BIDEN'S COLLEGIATE CATHOLICISM

• Published in: First things (New York, N.Y.) pp. 1 - 4
• Main Author: Schmitz, Matthew
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York Institute of Religion and Public Life 01.04.2024
• Subjects: 20th century; Abortion; Astronauts; Biden, Joseph R Jr; Careers; Catholic churches; Collective bargaining; Colleges & universities; Economic policy; Political campaigns; Political parties; Same sex marriage; United States > US
• ISSN: 1047-5141; 1945-5097

Whercas John F. Kennedy encouraged Americans to view his Catholic faith as a private matter, Joe Biden has made his faith a defining element of his public identity» Biden wears a rosary bracelet, casually crosses himself during conversations with foreign dignitaries, and likes to conclude speeches by quoting from the anthem of postconciliar American Catholicism, "On Eagle's Wings»" In his 2007 memoir, he writes that what he learned from the Catholic Church has "always been the governing force" in his political career» Biden has famously broken with Catholic teaching on matters such as abortion and same-sex marriage, but his insistence on his Catholic identity deserves to be taken seriously» It reflects the continuing appeal-and persistent failure-of a certain idea of Catholic politics, one that seeks to recapture the achievements of mid-century by placing one foot in left-wing politics and the other in the Catholic faith» Biden's invocation of his Catholic identity recalls an earlier period of American history, when white Catholics were stalwarts of the Democratic Party and guarantors of the postwar consensus» In i960 when Biden was a senior in high school, 82 percent of white Catholics voted for John E» Kennedy» In 1964, 78 percent voted for Lyndon B» Johnson» In 2020, however, almost two-thirds of white Catholics who go to church weekly voted against Biden, their co-religionist, and for Donald Trump» By recalling what the political scientist Ryan Burge has called "the myth of the white Catholic Democrat," Biden evokes the postwar era to which Americans in various ways seem to be drawn-whether they lament the rise of neoliberalism or the decline of the family» In this way, Biden's religious displays reinforce his broader public presentation. Yet those who would celebrate Biden's economic policies must also weigh his social policies. [...]in 2012, as vice president, he surprised the White House by endorsing gay marriage. Today, colleges, not white ethnic communities, are the most formidable redoubts of Democratic power.