Dozens of lawyers, judges, lawmakers and other legal professionals gathered at St. Patrick Cathedral in Harrisburg on the evening of Wednesday, October 8, to reflect on their responsibility to help people find a path forward in moments of crisis.
“For many who come our way, that path may be unclear or frightening,” Father Jeffrey D. Tudgay, J.V., V.E., J.C.L. of the Diocese of Scranton, guest homilist, said during the Saint Thomas More Society’s Annual Red Mass. “It may involve, likely, a reckoning of accountability for past actions and often the need for reform.”
Father Tudgay, the Judicial Vicar and the Episcopal Vicar for Canonical Affairs for the Diocese of Scranton, told the congregation that they have a responsibility to ensure that the path includes mercy and hope, reminding them that their clients are people.
Red Masses began in 13th Century Europe and are traditionally held at the beginning of a judicial term to pray for wisdom and justice. Red was originally used to describe the Mass in 1310 because justices of the English Supreme Court wore scarlet robes. Over time, the Red Mass came to have a deeper theological meaning, with red symbolizing the tongues of fire that descended upon the Apostles at Pentecost, bestowing the gifts of the Holy Spirit: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and fear of God.
The Saint Thomas More Society of Central Pennsylvania was founded in 1990 to promote the spiritual and intellectual welfare of its members through prayer and the study of Catholic principles. Saint Thomas More, the patron saint of lawyers, civil servants and politicians, worked as an attorney and government official during the Renaissance. He was executed in 1535 for refusing to acknowledge King Henry VIII as the supreme head of the Church of England due to the king’s break with the pope.
Bishop Ronald Gainer was the principal celebrant for the Red Mass, which was livestreamed on the Diocese’s YouTube Channel. Father Paul Clark, Diocesan Judicial Vicar, Chancellor and chaplain of the Society, and Father John Bateman, who serves as Promoter of Justice in the Diocesan Tribunal, were among the concelebrants.
The Mass’ First Reading, Jonah 4:1-11, told the story of the prophet Jonah becoming angry and bitter because God spares the city of Nineveh after its people repent.
“The story, and their conversion, shows us God’s perspective is an entirely different one than sometimes the one that we carry, or the one that Jonah initially carried,” Father Tudgay said. “This story teaches us that justice cannot be truly realized apart from forgiveness and transformation.”
Unfortunately, Father Tudgay said, the application of justice in today’s society often focuses too much on justice or revenge. Instead, he urged the jurists to focus on transformation.
“Something that concerns me deeply is the chasm that seems to be deepening between rightful accountability and compassion,” he said.
Jesus Christ kept company with those who were broken, imperfect, and sinful and did so with compassion and mercy, Father Tudgay said. All people, he said, deserve dignity.
“I think a major crisis that we are called to confront today in our culture is the belief that a person’s history, their shortcomings, their legal status, their stage of life, or their country of origin is what determines their dignity under the law,” he said.
Catholic jurists have a responsibility to see the person beyond their actions, Father Tudgay said. He reminded the congregation to see people as the ones Christ spent time with and those he chose to die for. He reminded those in attendance that how people are treated goes beyond the words that are spoken to them. People can feel biases, prejudices and condemnations.
“They can also feel compassion, they can feel mercy,” he said. “That is the inbreaking of hope in someone’s life. Our encounter, if merciful, can be deeply transformative.”
Hannah Schroer, Esq., president of the Saint Thomas Moore Society of Central Pennsylvania, said after the Mass that the work of an attorney can often be isolating. The society brings together people of that profession who share the same faith.
“It’s important to me, personally, to have a community that I can share my struggles with,” she said. “Especially the unique situations that come if you are a Catholic attorney.”
The Diocese of Harrisburg’s Red Mass marked its 36th anniversary this year. Schroer said that while times have changed, the one constant is God’s grace that continues to work wonders through the profession.
In addition to the Red Mass, the Saint Thomas More Society of Central Pennsylvania holds Continuing Legal Education programs for lawyers to help them better understand Canon Law and how it may have implications on their cases.
Legal professionals who would like to learn more about the Saint Thomas More Society of Central Pennsylvania can visit their website, www.saintthomasmoresociety.com.
(Hayes is a freelance reporter for The Catholic Witness. Photos by Chris Heisey, The Catholic Witness).
By Alex J. Hayes, The Catholic Witness
