Pope Francis appears to have called out Vice President J.D. Vance and his use of the Catholic term "ordo amoris," as the debate over illegal immigration and the Vatican's criticism of the Trump administration wages on, The Catholic New Agency reported.
In a January post on X, Vance, a Catholic, shared a post by British academic Rory Stewart, who said the vice president had a "bizarre take" on scripture.
"Just google 'ordo amoris.' Aside from that, the idea that there isn't a hierarchy of obligations violates basic common sense," Vance wrote. "Does Rory really think his moral duties to his own children are the same as his duties to a stranger who lives thousands of miles away? Does anyone?"
"You love your family, and then you love your neighbor, and then you love your community, and then you love your fellow citizens in your own country, and then after that you can focus and prioritize the rest of the world," Vance added in a subsequent interview.
The phrase ordo amoris means "rightly-ordered love" although the real world application of the principle is often complicated, the outlet noted.
In a letter to Catholic bishops earlier in the week on the topic of immigration, Francis wrote, "an authentic rule of law is verified precisely in the dignified treatment that all people deserve, especially the poorest and most marginalized," which he said "does not impede the development of a policy that regulates orderly and legal migration."
"Christian love is not a concentric expansion of interests that little by little extend to other persons and groups. In other words: The human person is not a mere individual, relatively expansive, with some philanthropic feelings! The human person is a subject with dignity who, through the constitutive relationship with all, especially with the poorest, can gradually mature in his identity and vocation," the pope continued.
"The true ordo amoris that must be promoted is that which we discover by meditating constantly on the parable of the 'good Samaritan' [cf. Lk 10:25-37], that is, by meditating on the love that builds a fraternity open to all, without exception."
Francis went on to say that a "rightly-formed conscience" would oppose the idea of labeling illegal immigrants criminals.
Vance isn't the first Trump administration official to run counter to Francis over the issue of illegal immigration. On Tuesday border czar Tom Homan advised the pope to "fix your own home and leave the border stuff to us" after Francis warned that deporting people due to their legal status "will end badly."
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.