He has been described as 'the heir to Scalia' and is a religious conservative whose appointment to the Supreme Court was greeted with jubilation on the pro-gun, anti-abortion Right.

But DailyMail.com can reveal that Neil Gorsuch's own church, in Boulder, Colorado, is a hotbed of liberal thinking – and is led by a pastor who proudly attended the anti-Trump Women's March in Denver the day after the President's inauguration.

Another member of the clergy at St. John's Episcopal Church is outspoken about the need for gun control, and helped organize opposition to a gun shop giveaway of high-capacity magazines in the run-up to a 2013 law that banned them from the state of Colorado.

In December 2015, shortly after the San Bernardino terrorist attack, Rev. Ted Howard, 74, also put his name to a public letter slamming the 'criticism and disrespectful rhetoric' directed at Islam – just as President Trump was floating a total ban on Muslim immigrants.

He has been described as 'the heir to Scalia', but DailyMail.com can reveal that Neil Gorsuch's church, in Boulder, Colorado, is a hotbed of liberal thinking. Gorsuch was unveiled last week by the president with wife, Louise, who also worships at the church

Members of the clergy at St. John's Episcopal Church have spoken out in favor of gun control, immigrants' rights, gay marriage and protecting the environment against the 'climate crisis'

St. John's is led by a pastor who proudly attended the anti-Trump Women's March in Denver the day after the President's inauguration. The church, which trumpets its 'inclusive' ethos, also operates an outreach program that includes an LGBT center and a sexual health clinic

And in a twist that may surprise religious conservatives who welcomed Gorsuch's appointment, church leader Rev. Susan Springer, 58, has said she is pro-gay marriage and offers blessings to same sex couples.

The church, which trumpets its 'inclusive' ethos on its website, also operates a homeless outreach program that includes an LGBT center and a sexual health clinic in a pamphlet setting out the best places for those in need of help.

Church authorities also appear to be strongly in favor of environmental initiatives - even adding solar panels to the roof in January last year saying it was because of the 'climate crisis'.

Gorsuch, 49, moved to Colorado with his British wife Louise and daughters Emma, 18, and Belinda, 16, a decade ago after being appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit by President George W. Bush.

The judge, who grew up in Denver but relocated to Washington DC as a teenager, has been a member of the congregation ever since and regularly volunteers as an usher.

Gorsuch was brought up as a Catholic by his mother Ann, and attended an elite all boys Catholic school in Washington D.C. run by the Jesuit order.

Church leader Rev. Susan Springer, 58, (above presiding over Christmas mass in 2013) has said she is pro-gay marriage and offers blessings to same-sex couples

Springer (left) is a registered Democrat and protested President Trump the day after the inauguration. Rev. Ted Howard (right) put his name to a letter slamming the 'disrespectful rhetoric' directed at Islam just as Trump floated a total ban on Muslim immigrants

Springer posted the above to her Facebook page the day after the anti-Trump Women's March

The New York Times reported that he had become an Episcopalian while attending Oxford University as a postgraduate.

It was there that he met his wife, Louise Burletson, whose family are understood to be members of the Church of England, which is part of the Anglican communion along with the Episcopalian church in the U.S.

Gorsuch, his wife and his family, including his brother JJ, 43, and sister Stephanie, 45, are listed as Republican voters.

But the same cannot be said for the pastors at his church.

Springer is a registered Democrat and was among the estimated 100,000 protesters who descended on central Denver to protest President Trump the day after the inauguration.

The cleric, who is from Maine but now lives in Longmont, described her afternoon protesting as being part of 'an epic, hopeful day' in a social media post that evening.

A day later, she described her experience of the protest in another social media post, writing: 'Somewhere in that glorious, unified, peaceful, friendly, law-abiding crowd of 200k [sic] was a contingent from St. John's in Boulder.

'I carried a sign that read 'Episcopalian women marching for the dignity of every human being'. I had some extra and gave four away.

