Column | Virtue is not a medicine against dictatorship

It will happen to you: a day before you die as Pope, the American vice-president JD Vance is in front of you, the man with whom you have just peeled an apple about his aversion to migrants and his tribalistic interpretation of the Ordo Caritatisthe ranking in Christian charity.

Vance had conceived that Catholic doctrine as a series of concentric circles: first comes love for your family, then for your neighbors, then your countrymen and only then the rest of the world. The theology of ‘America First. ‘

The vice-president received upside down of the prince He explained that Christian charity is universal, and in NRC by The believing scientists Stefan Paas and Beatrice de Graaf, who ‘misformed’ Vance.

It will be my Reformed genes, but now I still want it – a little bit – for the false sake to withdraw.

Yes, Vance turns it into a dumb-minded self-uniform morality, but there is a certain ranking in caritasalso in the Summa Theologica from Thomas van Aquino, the great metaphysicus of the Roman church. Unable to brightness (goodwill, love for all people) but in Beneficientia (do the good). The first is universal, the second proportional: the natural loved ones come first.

In the hands of a poison mixer like Vance, something like that becomes a religious legitimacy for unbridled national egoism. What do we put opposite?

In Buitenhof De Graaf impressed with A plea for virtue ethicsopposite the worldview full of « struggle » of Trump and Vance. The cardinal virtues – up to and including faith, hope and love – deserve revaluation. That fits in with an intellectual trend because that ethics has been on a return for years, also in philosophy. According to De Graaf, « young people should not only train to be very smart, » but also to « act according to a higher goal » – on the basis of those personal virtues.

The problem is: that is also a striking summary of The conversion story From now on JD Vance. Once he was an « intellectual atheist » who, disappointed by the emptiness of hunting « success, » turned to the virtues of the church, he wrote in the Catholic magazine The lamp (2020).

Vance explained that he was forgotten « the language of the virtues, » but now wanted to devote himself to that, « embedded in a community. » Away from a religiously illiterate society that « focuses on consumption and pleasure » and « virtue neglects. »

In short, Vance would Buitenhof-Probably endorse the count of the count. That is not surprising, because the virtues ethics traditionally belong to the Catholic Church, opposite the Calvinist ethics of writing and duty and contraindic individualism.

Yes, of course Vance is also hypocritical. The Trumpiaan who brings up virtues at the same time over left -wing ‘virtuous noses’ and ‘showers’. Own virtues first, of course.

From my own denomination I would like to place a different article of faith against it. That of man who is inclined to all evil and – without his grace – incompetent to any good. The truth that lies in it is that you can never completely trust virtues. Hence the importance of institutions, rules and procedures.

In the meantime, it is obvious, as De Graaf says that Trumpism is a cold world, full of ‘struggle’. Darwinism that Vance sprinkles with holy water. Not Trump, he has enough of himself and a gilded Bible, preferably signed (by Him, not God). And of course the faith is also forged into a sword. Recently one came Task Force On To eradicate ‘anti-Christian bias’ in the government.

The Texan politician preacher James Talarico believes that Trump and Vance Jesus, if they met him now, mock as « a single, childless hippie. »

He’s right. Jesus was one loserfinally.

Sjoerd de Jong is editor of NRC. He writes a column every other week at this place.

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