Six of the nine sitting Supreme Court justices are Catholic: Chief Justice John Roberts and Associate Justices Clarence Thomas, Samuel Alito, Sonia Sotomayor, Brett Kavanaugh, and Amy Coney Barrett.1Gallup. The Religion of the Supreme Court Justices That is a two-thirds supermajority on the nation’s highest court, held by a faith tradition that covers about 20 percent of American adults.2Pew Research Center. U.S. Catholicism: Connections to the Religion, Beliefs and Practices
The Six Catholic Justices
Five of the six were nominated by Republican presidents. Sotomayor, nominated by President Obama, is the exception. They do not vote as a bloc. Sotomayor is one of the Court’s most liberal members, while Alito and Thomas anchor its conservative wing, and Roberts sits closer to the middle than either group.
Under Article III, justices hold their seats during “good behaviour,” which functions as life tenure.3Constitution Annotated. ArtIII.S1.10.2.1 Overview of Good Behavior Clause None of the six has signaled retirement, so the current religious composition is likely to hold for some time.
Is Neil Gorsuch a Seventh Catholic?
It depends who is counting. Gorsuch was raised Catholic but now attends an Episcopal church. Some commentators list him as a sixth Catholic on the Court; most tallies, including Gallup’s, classify him as Episcopalian based on his current practice.4National Constitution Center. The Justices’ Faith and Their Religion Clause Decisions Counted as Catholic, the number rises to seven of nine.
The Other Justices
Elena Kagan is Jewish. Ketanji Brown Jackson identifies as a non-denominational Protestant, which she confirmed during her 2022 confirmation hearings.1Gallup. The Religion of the Supreme Court Justices With Gorsuch counted as Episcopalian, the bench breaks down as six Catholic, one Jewish, and two Protestant.
How the Current Count Compares to History
For most of American history, Protestants dominated the bench almost completely. The first Catholic justice was Roger Taney, confirmed as Chief Justice in 1836.5Justia. Roger Brooke Taney Court (1836-1864) From 1894 onward at least one Catholic sat on the Court continuously, with a single gap between 1949 and 1956.
Before 2005, no more than three Catholic justices had served at the same time. The appointments of Roberts and Alito in 2005 and 2006, Sotomayor in 2009, Kavanaugh in 2018, and Barrett in 2020 built the current six. Presidents of both parties made those picks without any coordinated effort to produce a Catholic majority.
Does a Justice’s Religion Legally Matter?
No, and this is set by the Constitution itself. Article VI provides that “no religious Test shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public Trust under the United States.”6Congress.gov. Article VI Clause 3 – Oaths of Office Neither the president nor the Senate can formally use a nominee’s faith as grounds to appoint or reject them.
Religion also is not a listed basis for recusal. Under 28 U.S.C. § 455, a justice must step aside when “impartiality might reasonably be questioned,” but the statute’s specific triggers cover financial interests, prior involvement, and family ties, not religious affiliation.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 28 USC 455 – Disqualification of Justice, Judge, or Magistrate Judge Holding an office in a religious organization is explicitly excluded from the statute’s definition of a disqualifying financial interest. The Supreme Court’s Code of Conduct, adopted in November 2023, contains no rule barring justices from hearing cases that touch on their faith either.8Supreme Court of the United States. Code of Conduct for Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States Recusal decisions are left to each justice individually.
Whether shared religion produces shared votes is a separate question, and the record cuts against a simple answer. In Dobbs, the Catholic justices split: five joined the majority, Sotomayor dissented, and Roberts declined to join the majority’s holding. Judicial philosophy tracks votes more reliably than parish membership.