'Some people came over to say hello, including three folks whose relatives are Episcopal priests. We met an Episcopalian from Grand Junction [Colorado] and one from Golden [Colorado].

Rev. Howard spoke out in support of Islam after the San Bernardino massacre which saw 14 murdered in December 2015. He signed a letter calling for the end of criticism of Muslims

At the time, President Trump was calling for a complete halt to Muslim immigration - a watered-down version was introduced last week and has caused chaos at airports nationwide

'We even saw a number of our own parishioners marching with friends and family. I have never felt so connected to humanity as I did yesterday.'

She went on to call for more efforts 'to keep the work for justice and equality moving forward'.

Equality is clearly a subject close to Springer's heart, with the 58-year-old publicly declaring her support for gay marriage in 2013. Gorsuch has never ruled on the issue and it appears unlikely to be re-litigated in front of the Supreme Court at present, but his past view of the issue is likely to come up in confirmation hearings.

Speaking to local paper The Daily Camera in March of that year, Springer said: 'I don't think anybody in my [Episcopalian] faith tradition is out to destroy marriage between a man and a woman.

'I think we are out to find a way to offer the same blessing and the same sense of inclusion to same-sex couples.

'And I think we stand as prophetic witness that same-sex couples ought to enjoy the same legal benefits, if you will, as heterosexual couples.'

St. John's has been included on multiple lists of gay-friendly churches in Boulder and works closely with an LGBTQ organization called Out Boulder (pictured)

St. John's has since been included on multiple lists of gay-friendly churches in Boulder and works closely with an LGBTQ organization called Out Boulder.

The latter has hosted events inside the church and features on a list of places willing to help the homeless in a St. John's pamphlet entitled The Handy Dandy Handout.

One gathering, in June 2012, included the screening of a documentary called Love Free or Die which tells the story of Gene Robinson, the first openly gay man to become a bishop.

Out Boulder features on a list of places willing to help the homeless in a St. John's pamphlet entitled The Handy Dandy Handout (pictured)

Robinson, 69, is now retired but his elevation to the Episcopalian bishopric in 2003 proved so controversial, he was forced to wear a bulletproof vest at his New Hampshire consecration.

Springer, who leads the church, is helped in her work by two pastors: Rev. Tim Howard and Rev. Janet Dewlen, 62.

Howard, a 74-year-old former urban planner originally from Scarsdale, New York, is the more politically active of the two, with a long history of supporting gun control and speaking out for minorities.

Like Springer, he is a registered Democrat, and in May 2013, he joined other Colorado clergy in staging a 'silent prayer witness' outside a gun shop giving away high-capacity magazines ahead of the roll-out of a law banning them across the state.

The giveaway, dubbed Operation Mountain Standard, was also intended as a fundraiser for Rocky Mountain Gun Owners, a Colorado firearms lobby.

Speaking to The Daily Camera ahead of the event, he said: 'It's not really meant to be a protest. It's just a gathering of clergy and others that are concerned with encouraging a safer, more peaceful community, a less violent community.

'We're concerned that what is being done with Operation Mountain Standard [the gun shop's initiative] is moving in the wrong direction.'

Howard has also spoken out in support of Islam and, shortly after the San Bernardino massacre which saw 14 murdered in December 2015, signed a letter calling for criticism of Muslims to end.

At the time, President Trump was calling for a complete halt to Muslim immigration – a campaign promise that caused chaos in airports across the world when a watered-down version was introduced last week.

Out has hosted events at St. John's Episcopal. The LGBTQ organization hosted a viewing of the film, 'Love Free or Die', inside the church. The film follows Bishop Gene Robinson - the first openly gay man to become a bishop

Robinson (above with his partner Mark) is retired but his elevation to the Episcopalian bishopric was so controversial he was forced to wear a bulletproof vest at his consecration

The letter, which was addressed to members of Colorado's Islamic community and published by The Colorado Imam Council on December 10 2015, says: 'In light of recent violent events in the US and elsewhere, messages of hate against Muslims are spreading.

