By Father Joel Munzing, O.F.M.

It’s only six months old, but already there are clear signs that it’s restless for a healthy evolution – the Catholic Lawyers’ Guild. Indeed, everyone should know about it, particularly Catholic lawyers.

But whatever evolves, be it a Neanderthal soccer team or a Catholic Lawyers’ Guild, it must have had a beginning.

“It all began when Paul Pressley came to me and asked how to get some lawyers together,” recalled the friendly first moderator for the Guild, Father Neal O’Brien, O.F.M., from the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

Then, pouring over blueprints supplied by the law schools of St. John’s University and Notre Dame, the 57 year old priest got some ideas on how to set up a Catholic Lawyers’ Guild.

And with six Catholic lawyers “we sat down last September and thought we would like to form it,” says Father O’Brien.

Then when a spanking new constitution was delivered, the Catholic Lawyers’ Guild was born with the ringing in of the new year in January, 1974.

What prompted Paul Pressley, a real estate lawyer and member of the Shrine Church to press for a union of Catholic lawyers?

Slowly, and to his surprise, he says, he bumped into Catholic lawyers at church and around town, then began to wonder, “How many Catholic lawyers there were in the Archdiocese of Atlanta?”

Gradually, his thoughts tumbled into place, recalling too, the times that Father Neal called for legal advice “such as how to get bail in the middle of the night or get someone out of jail.”

“So I thought there could be some legal service rendered by Catholic attorneys for parishioners who needed legal advice.” Pressley continued, “It could become a Catholic Legal Aid Society.”

Now in the half-light of the late afternoon one can see some Catholic lawyers kneeling reflectively during a special six o’clock Mass. The Masses are celebrated every second Wednesday of the month in the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Church.

When the Mass is concluded, they leave the historic church, and disappear into the gaslight world of Underground Atlanta, just across the street.

There, in the nautical atmosphere of the Binnacle Bay Restaurant they have a cocktail, leisurely converse and after dinner give their attention to Bill Weller as he introduces a speaker. But never an ordinary speaker.

It all sounds too good to be true.

And so does the top-flight roster of speakers: Father Edward Dillon, Officials for the Archdiocese, Archbishop Tomas Donnellan, Dorothy Beasley, Assistant U.S. Attorney in Atlanta, Henry Hewitt, Chief of Intelligence for Fulton County’s District Attorney’s Office on organized crime and Doctor Frederick Crawford, Director of the Center for Research and Social Change.

“It’s given me a chance to get myself back from the rat race and look at life the same way I’m supposed to – and not in a worldly sense: says Dennis Mackin, first elected president of the group, Assistant District Attorney for Fulton County and member of Our Lady of the Assumption parish.

“The association,” he continued, “gives you a chance to communicate with other lawyers who run into the same moral conflicts that are in everyday life.”

Bill Weller, the Guild’s program chairman, and also an Assistant District Attorney from Fulton County’s staff of about twenty-five, says that the Lawyers’ Guild is “basically a spiritual and social unit for Catholic lawyers.”

Weller, a 38-year-old lawyer and member of St. Jude’s parish, is convinced that “unless Catholic lawyers have a basic moral conviction, they cannot help in moral problems.”

Then there is Robert Wilson, a member of St. Thomas More parish and a trial lawyer. He says that the guild offers a great potential for Catholic lawyers in the metropolitan area to get to know one another. He added, “there are many Catholic lawyers I never knew before the Guild came into being.”

William Dismer has a general law practice and is an attorney from Immaculate Heart of Mary parish. About the Guild he says, “it think it is needed as an expression of the oral attitude of the legal profession.” Then, hopefully, he added, “I feel it could become a source of advice for girls who are sometimes pressured into abortion, even by their parents. These girls want to know their rights in the event that they want to have the child and place it up for adoption.”

Dismer is on the board of the Birthright Organization and is also a consultant to the Right to Life Organization.

Feminists will be happy to know that three women are in the membership: Dorothy Robinson, State Court Judge for Cobb County and member of Holy Family parish, Billie Monroe, St. Thomas the Apostle parish and Virginia Bips from Sacred Heart parish.

Judge Dorothy Robinson, the only woman judge in the State of Georgia in that category of the judicial system, says “in going to Mass, my own faith is bolstered when I see lawyers under the same setting. It is enriching to my faith.’

Like so many others, she said that she was “impressed” with Archbishop Donnellan’s recent address.

