Those involved in the “sacred responsibilities of justice, public service and diplomatic work,” must administer justice in a spirit of mercy and fraternity, the Vatican’s permanent observer to the United Nations said Oct. 3, 2021 during the annual Red Mass celebrated at St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington, D.C.

“Justice without fraternity is cold, blind and minimalistic. Justice infused by fraternity, on the other hand, never remains an abstract application of norms to situations; rather it is transformed into an attentive application of laws to persons we care about,” said Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, who has served as the Vatican’s permanent observer to the United Nations since November 2019.

“Fraternity is what makes it possible for justice to be perfected by mercy for all involved, since the restoration of justice is always ultimately the resolution of a ‘family dispute,’ considering we are all members of the same human family,” he said.

Archbishop Caccia served as homilist at the 69th annual Red Mass that was sponsored by the John Carroll Society, a group of lay men and women in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington from a variety of professions who participate in religious, intellectual, charitable and social activities.

The Red Mass is traditionally held on the Sunday before the first Monday in October, the day on which the U.S. Supreme Court reconvenes after its summer recess. The Mass is offered to invoke God’s blessings on those responsible for the administration of justice as well as on all public officials, and is a tradition that dates back many centuries to Rome, Paris, and London. The name comes from the color of the liturgical vestments worn by the celebrants and the color of fire, a symbol of the Holy Spirit.

Cardinal Wilton Gregory served as principal celebrant of the Mass. Archbishop Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States; Bishop Michael Burbidge, bishop of Arlington, Virginia; Bishop Paul Loverde, retired bishop of Arlington; Bishop Joseph Coffey, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA; Washington Auxiliary Bishops Roy E. Campbell Jr. and Mario Dorsonville; Msgr. W. Ronald Jameson, rector of St. Matthew’s Cathedral; Msgr. Peter Vaghi, chaplain to the John Carroll Society; and several priests concelebrated the Mass.

Traditionally the Mass is attended by Supreme Court justices, members of the president’s cabinet, members of Congress, members of the diplomatic corps, government officials and lawmakers, judges and lawyers and others involved in the administration of justice.

In opening remarks, Msgr. Vaghi noted that among those attending the Oct. 3 Mass were John G. Roberts Jr., Chief Justice of the United States; Denis McDonough, the U.S. Secretary for Veterans Affairs; John DeGioia, president of Georgetown University; John Garvey, president of The Catholic University of America; and deans and students from area law schools.

As per District of Columbia COVID-19 safety regulations, those in attendance at the Mass wore masks. They were also seated socially distanced throughout the cathedral. In addition, the liturgy was livestreamed via the Internet.

Referring to the Mass’s Gospel reading from St. Mark in which the Pharisees challenged Jesus with questions about the law of Moses, Archbishop Caccia said in his homily, “Justice was being used as a pretext to challenge and condemn — or, we could say, to do injustice.”

“Today, like at the time of Jesus, there is the risk to exploit justice instead of delivering it,” he said. He noted “there is a logos, a reason, a logic built into us and into all of reality that is at the basis of justice,” and warned that “if we do not place ourselves before God … there is the risk to ‘use’ even God for our own ends instead of serving Him.”

Archbishop Caccia said that Jesus sought to lead the Pharisees from “the hardness of their hearts” and instead “place themselves in the presence of God with an openness to understand what is God’s plan.”

“Those who receive God and draw near to Him, draw near to His justice,” the archbishop said. “Without this humble attitude, we risk repeating what the ancient Romans expressed … Even just laws, they asserted, can result in injustice when unaccompanied by a just heart.”

Noting that the annual Mass was being offered just one day before the first anniversary of the publication of Pope Francis’s encyclical “Fratelli Tutti” (“Brothers and Sisters All”), Archbishop Caccia encouraged lawmakers to “not only draw near as neighbor to those in need, but take responsibility for them as a brother or sister.”

In quoting the encyclical in which Pope Francis wrote, “Each day we have to decide whether to be Good Samaritans or indifferent bystanders,” Archbishop Caccia told those in the legal profession that “each day we determine whether or not we’re ashamed to treat others as brothers and sisters.”

Noting that everyone is on a “journey of truth and continual conversion,” Archbishop Caccia urged those at the Mass to remember that “every time we treat others as objects that we can ‘grasp’ and use for our own purposes, we lose them. If we, however, receive them as a gift, we can start a relationship that may last a lifetime.”

“This is the relationship that God envisages for us,” he said, “and we are called to embrace this revelation with gratitude and let it inform our whole life.”

Archbishop Caccia prayed that the Holy Spirit “will come down upon each of us and all those involved in carrying out the sacred responsibilities of justice, public service and diplomatic work,” and asked God “for the grace to grow in justice as His beloved sons and daughters.”

“As we behold Jesus, who was not ashamed to call us brothers and sisters, and draw near to Him not to test Him but to learn from Him, we implore divine assistance to become ever more just and fraternal in our relations with one another,” he said. 

At native of Milan, Italy, Archbishop Caccia entered the diplomatic service of the Holy See 30 years ago. He has served at the Apostolic Nunciature in Tanzania, was previously the papal nuncio to Lebanon and the Philippines and was assessor for general affairs in the Vatican’s Secretariat of State. He was named a bishop by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009.

“It is fitting to start the new judicial year with this request for the gift of the Holy Spirit, who gives us true wisdom and joy, and generously bestows his guidance on all those who turn to him with a pure intention,” Archbishop Caccia said.

He said the Red Mass “is a powerful reminder that justice has to do with something sacred and that those who practice its administration are at the service of something larger and greater than themselves.”

At the beginning of the Mass, a Knights of Columbus color guard marched down the aisle carrying the U.S. and Vatican flags. After the presentation of the colors, the congregation sang the National Anthem. During the Mass, prayers were offered for those who serve the public in federal, state and local offices; for those suffering from COVID and other health challenges; and for peace in the world.

Also at the Mass, Cardinal Gregory thanked Archbishop Caccia for “the witness you offer in the name of the Holy Father.”

Just prior to the end of the Mass, the congregation sang “America the Beautiful.” 

After the Mass, the John Carroll Society hosted a brunch and honored several lawyers and law firms for their pro bono support of the Catholic Charities Legal Network. 

This year’s honorees were attorneys Joseph J. Kavanaugh, partner in the law firm of Steptoe & Johnson, LLP; Timothy P. O’Brien, a principal in the law firm of Joseph Greenwald & Lake; Angela Kuan and Theresa M. Hyatte. Also honored was the law firm of Baker & Hosteler, LLP.