Justice William Charles Crockett AO - Victorian Bar
Justice William Charles Crockett AO - Victorian Bar Justice William Charles Crockett AO - Victorian Bar
News and ViewsRoman Catholic Observance (Red Mass)St Patrick’s Roman CatholicCathedralHomily for the Red Mass by Father Joe Caddy, Chief Executive Officer,Centacare Catholic Family ServicesAMERICAN author CormacMcCarthy’s latest novel The Road 1published last year is a grim storyset in post-apocalyptic times. A father andhis young son walk alone through burnedAmerica. Nothing moves in the ravagedlandscape save the ash on the wind. It iscold enough to crack stones, and whenthe snow falls it is grey. The sky is dark.Their destination is the coast, they hope itwill be warmer there, although they don’tknow what, if anything, awaits them. Theyhave nothing; just a pistol to defend themselvesagainst the lawless bands that stalkthe road, the clothes they are wearing,a cart of scavenged food — and eachother.The Road is a moving story of afuture in which nearly no hope remains.Frightening in its vision of that futureThe Road presents a scenario of wherewe might headed if we ignore the worldof community and allow the world of theindividual to reign free and unrestrained.The love between the Father and Sonis the only sign of hope in the story. It isfragile and yet extremely powerful (orperhaps empowering) and through itsurvival is ensured (and while I won’t tellyou the ending of the story) it is throughthat love and survival that the story leavesus with a glimmer of hope for a new andemerging community.In some descriptions of the communityof God expressed in the Trinity the Spiritsimilarly is described as that warmthand love existing between God theFather and the Son — a Spirit thatempowers.It is the Spirit that our readings today,the traditional readings for the Red Mass,invoke. Drawing on three different elementsof the scriptures — the prophetIsaiah, John the evangelist, and Paul theapostle — they give us a vibrant picture ofthe Spirit of the Lord:52Most Reverend Denis Hart DD,Archbishop of Melbourne.Justice Cavanough.• Spirit sent by the Father in Jesus’name;• the Spirit of wisdom;• the Spirit that will remind us of all thatJesus has said;• the Spirit that brings understanding ofwhat has been revealed.The Spirit was given to the prophetIsaiah as part of his being commissionedto:• bring good news to the poor;• bind up the hearts that are broken;• proclaim liberty to captives;• bring freedom to those in prison;• proclaim the Lord’s year of favour …Reverend Joe Caddy.Each of us is enlivened by the Spirit.God is with us, as individuals, and asa community of believers. We not onlyhave the teaching and example of Christto guide us, but we are infused with theSpirit that gives us a “wisdom and perceptionof what has been revealed”.We know from our own experience,and Cormac McCarthy’s story throws furtherlight on the fact, that for the humanperson to flourish individual survival is notenough; community is necessary.God’s plan for humanity has alwaysbeen a social one. He promises Abrahamthat his descendents will number as
many as the stars and will become a greatnation. The Exodus from slavery in Egyptand the 40 years in the desert is the journeytowards the Promised Land and thenation that will be built. Jesus himselfcame to inaugurate the Kingdom of God.When he was asked in Matthew’s Gospelwhat was the greatest commandment ofthe law Jesus replied, “You must love theLord your God with all your heart, with allyour soul and with all your mind.” Thenhe emphasised the communal dimension.The second greatest law he said, whichresembles the first, is this: “You must loveyour neighbour as yourself.”communities. Today we celebrate this aswe mark the opening of a new year for thelegal profession. The law to a large degreerepresents the governing arrangementsthat we put in place in civil society to helpus towards the outcome that Jesus promisedwhen he said that “he came so thatwe might have life and have it to the full”.(John 10:10)The rule of law underpins a great dealof our social and material well being andsecurity. Nothing brings this home morestarkly than to contrast our situationwith the lawlessness characterised inCormac McCarthy’s novel The Road andaccess to redress; protection for the weak— these are all areas where there havebeen great advances in this society overthe centuries, and over recent decades.But all of us are conscious of the scope forfurther improvement. I am acutely awarethrough the work of Centacare CatholicFamily Services and my experience as aprison chaplain that there are too manywho come to the attention of the court andare subject to the sanctions of the criminallaw because such other social systems ashousing, health (especially mental health)or education have failed them.Custodial sentencing is a central partof our current criminal legal system. It isan area where, in particular, there havebeen steady advances over time in termsof clarity and rationality in sentencing, inrespect for the rights and well being ofprisoners, and in working to develop moreeffective alternatives.Stuart Rowland.When he was askedin Matthew’s Gospelwhat was the greatestcommandment of the lawJesus replied, “You mustlove the Lord