It was her feeling that “the archbishop would like to have the Catholic Lawyers’ Guild serve as an advisor to him in behalf of the archdiocese.”

She added without hesitation, “getting a number of heads together would give a broader basis for legal opinion … when legal questions arise, the archbishop would ask for an opinion. There are a lot of complimentary things being said about the newly formed Lawyers’ Guild. And their best promotion to increase membership is that they are being said by the lawyers themselves.

What they say and what the Guild itself symbolizes is cheering news these days when so many citizens are down in the dumps about some top lawyers.

Quite certainly, it looks like the guild will be going into new directions for the benefit of its members and for the service of the Church.

When Archbishop Donnellan addressed the membership a few months ago, it was evident that he gave it something to think about. Dennis Mackin, the Guild’s president, also read his message as a call for action, recalling, “as the archbishop said, at some point in time, we must speak out.” That is, he explained on issues conflicting with the teaching of the Church and other moral issues affecting society.

Seated behind his desk at the Catholic Center, the archbishop quietly smiled, commenting about the Catholic Lawyers’ Guild: “I’m glad they came together.”

He said that the organization of Catholic lawyers “fulfills the charge of the Second Vatican Council to the laity.” Then he added that the Council “spoke clearly of the responsibility of laymen in the Church; and their skills should be utilized for the mission of the Church.”

Coming closer to home, Archbishop Donnellan speculated on the special service that the Lawyers’ Guild could perform for the Georgia Catholic Conference. (The Conference is a board of top officials from the Archdiocese of Atlanta and the Diocese of Savannah who, on special occasions, speak for all Catholics in the state.)

“I would foresee when the Guild would be helpful in monitoring legislation and be a force for good area of legislation- any legislation that demeans human life,” he said.

Going a step further, the archbishop said, “In considering possible roles of the Catholic Lawyers’ Guild, it could be seen that the president could be useful on the Georgia Catholic Conference.” And about the Conference, he said that “One of its functions is to support good legislation and oppose bad legislation.”

Similar thoughts were expressed by Father Edward Dillon, treasurer for the Guild. In his soft brogue, he says “The Catholic Lawyers’ Guild could work through the Georgia Catholic Conference and bear an influence to form legislation that would be Christian in character.” He cited the current controversy about “the right to life” as a target for the Guild to give service to the Church.

Then too, he felt that an organization with such diversified legal talent could be a valuable “resource” for parish priests “when parishioners are faced with no finances to employ legal services.”

Lest there be a confusion of priorities, Father Dillon stressed that, “The Guild is an effort to gear, spiritually, to the needs of lawyers,” even though he saw its direction as “social and professional.”

New programs are already off the drawing board, specially tailored to the spiritual needs of lawyers, according to the Guild moderator, Father O’Brien: a day of recollection, an annual retreat and a “red Mass.” Surprisingly, the red Mass dates back to the thirteenth century, first said in Westminster Abbey. The red vestments of the priest and the red dress wear of the Lord High Justices told everyone that the Mass was that of the Holy Spirit, identified with the red tongues of fire that descended on the Apostles to spark them with wisdom.

Wherever red Masses are now celebrated for members of Catholic Lawyers’ Guilds, the Holy Spirit is depended on for His grace of wisdom.

“St. Thomas More is the Patron Saint: for the Guild, says Father O’Brien.

Indeed, he is. And for good reason: he was once England’s top lawyer under Henry VIII.

But, on July 6, at 9 a.m. he had his head chopped off.

This for vowing “yes!” to the supremacy of Peter over the Church but “no!” to the supremacy of Henry over the church he founded to replace the true Church.

Then, on May 19, 1935, Pope Pius XI made Thomas More a saint. And ever since, he’s been on record as the patron saint of lawyers.

The Catholic Lawyers’ Guild certainly has some powerful spiritual backers; and the organization must stand high among Catholic professional organizations in the archdiocese.

But, about its membership, no doubt there are a lot of Catholic lawyers around who would say exactly the same thing that Tom Travis said when he attended his first meeting, recently: “I never knew it existed!” And he said that with surprised delight.

Travis hit the nail right on the head: “I think the Guild has a great potential.” A member of the Immaculate Heart of Mary parish, Travis added: “but, its membership must increase!”

There are now 35 members in the guild and Father O’Brien says “We figure there are about 250 to 300 Catholic lawyers in the archdiocese.”

Good news travels slowly. But watch what happens the second time around! Oh, yes! Even students-lawyers are welcome.