The Most Reverend Archbishop, Bishops, priests, deacons, our very distinguished public officials, Speaker of the House Marco Rubio; Lieutenant Governor Jeff Kottkamp; Chief of Staff Larry Ringers; public servants of the three branches of government here present; dear brothers and sisters in the Lord, 

No hour of the day is comparable to the time of celebrating Mass. Heaven and earth meet in a time which transcends time. This Annual Red Mass celebrates the fact that for the last 32 years, this gathering has taken place. It is so special to bring together a representative portion of public servants for the people of the State of Florida. It brings together a representative of committed laity of the whole state to build a Floridian society reflecting the values of the Gospel. Here we are together with the shepherds of all the dioceses of Florida to listen humbly to the Word, and Christian preaching, and to pray for the common good. This “common good”, which is under God’s judgment, and is our common responsibility. 

His Holiness Benedict XVI in his one and only Encyclical Letter “God is Love” stated this mission with remarkable clarity: 

Politics is more than a mere mechanism for defining the rules of public life: Its origin and its goals are found in justice, which by its very nature has to do with ethics. The State must inevitably face the question of how justice can be achieved here and now.  

Yet as you know this is not easy to achieve. Our motivations are mixed. There are many pressures from special interests, and our ethical judgments need a process of clarification at the level of the mind, and courage and determination to act at the level of the will. 

For a public servant to achieve this well, he or she needs God’s help in cleansing his or her mind from blind spots so that justice can be attained in the State affairs.[1]      

For us there is a non-negotiable truth: Each human being is made in the image of God. This fact is the solid ground of each person’s dignity. 

This dignity is real even if he or she is not yet born. This dignity is real even if he or she lacks legal documents to stay in our beloved country. This dignity is real even if he or she is in the death row or in prison. This dignity is real even if he or she is old and terminally ill; limited in human capacities, useless to family and society. This dignity is real even if he or she is as tiny as an embryo. 

The dignity of the human person made in the image of God is indeed the cornerstone of a moral, and just, and peaceful society in which each person can attain happiness. This sacred value is also the basic value on which all men and women of good will can reach consensus in post-modern society. 

Tonight I commend Florida Representative Mike Davis, who was distinguished at noon time by the Florida Catholic Conference as the recipient of the Defensor Dignitatis Award. I wish all of us would be known as defensors dignitatis – defenders of human dignity. 

When our laws reflect the sacred and inherent value of each human person, especially the week and the vulnerable, we inherit the blessings of Scripture as we heard today: “…Keep them, observe them and they will demonstrate to the people your wisdom and understanding… and they will exclaim, no other people is as wise and prudent as this great nation.”[2] 

In a recent speech to a group of Canadian bishops, His Holiness Benedict XVI reflected on the work of legislators, and public officials in the context which falsely rejects that there is such a thing as truth, which pushes Christianity to the margins as if it has nothing to say to society on situations marked by subjectivism and increasing secularism. 

I quote the Holy Father: “Certain values detached from their moral roots and full significance found in Christ have evolved in the most disturbing of ways. In the name of “tolerance” your country has had to endure the folly of the redefinition of spouse, and in the name of “freedom of choice” it is confronted with the daily destruction of unborn children. When the creator’s divine plan is ignored, the truth of human nature is lost. 

False dichotomies are particularly damaging when Christian civic leaders sacrifice the unity of faith and sanction the disintegration of reason and the principles of natural ethics, by yielding to social trends and [the spurious demands of] opinion polls. 

Democracy succeeds only to the extent that it is based on truth and a correct understanding of the human person. Catholic involvement in political life cannot compromise on this principle; otherwise Christian witness to the splendor of truth in the public sphere would be silenced...

In your discussions with politicians and civic leaders, I encourage you to demonstrate that our Christian faith, far from being an impediment to dialogue, is a bridge, precisely because it brings together reason and culture.” [3]  

In tonight’s Gospel, Jesus teaches us to find freedom in truth. Freedom is far more than the ability to choose between this and that. Freedom enables us to choose in harmony with God’s plan. 

“Do not imagine, says the Master, that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets. I have come not to abolish it but to complete it. The one who keeps the commandments, and teaches them, will be considered great in the Kingdom of heaven.” [4] 

The more we follow Jesus’ way, the more we seek to cultivate virtue and to give the best of ourselves. 

This great Co-Cathedral of our State Capitol honors a layman, a husband, a father, a lawyer, a writer, a diplomat, a scholar, a martyr: St. Thomas More. Indeed, he is a man for all seasons. He is a man for this season. St. Thomas More was proclaimed seven years ago by John Paul II as the Patron of statesmen and politicians. According to His Holiness: “Thomas More witnessed the primacy of truth over power.” He is a source of inspiration for a political system which has as its supreme goal the service of the human person. Thomas More’s vision was that government is above all an exercise of virtue and he dealt with controversies with a superb sense of fairness. He died as a martyr because of his passion for truth… for him his moral conscience was a defining voice, the voice of God in his soul.” [5] 

In his paschal victory, which this event re-enacts, Jesus, the risen Lord, makes everything “whole”; he completes all things by his self-giving Eucharistic love. For the Apostle Paul, the Spirit comes to our help and you and I know that this grace is what makes our practice of the truth possible.