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Catholic Republicans becoming a more familiar sight on the Hill
By Kevin Eckstrom
RELIGION NEWS SERVICE
Saturday, January 8, 2005
WASHINGTON
The 109th Congress that opened this week contains not only solid Republican majorities in both the House and Senate, but also a record number of Catholic legislators, especially Republican Catholics.
There are 154 Catholics in the new Congress - an all-time high - including 87 Democrats and 67 Republicans. While Democrats hold their traditional lead among Catholics, Republicans are gaining, with two-thirds of new Catholic members coming from the GOP.
Political observers say that party and ideology usually trump religious affiliation in casting votes, but they agree the numbers reflect a Catholic drift toward the Republican Party - a trend that could impact debate on such hot-button social issues as abortion, stem-cell research and gay marriage.
They are such members as Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, a Nebraska Republican who holds a theology degree from the Franciscan University of Steubenville (Ohio), and Rep. Bobby Jindal, a Louisiana convert from Hinduism who is also the second Indian-American member of Congress. “The church is bigger than any one political movement or party,” said Jindal, who succeeded Republican David Vitter, a Catholic who moved to the Senate. “It’s a healthy thing that there are Catholics on both sides of the aisle.”
The religious makeup of Congress is based on an analysis by Al Menendez, the research director for the Washington-based Americans for Religious Liberty, who has crunched the numbers for each Congress since 1972.
Menendez’ survey shows a relatively stable religious makeup since 2002, with Catholics solidifying their status as the largest single faith group, followed by Baptists (72), Methodists (61), Presbyterians (50), Episcopalians (42), Jews (37),
nondenominational Protestants (24), Lutherans (20), Mormons (15) and nondenominational “Christians” (14) rounding out the top 10.
By Kevin Eckstrom
RELIGION NEWS SERVICE
Saturday, January 8, 2005
WASHINGTON
The 109th Congress that opened this week contains not only solid Republican majorities in both the House and Senate, but also a record number of Catholic legislators, especially Republican Catholics.
There are 154 Catholics in the new Congress - an all-time high - including 87 Democrats and 67 Republicans. While Democrats hold their traditional lead among Catholics, Republicans are gaining, with two-thirds of new Catholic members coming from the GOP.
Political observers say that party and ideology usually trump religious affiliation in casting votes, but they agree the numbers reflect a Catholic drift toward the Republican Party - a trend that could impact debate on such hot-button social issues as abortion, stem-cell research and gay marriage.
They are such members as Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, a Nebraska Republican who holds a theology degree from the Franciscan University of Steubenville (Ohio), and Rep. Bobby Jindal, a Louisiana convert from Hinduism who is also the second Indian-American member of Congress. “The church is bigger than any one political movement or party,” said Jindal, who succeeded Republican David Vitter, a Catholic who moved to the Senate. “It’s a healthy thing that there are Catholics on both sides of the aisle.”
The religious makeup of Congress is based on an analysis by Al Menendez, the research director for the Washington-based Americans for Religious Liberty, who has crunched the numbers for each Congress since 1972.
Menendez’ survey shows a relatively stable religious makeup since 2002, with Catholics solidifying their status as the largest single faith group, followed by Baptists (72), Methodists (61), Presbyterians (50), Episcopalians (42), Jews (37),
nondenominational Protestants (24), Lutherans (20), Mormons (15) and nondenominational “Christians” (14) rounding out the top 10.