Faith-Based Partnerships or State Co-optation of Religion? A Critical Examination
EWTN News reports that Victor Avila, assistant director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) under the Trump administration, has called for greater involvement of churches and faith-based leaders in combating drug abuse and human trafficking. The article presents a panel discussion hosted by the America First Policy Institute’s Hispanic Leadership Coalition in Washington, D.C., where administration officials and allies promoted mass deportation policies, defended family separation as a necessary consequence of law enforcement, and framed the Church’s role as a partner in state-directed social programs. While the article presents itself as a neutral report on faith-based initiatives, a thorough examination from the perspective of integral Catholic faith reveals a deeply troubling synthesis of state coercion, the instrumentalization of religion, the embrace of policies that violate natural and divine law, and the complete absence of the Church’s supernatural mission.







