Should Sonia Sotomayor be confirmed as a Supreme Court justice, six of the nine members of the court will be Roman Catholic.
“That is a remarkable accomplishment for American Catholics,” wrote the Boston Globe, “who make up 23 percent of the nation’s population, and will now potentially hold 67 percent of the high court’s seats.”
The presence of so many Catholics also represents a significant shift from the very early days of the court when there were no Catholics and a majority of the justices were Episcopalians or Presbyterians.
Roger B. Taney became the first Catholic justice, when he was named chief justice in 1836.
From that time until 1988, with the arrival of Anthony M. Kennedy, there were never more than two Catholics on the court at any one time.
Kennedy, who still serves on the court, joined fellow Catholics Antonin Scalia, who also still serves, and William J. Brennan Jr., who retired in 1980.
In addition to Kennedy and Scalia, the Catholics on the court now include Clarence Thomas, Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr.
Sotomayor, nominated Tuesday by President Barack Obama, would replace retiring Justice David H. Souter, an Episcopalian.
The other members of the court are John Paul Stevens, a Protestant, and Stephen G. Breyer and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, both of whom are Jewish.
The Catholics on the court more often than not vote together. However, they often seem to arrive at their decisions from different starting points.
Court historians also point out that religion is no predictor.
Two Catholics, Brennan and Scalia, were polar opposites. Brennan led the liberal wing when he was on the court. Scalia is a conservative leader now.
It is predicted that Sotomayor might vote with the more liberal justices, if confirmed, but she has been described as “moderate” by some observers.
The Boston Globe suggests Sotomoyor’s “Catholicness” will be the subject of debate, as people attempt to determine “how Catholic is she.”
The White House told blogger Steven Waldman that “Judge Sotomayor was raised as a Catholic and attends church for family celebrations and other important events.”
Raised in the South Bronx, Sotomayor attended Catholic schools growing up, graduating from Cardinal Spellman High School.
Three of the other justices, Scalia, Thomas and Roberts, graduated from Catholic high schools.
Scalia and Thomas also went to Catholic colleges, Scalia graduating from Georgetown University and Thomas graduating from the College of Holy Cross.
The presence of Sotomayor on the court would represent a gain for Yale Law School, bringing its number of current justices to three, Thomas and Alito also having gone to Yale.
Harvard Law School would see a drop in its numbers with Souter, a graduate, stepping down.
Still, Harvard Law would have the most graduates on the court, with Kennedy, Scalia, Brayer and Roberts having attended that school.
Stevens and Ginsburg, graduated from the University of Chicago Law School and Cornell University Law School, respectively.
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1 Comments
#1. John Bangert 05.31.2009
the chart show Souter still and not Ginsburg. … unless there is something secret you know ))
interesting info (i was unaware of)
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