{"id":43,"date":"2009-10-02T06:52:32","date_gmt":"2009-10-02T06:52:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.beliefnet.com\/deaconsbench\/2009\/10\/seeing-red.html"},"modified":"2009-10-02T06:52:32","modified_gmt":"2009-10-02T06:52:32","slug":"seeing-red","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/2009\/10\/seeing-red.html","title":{"rendered":"Seeing Red"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Thumbnail<\/a><\/span>Washington’s Catholic lawmakers will celebrate the annual Red Mass this Sunday, and a producer at CNN looks at some of the history<\/a> behind this event:  <\/p>\n

The beautifully ornate Catholic church in the nation’s capital has seen its share of history and controversy.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n


\n<\/p>\n

\n

\nIn 1963, the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle was the site of John
\nF. Kennedy’s funeral. After the service, on the steps outside, the
\nslain president’s young son famously saluted his father’s memory.  But the church is also the site of an annual Mass that has drawn
\ncriticism for what many see as an unhealthy mix of politics, the law
\nand religion.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Washington’s annual Red Mass, which celebrates the
\nlegal profession, will be held this year on Sunday, October 4 — the
\nday before the Supreme Court begins its new term. Several justices
\ntraditionally attend, along with congressional leaders, diplomats,
\ncabinet secretaries and other dignitaries.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Past presidents have also attended, though there is no word yet on whether President Obama will appear.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

\nIt is a Catholic service, but power brokers of other faiths are asked
\nto attend the invitation-only event. Justice Stephen Breyer, who is
\nJewish, is a regular.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

The Mass “takes its name from the color of
\nthe vestments. … [It] goes back centuries, to Rome, to France to
\nEngland,” Washington Archbishop Donald Wuerl said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n


\n<\/p>\n

\n

\n“There was the idea [to] bring all the people who are involved in the
\nlaw … once a year so that together, they can simply pray for the
\nwisdom of God.”<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

The church, built starting in the 19th century,
\nis considered one of Washington’s hidden gems. Tucked between modern
\noffice buildings a few blocks from the White House, it is a mix of
\narchitectural styles, a hint of ancient Roman style, a splash from the
\nItalian Renaissance and a definite Byzantine flavor.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

St.
\nMatthew, noted Monsignor Ronald Jameson, was the patron saint of civil
\nservants, appropriate in a city where the federal government dominates
\nthe workforce.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

\n

Five justices attended last year’s Red Mass,
\nwhich was similar in tone to other recent gatherings. Cardinal John
\nPatrick Foley, who has held several prominent positions in the Catholic
\nChurch, noted many parts of the Bible “sound very much like American
\nideals” and reminded the members of the high court to build a society
\n“of justice, of peace and of love.” <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

There’s much more, including some of the controversy and criticism surrounding this annual event, at the link. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Washington’s Catholic lawmakers will celebrate the annual Red Mass this Sunday, and a producer at CNN looks at some of the history behind this event:  The beautifully ornate Catholic church in the nation’s capital has seen its share of history and controversy. 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Prior to that, Deacon Greg worked for 26 years as a writer and producer for CBS News, where he contributed to \"The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric,\" \"60 Minutes II,\" \"48 Hours,\" (Emmy Award, Writers Guild of America Award) and \"Sunday Morning.\" He was co-writer for the acclaimed documentary \"9\/11,\" hosted by Robert DeNiro. (Emmy Award, Christopher Award, Peabody Award, Writers Guild of America Award.) His radio essays were featured in the bestselling book \"Deadlines and Datelines\" by Dan Rather. He's also a two-time winner of the Catholic Press Association Award. Other places you may find him: AMERICA, U.S. CATHOLIC, CATHOLIC DIGEST, REALITY (Redemptorist Communications) and THE BROOKLYN TABLET. He also contributes homiletic reflections to the parish resource CONNECT!, published by Liturgical Publications. In November 2009, he began serving a three-year term as a consultant to the Communications Committee of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). Deacon Greg grew up in Maryland (Go Terps!) but he and his wife today live in the beautiful borough of Queens, New York. You can contact Deacon Greg at dcngreg@gmail.com.","url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/author\/gkandra"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/204"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/deaconsbench\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}