John F. Kennedy, the first Roman Catholic president, was beloved by church hierarchy and the faithful alike. Joe Biden, only the second Catholic president, is on a collision course with the church despite his deep faith and frequent Mass attendance.

Last week, American bishops attending a virtual U.S. Catholic Conference of Bishops meeting overwhelmingly approved the drafting of a “teaching document” to determine the meaning of Holy Communion for Catholics.

The vote wasn’t close, with 168 bishops in favor and 55 opposing a move designed as a direct rebuke at Catholic politicians who receive communion despite support for legal abortion. Six bishops abstained. That list would include Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, Sen. Ben Ray Luján and a host of other New Mexican politicians.

Santa Fe Archbishop John Wester said in public remarks that he believed discussing who could approach the sacred sacrament and the beauty/importance of the Eucharist are separate issues.

“Conflating these two issues will only lead to further discord and division among ourselves and our people,” Wester said, concluding he could not support the approach of the doctrine committee.

There’s no debating that the church’s teaching on the issue of abortion is clear. Any Catholic who receives, assists in, pays for, performs or otherwise helps a woman obtain an abortion is subject to automatic excommunication.

Many Catholic politicians believe they personally can oppose abortion but not allow their religious beliefs to determine laws for a secular nation. Pro-choice Catholics hold that individuals must be free to follow their consciences — they value the ability of a woman to make her own reproductive choices.

Conservative bishops want to make the point that on the issue of abortion, politicians must follow church teaching — as interpreted by those bishops — or pay the ultimate price, the denial of Communion. They are seeking a confrontation.

It is a path frowned upon by Pope Francis, who preached recently that Communion “is not the reward of saints, but the bread of sinners.” In recent weeks, the Vatican explicitly warned conservative American bishops to stop trying to use the Eucharist as a cudgel, especially because opposing politicians who support any abortion rights puts the Catholic Church in the middle of U.S. partisan politics.

What’s more, by ignoring the pope, bishops are wading into a conflict that strikes at the people in the pews, not just politicians.

A Pew Research Center survey taken in January found 56 percent of U.S. Catholics believe abortion should be legal in all or most cases. Conducted to coincide with the anniversary of the Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion, the survey also found 68 percent of Catholics said Roe v. Wade should not be overturned.

Bishops might ponder why so many members of their church do not favor a return to the dark days of back-alley abortions. Simply opposing abortion can no longer define a pro-life position as it has done over the past decades in American public life.

Come November, bishops will consider the statement at what likely will be a heated and in-person gathering. Part of the document is intended to specifically call out Catholic politicians and other public figures who disregard core church teachings. That means American church leaders will defy the pope, deepening a rift with Rome.

After all the bluster, the document likely won’t be ratified. Such approval requires unanimous support from bishops or twothirds support and Vatican approval. That’s not the point, though. These bishops want to keep the issue before voters.

The inevitable result? Bishop Robert McElroy of San Diego put it like this: The document would make it “impossible to prevent the weaponization of the Eucharist.” That, perhaps, is the intention.