JD Vance Discusses Family Faith and Immigration at University of Mississippi Event
(Photo: Instagram/JD Vance)
In a charged atmosphere at the University of Mississippi, Vice President JD Vance tackled pressing issues of faith and immigration, sharing his personal journey within a mixed-faith family. His remarks came during a Turning Point USA event where he honored the late Charlie Kirk, a noted conservative activist.
Vance, at 41, engaged with students in a session reminiscent of Charlie Kirk’s “Prove Me Wrong” debates. Accompanied by Erika Kirk, who has taken the lead at Turning Point USA, Vance faced a crowd eager to question his views. The session at Ole Miss marked Erika Kirk’s sole stop on the tour, which has featured other prominent figures like Megyn Kelly and Tucker Carlson.
Charlie Kirk, the founder of Turning Point USA, tragically lost his life in September during an event at Utah Valley University.
Vance encouraged open dialogue, urging participants to take their time formulating questions. “Please don’t be nervous if you need to work through a question. Think through it, speak it,” he advised, fostering an atmosphere of respectful conversation.
The audience showed enthusiasm by chanting “48,” hinting at a potential Vance presidential run in 2028, to which he responded, “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, ladies and gentlemen.”
Discussions spanned from President Donald Trump’s Israel policies to religious education in schools, and bridging political divides on issues like antitrust, where Vance acknowledged some common ground with Democrats.
A particularly tense exchange occurred when a non-Christian student expressed concerns over the impact of current immigration policies on legal immigrants. She questioned the necessity of Christianity as a unifying American value.
Vance countered the immigration criticism, underscoring the importance of legal pathways. “I can believe that we should have lower immigration levels. But if the United States passed a law and made a promise to somebody, the United States, of course, has to honor that promise,” he stated. “I’m talking about people who came in in violation of the laws. … And my job as vice president is not to look out for the interest of the whole world. It’s to look out for the people of the United States.”
His response was met with applause, as he further clarified his stance on immigration: “Just because one person or 10 people or 100 people came in legally … does that mean that we’re thereby committed to let in a million or 10 million or 100 million people a year in the future?” he asked, answering with a decisive “No.”
Addressing his family’s interfaith dynamics, Vance described his wife Usha’s background; she was born to Telugu Indian immigrants and did not grow up Christian. “I think it’s fair to say that she grew up in a Hindu family, but not a particularly religious family in either direction,” he noted.
Vance recounted their mutual journey from agnosticism to raising their children in the Christian faith. “We’ve decided to raise our kids Christian,” he explained. “Our two oldest kids who go to school, they go to a Christian school. Our 8-year-old did his first communion about a year ago. That’s the way that we have come to our arrangement.”
He acknowledged the complexities of a mixed-faith marriage, emphasizing communication and understanding. “The only advice I can give is, you just got to talk to the person that God has put you with and you’ve got to make those decisions as a family unit,” he shared, noting that Usha often joins him at church.
Vance expressed hope that his wife might eventually embrace Christianity, but respects her autonomy: “Do I hope eventually that she is somehow moved by the same thing that I was moved by in church? Yeah, I honestly do wish that, because I believe in the Christian Gospel and I hope eventually my wife comes to see it the same way,” he said. “But if she doesn’t, then God says everybody has free will and so that doesn’t cause a problem for me.”
Vance has previously spoken about his religious evolution, detailing his transition from atheism to devout Christianity during the 2024 campaign. In his bestselling memoir, Hillbilly Elegy: A Memoir of a Family and Culture in Crisis, Vance reflects on his upbringing by a Christian grandmother who valued prayer and Bible study.
This article was originally written by www.christiantoday.com
