30 | Fall 2021 | BAEC Bulletin
2021 Red Mass Remarks From the 2021 Red Mass Event held on September 15, 2021 by Hon. Emilio Colaiacovo, J.S.C.
Thank you Judge Slisz for that kind introduction. Bishop Fisher, reverend clergy, my colleagues from the bench, members of the bar, ladies, and gentlemen. It is a great honor to have been asked by the St. Thomas More Guild to speak here today on the occasion of the Red Mass. Having attended many of these masses in years past, I have been inspired by the remarks given by my predecessors and certainly hope and pray I am equal to the task and meet the high bar that has been set. The Red Mass is a tradition steeped in history. Today’s observance is part of a ritual within the church going back to the Thirteenth Century. The first recorded Red Mass dates back to 1245 in France. It has since been celebrated all over the world and our nation first observed it in 1877. It marks the beginning of the judicial year and judges, lawyers, students, and government officials gather to pray and seek guidance from the Holy Spirit. We gather to pray for wisdom, understanding, counsel and strength. More importantly, we pray for those who seek justice and for those whose job it is to ensure it. With such high ideals and aspirations, it is somewhat humbling to think how I might add or contribute to this time-honored tradition. About a year ago, my wife and I wanted to plan a vacation for our family. In light of the pandemic, we thought something closer to home was more appropriate and decided on Saratoga. As students of history, we thought visiting the Revolutionary War battlefields and the State Park as well as its mineral springs would be educational and fun. It certainly wasn’t Disney World, but it would do. Whenever and wherever we travel, we make sure to find a church where we can attend mass. We found a nice church, St. Clements’s. On an October Sunday morning, their young priest began his homily with a very prescient quote. He said that in 1929 English philosopher and writer G.K. Chesterton wrote, “Thomas More is more important at this moment than at any moment since his death…but he is not quite so important as he will be in about a hundred years time.” I found that quote profound, so much so that I asked my wife for a pen right there so I could write it down. What did G.K. Chesterton mean? The young priest never answered that question. In fact, neither did Chesterton, so far as I can tell. It was instead a fragment expressing an opinion that, I do not believe, has been explained. Right now, though, we are living through the time Chesterton referenced in his comment. So, is Thomas More more important than 100 years ago? I think the answer to that question is “yes.” Thomas More ultimately sacrificed his life rather than violate his conscience. Refusing to swear the Oath of Succession and Supremacy, which required all English subjects to swear their allegiance to King Henry VIII, who proclaimed himself Head of the Church in England as a way to grant himself an annulment and marry his mistress Anne Boleyn, More quietly resigned his position as Lord Chancellor, hoping that his silence would do him no harm. However, the King insisted that all subjects, including More, swear the oath. To refuse was considered treasonous and death by execution was the sentence. More’s wife, children and family members readily took the oath, but More
refused. More was imprisoned in the Tower of London, stripped of his titles and station in life, deprived of his wealth, his family, and even his books and papers. He actually wrote his last letter to his daughter with a piece of charcoal on some cloth. Despite being deprived of all the material things precious to him, More would not take the oath. More readily accepted death, acknowledging that he “died the King’s good servant, but God’s first,” rather than violate his conscience. In defining his legacy, St. Pope John Paul II said that Thomas More’s life and martyrdom “spoke to people everywhere of the inalienable dignity of the human conscience.” Without question, the life, and lessons of Thomas More, himself an imperfect man, have influenced the spread of religious liberty in America and around the world. In fact, we are a nation founded on the principles of religious liberty. Many of our forbearers embarked on a treacherous journey to these shores to seek the blessings of liberty that they were otherwise denied. This nation has always demonstrated its commitment to not only accommodating diverse opinion but safeguarding the inalienable rights of its people. Today, it appears that the tension between conscience and society is more acute than ever.
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