Rachel Evans
The Supreme Court of the United States has long been predominantly Protestant, but as of 2023, six of the nine justices are Catholic, constituting 67% of the court. The six Catholic justices are Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. This is a notable shift in the court's religious makeup, as only 15 of the 116 justices appointed since 1789 have been Catholic.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Total number of justices appointed to the court | 116 |
| Number of justices from various Protestant denominations | 92 |
| Number of justices who were Catholic | 15 |
| Number of justices who were Jewish | 8 |
| Number of justices with no known religious affiliation | 1 |
| Number of chief justices who were Catholic | 3 |
| Number of current justices who are Catholic | 6 |
| Number of current justices who are Protestant | 2 |
| Number of current justices who are Jewish | 1 |
| Percentage of adult population that identifies as Catholic | 22% |
| Percentage of Supreme Court that is Catholic | 67% |
| Percentage of population that identifies as Jewish | 2% |
| Percentage of justices who are Jewish | 11% |
| Number of justices of Irish or Ulster Scots descent | 7 |
| Number of justices of French ancestry | 5 |
| Number of justices of Dutch Protestant origin | 3 |
| Number of justices who were of Scandinavian descent | 2 |
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What You'll Learn
Six of the nine justices are Catholic
The Supreme Court of the United States has had a long history of religious diversity, or lack thereof, since its establishment in 1789. For its first 180 years, justices were almost always white male Protestants of Anglo or Northwestern European descent. Prior to the 20th century, a few Catholics were appointed, but the focus of diversity remained on geographic diversity, rather than religious, ethnic, or gender diversity.
The first Catholic justice, Roger B. Taney, was appointed chief justice in 1836 by Andrew Jackson. The second, Edward Douglass White, was appointed as an associate justice in 1894 and also went on to become chief justice. Joseph McKenna, appointed in 1898, placed two Catholics on the court until White's death in 1921. Pierce Butler, appointed in 1923, and Frank Murphy, appointed in 1940, were other Catholic justices.
Currently, six of the nine justices are Catholic. They are John Roberts, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayor, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. Sotomayor is a liberal Catholic, while the other five justices are conservative Catholics. This is a matter of concern for many, as the religious diversity of the country is not reflected in the appointments. The current composition of the court has been called a ""conservative Catholic Court" by some, and it has been argued that this group is making progress toward making the United States a Catholic theocracy.
The religious composition of the Supreme Court has been a topic of interest, especially given the court's rulings on cases with religious implications. The Supreme Court's unanimous ruling in the Catholic Charities case was seen as a major win for religious freedom and a clear message to the government to not intrude into religious doctrine.
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Three of 17 chief justices have been Catholic
The Supreme Court of the United States was established in 1789, and its first members were almost all Protestant. The first Catholic justice, Roger B. Taney, was appointed chief justice in 1836. Since then, two other Catholic justices, Edward Douglass White and John Roberts, have also become chief justices.
In total, 15 out of 116 justices appointed to the court have been Catholic. The number of Catholic justices has varied over time, but there have been periods when two Catholics served simultaneously. For example, Joseph McKenna, appointed in 1898, overlapped with Edward Douglass White until the latter's death in 1921. This period marked the beginning of an inconsistently observed "tradition" of having a "Catholic seat" on the court.
The current court has six Catholics: Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, and Sonia Sotomayor. This number of Catholics is disproportionate to their representation in the US population, which is around 22%. This has led to questions about why the Supreme Court does not reflect the religious diversity of the country.
The religious makeup of the court has shifted over time. While the majority of justices have been Protestant Christians, there has also been an increase in religious diversity in recent decades. The first Jewish justice, Louis Brandeis, was appointed in 1916, followed by the first African-American justice, Thurgood Marshall, in 1967, and the first female justice, Sandra Day O'Connor, in 1981.
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The first Catholic justice was appointed in 1836
The demographics of the Supreme Court of the United States have long been a subject of interest, with the gender, ethnicity, and religious, geographic, and economic backgrounds of the justices being considered. The first Catholic justice, Roger Brooke Taney, was appointed chief justice in 1836 by President Andrew Jackson. He was the first Catholic to serve on the Supreme Court, nominated on 28 December 1835, and confirmed on 15 March 1836. Taney's appointment marked a shift in the demographics of the court, which had previously been composed of almost exclusively white, male Protestants of Anglo or Northwestern European descent.