'Misguided people will continue to seek opportunities to destroy peace and inflict pain and suffering.

'We abhor the criticism and disrespectful rhetoric that is being misguidedly directed towards Islam and Muslims.'

It concluded: 'We stand by you and your families and believe that, by the will of God, together we can help turn this atmosphere of fear to an atmosphere of love.'

Howard is also a member of Together Colorado, a community justice initiative that campaigns on issues ranging from immigration to police accountability.

On immigration, the organization's stated aims are to 'love, care for and seek justice for the stranger among us' and adds that shared humanity 'ascends beyond the borders of man'.

Together Colorado also campaigns for alternatives to jail for offenders and decries the use of force by police, as well as agitating for universal healthcare.

Howard is also thought to be behind a St. John's initiative launched in the wake of the Orlando Pulse Night Club massacre of June 2016 that saw the church bells rung 49 times every Wednesday between July 7 and November 2 last year.

Church authorities also appear to be strongly in favor of environmental initiatives - even adding solar panels to the roof in January last year saying it was because of the 'climate crisis'

The church's website reads: 'We wanted to set a visible sign of our faith by providing a piece of the solution to our world's glowing climate crisis. We wanted to be good stewards of Creation, now and for future generations'

In a Facebook message announcing the scheme, church authorities wrote: 'So that we might never forget those killed from gun violence in Orlando and in every time and place, so that our communities might be inspired to call for action to make our nation safer, saner, and more civil, and so that our elected representatives might hear us and know of our determination not to permit the epidemic of gun violence in America to become part of a new normal, please share this with your faith community and ask them to join us in ringing their tower bells each Wednesday from now through November 2nd.'

It added: 'Some of us are pro-gun and some of us are anti-gun. Even so, as people of faith we share in common an aversion to gun violence, and we believe there are many others in our community and across our nation who share this conviction.'

Howard and his colleagues Springer and Dewlen also take a liberal approach to climate change and the environment – both of which have been reclassified as low priority by the Trump administration.

In January 2016, solar panels were added to the roof of the church's administration building and the website includes a tracker, which allows parishioners to see how much energy St. John's uses.

Explaining the church's decision to install the panels, a page on the website reads: 'A small group of motivated parishioners was looking for a way our church, St. John's Boulder, could be solar powered.

Gorsuch and his family, including his brother JJ, 43 (pictured with Justice Scalia on a fishing trip), are listed as Republican voters. But now questions will be raised whether the judge does in fact share Scalia's conservative views

'We wanted to set a visible sign of our faith by providing a piece of the solution to our world's glowing climate crisis. We wanted to be good stewards of Creation, now and for future generations.'

When DailyMail.com visited the church in Boulder, parishioners and clergy alike were reluctant to discuss Gorsuch's elevation to the Supreme Court and the liberal policies espoused by church leaders.

Howard made repeated efforts to evade approaches from this website, while Springer is on holiday and refusing to take calls.

Visited at her home, Dewlen said she was not prepared to answer questions and instead directed enquiries to the church office where staff also declined to comment.

However, one parishioner, who asked not to be named, insisted that St. John's does not 'preach politics' and has no official stance on the issues soon to be crossing Gorsuch's desk.

'The church is very diverse,' said the woman. 'We have Republicans in the church, we have Democrats, we have Libertarians.

'We have a wide mix of people, there's a diverse range of thinking in our church. We don't have stances on politics in church.'

She added: 'We don't talk politics. Everybody in this church has their own view, everybody brings their mind to church, everybody has their own opinion – we don't preach politics.

'We preach Christ's love to everyone.'

If Gorsuch is confirmed, he will take the Supreme Court's Christian majority back to where it was until Scalia's death, and join as the only non-Catholic member of that majority.

Three of the current bench are Jewish and five are Catholic, as was Justice Scalia.

The last time an Episcopalian was appointed was in 1990, when President George H. W. Bush picked David Souter.