When they say Traditional they mean Antiquated

You know I got my hopes up when I saw the headline:

Four justices attend traditional church service before start of Supreme Court's new term.


But hey we'll take it.

WASHINGTON -- An audience that included four of the Supreme Court's Roman Catholics heard Washington's new archbishop on Sunday describe how religion has been a guiding principle in American history.

In a worship service traditionally held the day before the high court's new term, Cabinet members and foreign ambassadors joined the capital's legal community at the annual Red Mass.

Four of the five Roman Catholics on the high court -- Chief Justice John Roberts, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy and Clarence Thomas -- came to worship at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle.

Archbishop (soon to be Cardinal)Wuerl had some good thoughts:

In his first Red Mass in Washington since being appointed in May, Archbishop Donald W. Wuerl spoke of religion's relationship to public life.

"Morality and ethical considerations cannot be divorced from their religious antecedents," Wuerl said in his homily. "What we do and how we act, our morals and ethics, follow on what we believe. The religious convictions of a people sustain their moral decisions."

Wuerl said politics, law and faith mingle "because believers are also citizens. Church and state are home for the same people."

He called religious faith a "cornerstone in the American experience."

"May our religious faith, as a foundational part of our national experience, continue to nurture and sustain each branch of this society so that by its very connectedness to the vine, we can blossom and flourish," Wuerl said.

The origin:

Celebration of the Red Mass dates to the 13th century and is conducted to ask the Holy Spirit for guidance for those who seek justice. The Mass takes its name from the red vestments, symbolizing the Holy Spirit, worn by the celebrants.