Pope John Paul II
papacy 1978–2005

John Paul II's 'consistent ethic of life' included strong opposition to abortion and traditional marriage AND strong opposition to the death penalty, the Iraq War, anti-immigrant nativism, and exploitation of labor (his encyclical Laborem Exercens grounded modern Catholic labor theology). Paxton lines up on abortion, marriage, and religious liberty but loses substantially on the death penalty (Texas leads the nation in executions and he has defended that record), on the Iraq-era hawkishness now reborn in opposition to peaceful resolution of conflicts, on labor (he is anti-union), and on his immigration enforcement posture. Talarico lines up on immigration, anti-death-penalty, labor protections, healthcare as right, and care for the poor. He loses on abortion, traditional marriage, and IVF — JPII's red-line issues. This is the closest religious-figure grade in the table, because JPII's distinctive both/and theology splits both candidates more evenly than any of the other religious graders.