Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is drawing a connection between his faith and how he plans to lead the nation through the COVID-19 pandemic, racial injustice, and immigration policy moving forward.
Biden penned an op-ed in The Christian Post published Thursday, where he explained how his Catholic faith led him to where he is now and how it has acted as a foundation for his public service career.
He opened his op-ed by citing a commandment from the Gospel of Matthew calling on believers to love God and love others.
“These abiding principles – loving God and loving others – are at the very foundation of my faith. Throughout my career in public service, these values have kept me grounded in what matters most,” Biden said.
He mentioned the death of his wife, daughter, and son and how his faith has “been a source of immeasurable solace in times of grief.”
Biden emphasized his faith has guided him to fighting for equal rights for all.
“As a country, we have never been perfect nor free of prejudice. We’ve never fully lived up to those ideals, but we’ve never walked away from them,” he wrote.
Biden provided examples of how the nation has struggled with racial injustice including the events that took place in Charlottesville in 2017, attacks on immigrants, communities of color, and people of different faiths.
He implored Americans to vote for him because “who we are, what we stand for, and maybe most important, who we want to be as a nation are all at stake.”
Biden turned his attention to the COVID-19 pandemic and how he would tackle it.
He noted more than 220,000 Americans have lost their lives to the coronavirus and millions are unemployed.
Biden accused the Trump administration of having no plan and no intention of taking action to slow the spread.
He outlined his plan to bring the pandemic to an end including ramping up testing, eliminating obstacles to treatment such as costs, increasing the manufacturing and distribution of personal protective equipment, and ensuring the distribution of a safe and effective vaccine.
Biden promised Americans he would do everything he could to provide economic relief to those suffering.
“To beat COVID-19, we must all work together to pull our country out of this crisis. We must all wear masks. It’s not a political statement – it’s a manifestation of God’s commandment to love our neighbors as ourselves, so we can save lives,” Biden wrote.
He acknowledged the effects of the pandemic on communities of color.
Biden reiterated he would provide economic relief including student loan relief, support for small businesses, aid to state and local governments, and support for schools.
He emphasized his priority of helping the poor.
“My faith implores me to embrace a preferential option for the poor and, as president, I will do everything in my power to fight poverty and build a future that moves us closer to our highest ideals – not only that all women and men are created equal in the eyes of God, but that they are treated equally by their fellow man,” Biden said.
He vowed to create an immigration system that “treats everyone with dignity.”
Biden committed to continuing to work with faith leaders and faith-based organizations.
“As Christians, I know there is much more that unites us than divides us. And as Americans, I know that there is nothing our country cannot achieve when we stand together – united,” Biden concluded.
