Advocate for the vulnerable, archbishop urges law professionals

Archbishop Michael G. McGovern called on members of the legal profession to be advocates for the vulnerable, to recognize the image of God in each person and to protect conscience rights, especially for those in the medical field.

The archbishop addressed lawyers, judges, law school students and professors, and others during an Oct. 6 Red Mass at Creighton University in Omaha.

The Red Mass is an annual event at Creighton and elsewhere to celebrate the start of a judicial year and to call upon the Holy Spirit for guidance. Creighton’s School of Law organized the Mass and a reception that followed.

St. Thomas More is traditionally honored and invoked as the patron saint of those who work in law.

During his homily, Archbishop McGovern encouraged those in attendance to care for the vulnerable – from the beginning of life to its natural end – including mothers in need, refugees, the poor and terminally ill.

He said the late Pope Francis urged people to move from ambivalence to genuine care for others. People need to “find their voices,” the archbishop said, and advocate for respect for everyone.

In the Gospel reading at the Mass, a group of Pharisees tried to trap Jesus by asking, “Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?” Jesus asked for a coin and asked whose image and inscription was on it. “Caesar’s,” the Pharisees replied.

Jesus responded, saying, “Then repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”

The archbishop asked those at Mass: “What bears God’s image?”

“Each and every one of us,” he said.

Every person is made with a capacity for friendship with the Lord, with a natural desire to seek and know Him – and with a conscience, Archbishop McGovern said.

Conscience protection is needed especially for healthcare workers, he said, who are sometimes asked to treat patients in ways that violate their consciences.

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