At one time, the presence of Catholics on both major-party tickets would have been cause for celebration. But now Mr. Vance and Mr. Biden reflect the political divisions among U.S. Catholics.

We need more than cooler rhetoric. We need a politics for the common good.

If Trump is elected, Vance would be the second Catholic vice president in US history—after Joe Biden.

My fellow Americans, I have some bad news: This is who we are.

We need to pray—and ask some hard questions.

We must begin to notice, name and resist the distortions caused by ageism, so that more clear-eyed assessments of President Biden are possible.