Judges, legal professionals, law students gather for Red Mass

Wearing their courtroom robes, judges who serve in central Indiana at the federal, state and local levels take part on Oct. 6 in the annual Red Mass of the St. Thomas More Society of Central Indiana celebrated at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis. (Photos by Sean Gallagher)

By Sean Gallagher

The St. Thomas More Society of Central Indiana, a professional organization for Catholic legal professionals in the area, celebrated its annual Red Mass on Oct. 6 at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis.

Archbishop Charles C. Thompson was the principal celebrant of the liturgy, which was attended by judges who serve at the federal, state and local levels across central Indiana, as well as other legal professionals and law students.

The annual liturgy is a continuation of a tradition dating to the Middle Ages when judges and attorneys would seek at the start of a court’s term, which traditionally begins in the autumn, the assistance of the Holy Spirit in their work. It is the reason that vestments worn at such liturgies are red in color and why this gathering of legal professionals is called a Red Mass.

In his homily during the Mass, Archbishop Thompson noted that all people have “an innate sense of right and wrong” in their conscience.

“Consciences, of course, must be informed and grow in greater understanding of good and evil,” he went on to say. “Ultimately, as Catholics, this means we must always strive to be and remain Christ-centered, not driven by ego, personalities, ideologies or any other agenda, but to be centered on him.”

The Gospel reading at the Mass (Lk 10:38-42) recounted the story of Jesus in the home of Martha and Mary in which Martha asks him to have Mary help her with the work of hospitality instead of sitting and listening to him. In reply, Jesus tells Martha that “Mary has chosen the better part, and it will not be taken from her” (Lk 10:42).

Archbishop Thompson reflected that the reading calls for a balance between contemplation and action in every person and noted this is especially true for people who work in the judicial system.

With judges wearing their courtroom robes sitting before him, Archbishop Thompson said that “it is essential that we are able to listen and allow ourselves to be both informed and formed by something greater than ourselves.

“That something greater involved in the law is not just the Constitution, legal codes and law books, but the primary laws of God made especially known to us through Jesus Christ.”

The archbishop ended his homily by inviting all the legal professionals and law students attending the Red Mass to consider that rooting their work in Christ to help them carry out earthly justice and also contribute to the “salvation of souls.”

“It is only through a Christ-centered conscience, rooted in a proper balance of contemplation and action—Mary and Martha—that we are able to be guardians of civility, dispensers of justice, bearers of law and order and ambassadors of truth in charity,” Archbishop Thompson said. “We rely upon the divine grace of Jesus Christ, the Word of God made flesh, made perpetually available to us in the sacraments, particularly in this holy Eucharist that we celebrate, to remain faithful to both law and conscience.

“May all we say and do be for the glory of God and the salvation of souls.”

At the dinner that followed at the Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Catholic Center, Toby McClamroch, a member of Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Indianapolis and an Indianapolis-based partner in Dentons, a multinational law firm, received the St. Thomas More Society’s Man for All Seasons Award.

The award takes its name from a description of St. Thomas More, a 16th-century English statesman and martyr, given to him by Robert Whittington, an English grammarian who was a contemporary of More. A Man for All Seasons is also the title of a 1960 play by Robert Bolt and a 1966 Academy Award-winning movie.

In addition to his work advising businesses in government-related matters and representing many counties, cities and towns in his work as an attorney, McClamroch also leads the board of directors of Marian University in Indianapolis.

John Mundell, president and founder of the Indianapolis-based Mundell and Associates, an environmental consulting firm, was the keynote speaker at the dinner.

A member of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Indianapolis, Mundell spoke about his efforts in promoting the Church’s teachings on respect for creation as expressed in Pope Francis’ 2015 encyclical letter, “Laudato Si’: On Care for Our Common Home.” He did this notably while serving from 2022-25 as the director of the Vatican’s Laudato Si’ Action Platform. †