussion has produced more heat than light.

Now that the debate has cooled a bit—the Catholic apologists anxious to denounce Vance have had their say—let’s review the discussion.

It all began when, in FoxNews interview, in answer to a question about having compassion on immigrants, Vance replied:

[As] an American leader, but also just as an American citizen, your compassion belongs first to your fellow citizens. It doesn’t mean you hate people from outside of your own borders. …

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