Catholic Standard reports on the annual Red Mass held yesterday at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle in Washington, D.C. The Mass is held each year on the Sunday before the U.S. Supreme Court opens its term. The paper reports:
Archbishop [Wilton D.] Gregory noted, “We pray for all of the members of the judiciary and legal world because yours is the tremendous responsibility of attempting to reflect God’s perfect justice and mercy in interpreting the laws of our nation and for all those who will come before you during this next year.”
Those affected by the administration of justice, he added, include those who may have committed crimes, and “those whose language, culture, race, or religion are not your own, as well as those who are at precarious moment on the spectrum of human life. None of them are unimportant and all of them approach you for what they hope will be a sign and an expression of God’s truth.”
Four Supreme Court justices attended the Mass: John G. Roberts Jr., Chief Justice of the United States; Associate Justices Clarence Thomas and Stephen G. Breyer; and retired Associate Justice Anthony M. Kennedy.
Also in attendance were U.S. Attorney General William Barr; U.S. Secretary of Labor Eugene Scalia; and U.S. Solicitor General Noel Francisco; along with numerous judges and local attorneys, along with deans, professors and students from area law schools. John Garvey, the president of The Catholic University of America; and John DeGioia, the president of Georgetown University, were also at the Mass.
