As a staunch member of the religious right, a pastor associated with fundamentalism, and a strong advocate of Jewish and Christian values, I would like to welcome the Catholic J.D. Vance and his Hindu wife, Usha, to leadership in the Republican Party.
It sounds odd for a fundamentalist (let alone an evangelical) to be “big tent,” but I think it is time that the religious right recognize that conservative principles transcend a strict adherence to the doctrines of evangelicalism, and that if we are going to see a right-wing “revival,” we need all who hold to right-wing principles, not just the evangelicals. In fact, a right-wing revival is simply a revival of Western culture, and we need to realize that Western culture was built largely “sans evangelical,” even though the evangelicals have carried the torch for the past 60 years.
As a pastor, I’m strong-as-goat’s-breath strong that local churches should be strict in their doctrine. The local church is not the place for a “big tent” doctrine. However, I also recognize that the local church is not the same as the Republican party. Rather, the Republican party is built on republican principles of freedom of the conscience — free from government intrusion — as well as freedom of expression in faith, family, values, and doctrine. I can be comfortable (and am) with a GOP that doesn’t hold my particular doctrines on soteriology, eschatology, and ecclesiology (etc.) because I want local churches and individuals to have the freedom to develop and express those doctrines according to the dictates of their conscience, values, heritage, etc.
I welcome J.D. Vance, the Catholic convert, to the top echelon of leadership because, quite frankly, evangelicalism has produced spineless political leadership and has been pitiful at producing leaders of substantive thought. Though I am not a Roman Catholic, and I think much of their doctrine is a huge misunderstanding of the role of the apostle Paul for believers today, versus their love of the apostle Peter and his message to the nation of Israel, I have to acknowledge that there is a vein of conservative Christian thought that is strongly intellectual and robust in argumentation. This is true from the days of the Catholic monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella (and their huge influence on Western Civilization), to thinkers like the well known philosopher G.K. Chesterton and modern influencers like Matt Walsh and Michael Knowles of the Daily Wire.
Evangelicalism, on the other hand, has produced leftists like Jimmy Carter and Bill Clinton, globalists like George W. Bush, and wishy-washy leaders like Mike Johnson and Mike Pence. Evangelicalism is so pragmatically driven that they have few bedrock principles to “evangelize” a new generation of conservative political activists. If the GOP doesn’t welcome robust thinkers like Vance, it will be an aging group of political losers shouting, “Get off my lawn!” Sadly, evangelical political leaders have been spineless. They say the right thing but rarely follow through. We need robust thinkers with steely veins.
This is really nothing new. Evangelicals’ greatest friends have always been “less than kosher” outsiders. Ronald Reagan and Donald Trump are prime examples. Going back in history, even men like Calvin Coolidge, Herbert Hoover, and Dwight Eisenhower came from the “conservative but not deacon material” stock.
J.D. Vance is a thoughtful Catholic, and I’m not afraid of that. There are two streams of Catholicism: those who use and abuse it for heritage and votes, and those who engage in robust Catholic thought, which is deeply doctrinal and seeks the wisdom of Scripture for the development and continuation of Christian heritage. Vance is the latter type of Catholic, whereas Pelosi and Biden are the former. It’s time to welcome the huge number of thoughtful and faithful Catholics into the GOP fold.
Regarding Vance’s Hindu wife, Usha, many conservative Hindu people in America (like Vivek Ramaswamy) can be friends, not foes, to Christian values. These first- and second-generation Indian immigrants are tremendously hardworking, robust in their thinking, and very patriotic. As strict constitutionalists, we must recognize that our forefathers insisted that no religious test be required for holding office. This, I believe, is a good thing.
There is a world out there that evangelicals don’t even recognize. It includes Protestants, Catholics, Hindus, Jews, and even the religiously unaffiliated. Many of these individuals strongly support the same principles of republican liberties held by the GOP. The right needs those votes now more than ever. Instead of screaming about multiculturalism and the mixing of religious doctrines on the republican stage, let’s welcome these people to achieve greater political ends. We can focus on doctrine in the local church (and let’s do it better than we have been).
Randy White is a pastor, conservative thinker, Bible teacher, and publisher living in Taos, New Mexico.
Image: Gage Skidmore via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.
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