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Attorneys, judges, friends and family walked into Saints Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis on Monday afternoon for the annual Red Mass.
The Saint Thomas More Society Central Indiana celebrated Red Mass with Indianapolis Archbishop Charles Thompson as the celebrant.
Red Mass started in Europe as a way to request God’s blessing and guidance for judges, lawyers and legislators of all faiths.
Members of the judiciary who attended this year’s central Indiana celebration included Indiana Supreme Court Justice Derek Molter, Court of Appeals of Indiana Judge Elizabeth Tavitas, and Chief Judge Tanya Walton Pratt and Judge James Hanlon of the Indiana Southern District Court.
Thompson led the prayer of the faithful for around 50 of the people in attendance.
“For the leaders of peoples and nations of the world, may they be successful in their efforts to promote peace and justice and grow in wisdom, courage and love, we pray to the Lord. For the judges of our community, that they be guided by St. Thomas More and the Holy Spirit in making decisions, we pray to the Lord,” Thompson said in prayer. “For wisdom, that the members of the Indiana bar apply the precepts of God’s eternal law to the problems in their daily practice, we pray to the Lord. For all members of the legal profession, that they keep their passion for the law alive in their hearts, we pray to the Lord.”
Attendees then took communion, and once mass was over, they walked across the street for dinner in the Assembly Hall of the Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Catholic Center.
Marion Superior Judge David Certo, president of the Thomas More Society Central Indiana, said they had a great turnout of people coming together to pray for each other.
Certo said he first started attending Red Mass in 1995 shortly after arriving in Indianapolis.
The evening also featured recognition for Angela Espada, the executive director of the Indiana Catholic Conference, who was honored as the recipient of the 2023 “Woman for All Seasons” award. The award is given to those whose life and work exemplifies the ideals of Saint Thomas More, and the honoree is chosen by the society’s board.
A 1987 graduate of the Indiana University Mauer School of Law, Espada started her career as a staff attorney for the Indiana Supreme Court before becoming the first African American associate dean at Indiana University.
Specifically, Espada was the first associate dean of students at what is now known as the IU Robert H. McKinney School of law. She later became associate assistant chancellor for diversity, equity and inclusion at IUPUI.
In her current role, Espada is the first woman to serve as executive director of the Indiana Catholic Conference and the first woman of color to serve as a full-time executive director of a Catholic conference.
Certo recalled first knowing Espada when she was at IU McKinney.
“It was a lot of fun to watch her career grow,” he said, adding, “It’s an inspiration to us to watch someone advocate in a nonpartisan way that she has for the church.”
The dinner also featured an address from Senior Judge Robert Conrad of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina, who spoke about living life in light of Saint Thomas More.
Among other notable facets of his life, More was executed by England’s King Henry VIII for treason after the king separated from the Roman Catholic Church to divorce Catherine of Aragon and marry Anne Boleyn.
“He told us to live the vocation as problem-solvers, even if it costs us personally,” Certo said of Conrad’s speech.
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