CAP With the courthouse being closed, CITY more than 60 local lawyers gathered in the atrium of the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in downtown Springfield on President’s Day for a legal conference headed by Bishop Thomas John Paprocki, himself a licensed attorney.

Paprocki didn’t divulge any surefire strategies for winning divorce cases or any other kind of case, for that matter. Instead, he talked about Thomas More, the English saint (and lawyer) who was beheaded for treason in 1535 when he refused to recognize King Henry VIII as being superior to the Pope. Paprocki asked his audience to think about why they went to law school and what’s important to them.

The bishop also suggested that the local legal community start holding Red Masses, typically held in the fall, when judges, lawyers and law students gather to celebrate Mass. Nearly everyone in the room raised hands when Paprocki asked if there was interest in starting an organization for Catholic lawyers. Stay tuned.