Amy Barrett: "A Different Kind of Lawyer"

My friend and colleague, Amy Barrett, gave a wonderful talk at this year's graduation ceremony at Notre Dame Law School on what it might mean to be "a different kind of lawyer", i.e., the kind that Notre Dame claims to aspire to produce.  The speech is not long, and I think many MOJ readers would really enjoy it.  Here's the heart of it:

So what then, does it mean to be a different kind of lawyer? The implications of our
Catholic mission for your legal education are many, and don’t worry - - I’m not going to
explore them all in this short speech. I’m just going to identify one way in which I hope
that you, as graduates of Notre Dame, will fulfill the promise of being a different kind of
lawyer. And that is this: that you will always keep in mind that your legal career is but a
means to an end, and as Fr. Jenkins told you this morning, that end is building the
kingdom of God. You know the same law, are charged with maintaining the same ethical
standards, and will be entering the same kinds of legal jobs as your peers across the
country. But if you can keep in mind that your fundamental purpose in life is not to be a
lawyer, but to know, love, and serve God, you truly will be a different kind of lawyer.