Tim Walz rarely references his faith on the campaign trail.
He acknowledged as much Tuesday during the vice presidential debate.
“I don’t talk about my faith a lot,” Walz said.
But he went on to use a Bible verse to explain his beliefs about immigration and his support for a bill that aimed to solve ongoing issues at the southern border.
“Matthew 25:40 talks about, ‘To the least amongst us, you do unto me,’” Walz said, arguing that the border bill would enable Americans to help people in need without creating chaos.
“Americans, they simply want order to it. This bill does it. It’s funded. It’s supported by the people who do it, and it lets us keep our dignity about how we treat other people,” he said, referencing support from some members of law enforcement and Border Patrol.
Walz’s Bible quote caught the attention of many people watching the debate and posting about it on social media, including religious Democrats who want to see Walz and Kamala Harris discuss religion more often.
Some more conservative viewers questioned why Walz brought the Bible up in the context of immigration and not other faith-related debates, like on abortion policy.
“Tim Walz just quoted Matthew 25:40 in reference to illegal immigration. What about the unborn? You’re a joke,” posted the Rev. Mark Driscoll, a prominent — and controversial — evangelical pastor.
One reason why Walz’s Bible shoutout was notable — beyond the fact that he rarely discusses religion — is that direct Bible quotes seemed to fall out of favor during August’s Democratic National Convention.
Several speakers referenced religious teachings without specifically mentioning where they came from, likely because they knew that their audience was religiously diverse, as the Deseret News previously reported.
“They’re borrowing biblical or religious language without taking a Bible-thumping approach,” said Brian Kaylor, co-author of “Baptizing America: How Mainline Protestants Helped Build Christian Nationalism,” to the Deseret News in August.
Tim Walz religion
Walz referenced his religion a second time during Tuesday’s debate when he talked about midnight Mass.
That comment confused some listeners, since Mass is a predominantly Catholic term and Walz is Lutheran.
Walz grew up Catholic but now refers to himself as a “Minnesota Lutheran,” as the Deseret News previously reported.