Taney's appointment as the first Catholic justice set a precedent for religious diversity on the court. While the majority of justices throughout the court's history have been Protestant, the appointment of Catholic justices like Taney began to introduce a degree of religious diversity to the court's composition. This trend continued with the appointment of subsequent Catholic justices, including Edward Douglass White in 1894 and Joseph McKenna in 1898, marking the first instance of two Catholics serving on the court simultaneously.
The appointment of justices from diverse religious backgrounds, including Catholics like Taney, has contributed to a more inclusive representation on the Supreme Court. However, it is important to note that the selection process for justices considers a range of factors beyond religious affiliation. The court has also seen the appointment of Jewish justices, with Louis Brandeis becoming the first in 1916, and the appointment of Thurgood Marshall in 1967 marked a significant step forward in racial diversity, as the first African-American justice.
The religious diversity on the Supreme Court has evolved over time, with the current composition including six Catholic justices, two Protestant justices, and one Jewish justice as of 2022. This distribution differs from the religious makeup of the American population, with a higher proportion of Catholic representation on the court compared to the percentage of Catholics in the adult population. The religious demographics of the Supreme Court continue to be a subject of interest and discussion.
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The court has been accused of being 'friendly' towards religion
As of my information cutoff of January 2023, six of the nine sitting Supreme Court justices are Roman Catholic: Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Anthony Kennedy, Neil Gorsuch, and Amy Coney Barrett. This religious composition is notable, given that Catholics make up only about 20% of the US population. The court has been accused of being overly friendly towards religion, and this composition has prompted discussion and concern about the representation of religious diversity on the nation's highest court.
The court's recent decisions on cases with religious implications have fueled these accusations. For example, in 2020, the court ruled in favor of a Catholic foster agency that refused to work with same-sex couples, citing religious objections. The court's conservative majority decided that the agency's religious freedom rights protected its decision to turn away potential foster parents on religious grounds. This ruling was criticized for prioritizing religious freedom over LGBT rights and setting a precedent that could allow discrimination against LGBT individuals in the name of religious freedom.
Another example is the court's decision on the Bladensburg Cross case in 2019. The case concerned a large Latin cross erected on public land in Maryland as a memorial for fallen soldiers. The court ruled that the cross could remain, with the majority opinion stating that the memorial had taken on a secular purpose over time and that its presence did not amount to government endorsement of Christianity. This decision was controversial as it seemed to favor a religious display on public property, potentially violating the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment, which prohibits the government from establishing or favoring any particular religion.
Additionally, the court's decisions on church-state separation issues have been contentious. For instance, the court ruled in 2020 that states must include religious schools in scholarship programs, striking down a Montana scholarship program that excluded religious schools. This decision was criticized for blurring the lines between church and state and potentially allowing public funding to be used for religious education and propagation.
While the court has also ruled against religious interests in some cases, such as upholding employment discrimination laws that apply to religious institutions, the overall pattern of decisions has led to accusations of a religious bias. The high number of Catholic justices and the court's rulings that favor religious interests have raised questions about the representation of other religious and non-religious perspectives on the court and the potential impact on the separation of church and state in the US.
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There is a traditional 'Catholic seat'
The Supreme Court of the United States has had a predominantly Protestant composition since its establishment in 1789. While a few Catholics were appointed prior to the 20th century, it was not until 1836 that the first Catholic justice, Roger B. Taney, was appointed chief justice. This marked the beginning of an inconsistently observed "tradition" of having a "Catholic seat" on the court.
The "Catholic seat" tradition was further reinforced in 1894 with the appointment of Edward Douglass White as an associate justice, who later became chief justice. Joseph McKenna, appointed in 1898, added to the Catholic representation on the court, which continued until White's death in 1921. Other Catholic justices during this early period included Pierce Butler (appointed in 1923) and Frank Murphy (appointed in 1940).
In recent years, the Supreme Court has seen a significant shift in its religious composition. As of 2023, six of the nine justices are Catholic, constituting a conservative Catholic majority on the court. This includes Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett. It is worth noting that Neil Gorsuch was raised Catholic but later attended an Episcopal church without specifying his current denomination.
The presence of six Catholic justices on the court has led to discussions about the lack of religious diversity on the Supreme Court. While the exact religious demographics of the current court are unknown, it is estimated that around 67% of the justices are Catholic, while the adult Catholic population in the United States is around 22%. This disparity has sparked conversations about whether the court adequately represents the religious diversity of the country.
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Frequently asked questions
Six of the nine current justices are Catholic.
John Roberts, Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, and Sonia Sotomayor.
The current Supreme Court consists of six Catholics, two Protestants, and one Jew.
