“We can make the world a little more peaceful, a little more just”

The ancient tradition of the Red Mass continues to be alive: Eleven judges, several lawyers, paralegals, politicians, and members of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre attended the solemn celebration in Corpus Christi Cathedral, which traditionally marks the beginning of the judicial year. Several priests concelebrated with Very Reverend Paul Hesse, the Vicar General, and Fr. James Stembler, the Rector of the Cathedral.
 
This year’s keynote speaker/homilist was Msgr. Douglas Courville, the Judicial Vicar of the Diocese of Corpus Christi. He shared a personal anecdote: when he had a bad day as a young priest, the thought, “I should have listened to my mother and gone to law school,” would come to his mind. Then, he met some lawyers, and one day, one confided in him, “I should have listened to my mother and gone to the seminary.” Sometime later, he was asked to study Canon Law.
Msgr. Douglas CourvilleGrowing up in Louisiana in a Cajun family, he remembered that his great-grandmother had a wall with an altar with a crucifix and statues alongside a poster of a quite radical political activist. “What exactly is the relationship between our faith and politics, government and the law?” he asked. “Do we just separate them? Or do we have a dual personality?”
 
He recounted a scene from the movie “The Queen,” where Queen Elizabeth said to then-prime minister Tony Blair, “It’s God’s will that I am the Queen of England,” when Blair answered, “Let’s leave God out of this, it rarely helps.” Msgr. Courville emphasized, “But we can’t – God is constantly present.” God has revealed Himself to us through the Bible and the Tradition of the Church, but the Tradition “is living, is dynamic.” And as no lawyer or politician can forget about his family or friends, “also Jesus goes with you: you bring God into every aspect of your human life.”
 
He encouraged those in the legal field to bring God “into the legal system, and that’s how our world becomes better.” Just as any relationship impacts us and makes us who we are, “we bring Christ into the world by who we are, and can make it a little more peaceful, a little more just.”
 
Thanking all those who came, he ended with the promise that “we will all support you in your activities. What you do is essential for the peace, safety and prosperity of our country.”