Kamala Harris’ ‘religious intolerance’ problem: 2024 presidential hopeful’s anti-Catholic comments resurface as self-proclaimed Baptist faith put to the test

Roman Catholics are reviving their grievances against Vice President Kamala Harris after Democrats rallied behind her to replace Catholic President Joe Biden as the 2024 presidential nominee.

“Kamala Harris hates what we believe,” CatholicVote Chairman Brian Burch said in a statement this week, recalling her 2018 attacks on a Catholic judge.

At the time, Harris directed several written questions to Brian Buescher, a candidate for U.S. District Court judge for the District of Nebraska, questioning his membership in the Knights of Columbus, a popular parish-based Catholic charitable fraternal group with more than two million members.

Harris referred to the Catholic group as “an all-male society comprised primarily of Catholic men” and questioned their beliefs against abortion and same-sex marriage.

First, Harris questioned whether her membership in the group would allow her to impartially decide those issues in court.

Buescher patiently responded that his membership in his parish group would not affect his decisions.

That was a step too far for most Catholics, who described Harris’ questions as an unconstitutional “religious test” for serving in the legislative branch of government.

At the time, Senator Ben Sasse of Nebraska reacted strongly by introducing a Senate resolution that specifically said that disqualifying a candidate for the courts based on his affiliation with the Knights of Columbus violated the Constitution. The resolution passed unanimously.

But Catholics did not forget him.

The issue was raised during the 2020 campaign by former Vice President Mike Pence in his debate with Harris, when he accused her of attacking a judicial nominee because of her Catholic faith.

Harris responded with disbelief, describing herself as a person of faith who found it “insulting” to suggest she would attack someone for their faith.

Catholic activists now argue that Harris is unfit for the presidency, citing her efforts in the Senate.

“This is not only a serious form of anti-religious bigotry, it is also unconstitutional,” Burch said.

Harris’ likely nomination as the next presidential candidate puts her faith in the spotlight.

Although Joe Biden claims to be a practicing Catholic and attends Mass weekly, Harris does not regularly attend public religious services.

Harris describes herself as a Baptist and recalls growing up and attending the 23rd Avenue Church of God in Oakland, California, with Regina Shelton, a family friend whom she describes as her “second mother,” with strong connections to the black South.

She spoke about her faith during a visit to the National Baptist Convention in Houston in 2022.

“Faith teaches us that there is always a better future ahead and that we must continue to move forward to make it a reality,” he said. “And to move forward, in a nutshell, I also learned, and we all know this: faith requires action.”

Harris’s Indian mother, Shymala Gopalan Harris, described Harris as someone who attended a Hindu temple in San Francisco.

“She performs all the rituals and says all the prayers in the temple,” he proudly told an Indian media outlet in 2004.

Today, Harris is a member of the Third Baptist Church of San Francisco.

Her husband, Doug Emhoff, is Jewish and the couple publicly celebrate Jewish holidays together.

However, Harris still nods to her Hindu heritage by celebrating the Indian holiday of Diwali at the White House.