Usha Vance launches podcast ‘Storytime with the Second Lady’
In an interview with NBC News, second lady Usha Vance spoke about her relationship with the vice president.
Vice President J.D. Vance’s upcoming book is attracting attention not for its content but for its newly released cover.
Vance and publisher Harper (an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers) announced on March 31 that they will introduce a faith-centered memoir, Communion: Finding Your Way Home to Faith, to be released in June.
Vance described the book as a reflection on his “personal journey and how he found his way back to the faith,” specifically his upbringing as a Protestant and his conversion to Catholicism after spending time as an atheist.
The logline for Harper’s memoir reads: “Vance reflects on how he came to his faith and details his conversion to Catholicism. In doing so, he reveals how his faith guides his public work and how it influences his vision for the future.”
But eagle-eyed social media sleuths are pointing out a possible problem. The picturesque place of worship on the cover, nestled in the green hills of Virginia, appears to refer to the United Methodist Church, not the Catholic Church.
What is the cover photo for “Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith”?
The cover image depicts the United Methodist Mount Zion Church in Elk Creek, Virginia, USA, and was confirmed today by metadata from Google Maps and a matching church image by the same photographer. Vance cited his family’s Appalachian roots in his previous memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, which debuted on the New York Times bestseller list when it was published in 2016, but it is unclear whether the book’s cover was intended to mimic a similar setting.
This discrepancy was first pointed out by Bulwark contributor Joe Particone.
Particone wrote on March 31: “While Mr. Vance has become particularly Catholic during his return to faith, the church featured in his book is not the Catholic Church. Given the vice president’s outspokenness about his Catholic faith, the choice of photo of Vance struck me as odd.”
Perticone similarly noted that idealistic images of “photogenic” churches taken by local photographer Tim Pennington are popular subjects for stock images. You can find several similar photos of the same church on the stock photo site Getty Images.
In a Dec. 26, 2020 comment posted on Instagram, Pennington confirmed the name and location of a similar image of a church, identifying it as Mount Zion United Methodist Church in Comers Rock, an Elk Creek recreation area.
Representatives for Mr. Vance and Mr. Harper did not immediately respond to USA TODAY’s requests for comment. USA TODAY also reached out to Tim Pennington.
JD Vance and the Catholic Church
Vance’s Catholic faith was often talked about during his time as vice president.
Vance told the American Conservative in 2019 that he grew up a Christian without any strong religious affiliation, and went through a period of identifying with evangelicalism and his father’s Pentecostal church before calling himself an atheist in college.
Vance officially converted to Catholicism in 2019, but has faced repeated criticism from both Pope Francis and Pope Leo XIV since the start of the Trump administration. Pope Francis directly contradicted Vance’s interpretation of Catholic principles, condemning his administration’s immigration policies as “shameful.” Pope Leo has been vocal about his anti-war views since the Iran war began in February.
Vance also spoke about his wife’s religion at a Turning Point USA event in October 2025, during which he said he hoped Usha Vance would abandon her Hindu faith and convert to Christianity.
“Ultimately, do I hope that she is moved in some way by the same things that moved me in church? Well, honestly, I hope so, because I believe in the Christian gospel, and I hope that eventually my wife will see that as well,” he said. “But even if she didn’t, that doesn’t matter to me because God says everyone has free will.”
“Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith” is scheduled to be released on June 16, 2026.
