About the DC Red Mass, and the new Supreme Court session

Zenit coverage:

The American project is to live out the consequences of Judeo-Christian humanism, Archbishop Timothy Dolan said in the presence of six Supreme Court justices at an annual Red Mass.

The Mass at St. Matthew the Apostle Cathedral in Washington was attended Sunday by some 1,500 civil leaders, including Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. and Justices Clarence Thomas, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, Stephen Breyer and Samuel Alito Jr.

Breyer is Jewish; the other five justices are Catholic. Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington was the lead celebrant.

The annual Red Mass is held each year before the Supreme Court begins its fall session. The session started today.

• Full text of Abp. Dolan's homily.
• Washington Times coverage here.
• Jay Anderson has a good post on the origin and history of the Red Mass.

So how are things looking for this upcoming session of the Supreme Court? Sadly, not all that great:

• Supreme Court rejects challenge to contraceptive mandate (CWNews): "The US Supreme Court has declined to hear an appeal from religious groups challenging a New York state law that requires all employers to subsidize birth-control costs for their workers."
• From the AP: "Instead of last term's defining cases — abortion, race and campaign finance — in which Kennedy's views aligned him with the conservatives, the big issues are those on which Kennedy has more often sided with the liberals."
• Again: "Looking ahead to this term's lineup of cases, "I can't identify a significant win for conservatives," said Thomas Goldstein, a Washington lawyer who writes about the court and argues before it."

Pray especially for Justice Anthony Kennedy, who remains the deciding vote when the others deadlock.