Are there any Catholics on the Supreme Court?

Asked by: Prof. Rolando Glover V  |  Last update: December 21, 2025
Score: 4.9/5 (52 votes)

The current Court has six Catholics in the majority: Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Thomas, Alito, Gorsuch, Kavanaugh, and Barrett, plus a liberal Catholic (Justice Sotomayor), a Jew (Justice Kagan), and a Protestant (Justice Ketanji Brown).

How many of the nine Supreme Court Justices are Catholic?

(The Supreme Court is currently made up of six Catholic justices, two Protestants and one Jewish justice: Elena Kagan.)

Is Clarence Thomas a Catholic?

Thomas' grandfather was his most influential role model. He ran several of his own businesses and instilled in Thomas a sense of discipline and strength. When Thomas was sixteen, he fought to earn admittance into a boarding school seminary to pursue his dream of becoming a Catholic priest.

Who was the first Catholic member of the Supreme Court?

The Supreme Court's first Roman Catholic justice, Roger Taney, served as chief justice from 1836 to 1864 and presided over the most notorious Supreme Court decision in American history, Dred Scott v.

What percentage of the US population is Catholic?

Roughly 48.9% of Americans are Protestants, 23.0% are Catholics, 1.8% are Mormons (members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints). Christianity was introduced during the period of European colonization. The United States has the world's largest Christian population.

How Catholic Is The Supreme Court?

15 related questions found

Who was the 1st Roman Catholic US president?

John F. Kennedy and Joe Biden were the only Catholic presidents.

Was Justice Kennedy a Catholic?

Despite his Catholic faith, Kennedy penned a series of opinions that dramatically expanded protections for this population. These began with Romer v. Evans, which struck down a state constitutional provision withholding anti-discrimination protections from LGBTQ+ people.

What is John Roberts' ethnicity?

Roberts, Jr. The Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States. Born Jan 27, 1955 Buffalo, NY Ethnicity Irish/Welsh/Czech Religion Roman Catholic Mother Rosemary nee Podrasky Father John Glover Roberts Father's occupation Plant manager.

Who is the oldest person on the Supreme Court?

From oldest to youngest, the ages of the current Supreme Court justices are:
  • Justice Thomas, 75.
  • Justice Alito, 73.
  • Justice Sotomayor, 69.
  • Chief Justice Roberts, 69.
  • Justice Kagan, 63.
  • Justice Kavanaugh, 58.
  • Justice Gorsuch, 56.
  • Justice Jackson, 53.

What is John Roberts' religion?

Born in Buffalo, New York, Roberts was raised Catholic in Northwest Indiana and studied at Harvard University with the initial intent to become a historian, graduating in three years with highest distinction, then attended Harvard Law School, where he was an editor of the Harvard Law Review.

Are Catholics considered Christians?

Roman Catholicism is the largest of the three major branches of Christianity. Thus, all Roman Catholics are Christian, but not all Christians are Roman Catholic. Of the estimated 2.3 billion Christians in the world, about 1.3 billion of them are Roman Catholics.

Is Amy Coney Barrett Catholic?

Her great-great-grandparents emigrated from France to New Orleans. Her family is devoutly Catholic, and her father is an ordained deacon at St. Catherine of Siena Parish in Metairie, Louisiana, where she grew up. Barrett attended St. Mary's Dominican High School, an all-girls Roman Catholic high school in New Orleans.

Is Justice Sotomayor Catholic?

Sotomayor was raised a Catholic and grew up in Puerto Rican communities in the South Bronx and East Bronx; she calls herself a "Nuyorican".

What is Opus Dei's religion?

Opus Dei is the only Personal Prelature of the Catholic Church. A Personal Prelate designation by the Catholic Church gives authority to the head of Opus Dei over all the members of Opus Dei rather than a region like a diocese. Opus Dei members are lay-people rather than a religious order of nuns and monks.

Are people of praise Catholic?

People of Praise is not a church. All members of the community simultaneously remain members of their local parishes. The majority of its members are Catholics, with Lutherans, Anglicans, Methodists, Pentecostals and nondenominational Christians also represented.

Why did John Roberts leave CNN?

The Associated Press reported that Roberts' departure from American Morning was at his request so he could move closer to fiancée and CNN anchor Kyra Phillips.

Is Clarence Thomas conservative or liberal?

He is widely considered to be the Court's most conservative member.

What heritage is Roberts?

Roberts is a surname of English and Welsh origin, deriving from the given name Robert, meaning "bright renown" – from the Germanic elements "hrod" meaning renown and "beraht" meaning bright. The surname, meaning "son of Robert", is common in North Wales and elsewhere in the United Kingdom.

Did JFK have a Catholic funeral?

The Archbishop of Boston, Richard Cardinal Cushing, celebrated the funeral Mass at the cathedral where Kennedy, a practicing Catholic, often worshipped.

Was Jackie Onassis Catholic?

Jacqueline Lee Bouvier was born on July 28, 1929 at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital in Southampton, New York to John Vernou Bouvier III and Janet Norton Lee. Her mother's family was from Ireland. Her father's background was French, Scottish, and English. She was raised as a Roman Catholic.

Was Ethel Kennedy a Catholic?

Their children were raised Catholic, and Ethel, a devout Catholic herself, attended mass regularly throughout her life. Ethel and her siblings were raised in Greenwich, Connecticut. Ethel attended the all-girls Greenwich Academy and graduated from the Convent of the Sacred Heart in the Bronx in 1945.

Is Melania Trump a Catholic?

She previously held the role from 2017 to 2021. She is the first naturalized citizen to become first lady, the second foreign-born first lady after Louisa Adams, the second Catholic first lady after Jacqueline Kennedy, and the second first lady to serve two non-consecutive terms after Frances Cleveland.

What was JFK's religion?

President Kennedy was the only Catholic to have held the highest office in the land until Joseph Biden was inaugurated in 2021.

Is Elon Musk religious?

Elon Musk, a famous name famously associated with atheism, now calls himself a cultural Christian.