Pastor 'delighted' Roberts is Supreme Court nominee

Published: 2005-07-20

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Msgr. Peter J. Vaghi of Little Flower Parish in Bethesda, Md., said he was "delighted" that parishioner John G. Roberts, a federal appeals court judge, has been nominated to the U.S. Supreme Court. Roberts and his wife and two children are members of the parish, situated in the Maryland suburbs northwest of Washington. President George W. Bush named him July 19 as his nominee to succeed retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor in the first Supreme Court position to open up in 11 years. Msgr. Vaghi declined to return phone calls from reporters, but through Washington archdiocesan spokeswoman Susan Gibbs, the priest told Catholic News Service that he was delighted at Roberts' nomination. "He said his prayers are with him and his family," Gibbs added. She declined to discuss any details of Roberts' involvement in the parish. She said it is the policy of the archdiocese and its priests, out of respect for the privacy of parishioners and their families, not to comment on parishioners' religious practices.

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