your Godwith all your heart, with allyour soul and with all yourmind.” Then he emphasisedthe communal dimension.In Catholic social teaching the foundationalprinciple of human dignity recognisesthat each human person is made inthe image and likeness of God. Again thisin turn gives rise to a social dimension, thesecond basic principle of Catholic socialteaching, the notion of common good. Theprinciple of common good acknowledgesthat my human dignity meets your humandignity and that a series of rights and obligationsemerge that are to apply to all inthe community setting.So our behaviour towards one anotherand our ways of relating are vital to thefull human flourishing of individuals andJustice Tracey, Kevin Andrews andPatrick Sweeney.again by Mel Gibson in his recent film“Apocalypto”. Lawyers and those associatedwith the legal profession are centralto the effective operation of this civilisingsystem.But orderliness and due process arenot of themselves sufficient to deliver asociety that enables all to thrive. Justice— fairness — is of central importance.And lawyers are also often better placedthan others to identify the opportunitiesfor improvement in the operation of theinstitutions and rules that maintain therule of law.Understanding of rights and obligation;But it remains an area of great humansuffering, where many of the commonlyaccepted and shared objectives for thoseimprisoned are not met.It is not a matter of being hard or softon crime — there is plenty of evidencethat more, or longer or harsher prisonsentences do not reduce crime. The issueis whether we are effectively addressingthe collection of needs of the society andof the individuals involved.Koori courts, drug courts, communitylegal centres, non-custodial sentencinggenerally, effective education within prisons,and so on all do make a difference.There may be a short-term dollar cost butin the longer term proper formation andthe creation of opportunities for disadvantagedindividuals and groups will beless expensive in both public dollars andhuman misery.The faith and salvation of each of us isnot just played out as individuals, but asindividuals who have a role in the com-53
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News and ViewsRoman Catholic Observance (Red Mass)St Patrick’s Roman CatholicCathedralHomily for the Red Mass by Father Joe Caddy, Chief Executive Officer,Centacare Catholic Family ServicesAMERICAN author CormacMcCarthy’s latest novel The Road 1published last year is a grim storyset in post-apocalyptic times. A father andhis young son walk alone through burnedAmerica. Nothing moves in the ravagedlandscape save the ash on the wind. It iscold enough to crack stones, and whenthe snow falls it is grey. The sky is dark.Their destination is the coast, they hope itwill be warmer there, although they don’tknow what, if anything, awaits them. Theyhave nothing; just a pistol to defend themselvesagainst the lawless bands that stalkthe road, the clothes they are wearing,a cart of scavenged food — and eachother.The Road is a moving story of afuture in which nearly no hope remains.Frightening in its vision of that futureThe Road presents a scenario of wherewe might headed if we ignore the worldof community and allow the world of theindividual to reign free and unrestrained.The love between the Father and Sonis the only sign of hope in the story. It isfragile and yet extremely powerful (orperhaps empowering) and through itsurvival is ensured (and while I won’t tellyou the ending of the story) it is throughthat love and survival that the story leavesus with a glimmer of hope for a new andemerging community.In some descriptions of the communityof God expressed in the Trinity the Spiritsimilarly is described as that warmthand love existing between God theFather and the Son — a Spirit thatempowers.It is the Spirit that our readings today,the traditional readings for the Red Mass,invoke. Drawing on three different elementsof the scriptures — the prophetIsaiah, John the evangelist, and Paul theapostle — they give us a vibrant picture ofthe Spirit of the Lord:52Most Reverend Denis Hart DD,Archbishop of Melbourne.<strong>Justice</strong> Cavanough.• Spirit sent by the Father in Jesus’name;• the Spirit of wisdom;• the Spirit that will remind us of all thatJesus has said;• the Spirit that brings understanding ofwhat has been revealed.The Spirit was given to the prophetIsaiah as part of his being commissionedto:• bring good news to the poor;• bind up the hearts that are broken;• proclaim liberty to captives;• bring freedom to those in prison;• proclaim the Lord’s year of favour …Reverend Joe Caddy.Each of us is enlivened by the Spirit.God is with us, as individuals, and asa community of believers. We not onlyhave the teaching and example of Christto guide us, but we are infused with theSpirit that gives us a “wisdom and perceptionof what has been revealed”.We know from our own experience,and Cormac McCarthy’s story throws furtherlight on the fact, that for the humanperson to flourish individual survival is notenough; community is necessary.God’s plan for humanity has alwaysbeen a social one. He promises Abrahamthat his descendents will number as
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