Mirror of Justice

A blog dedicated to the development of Catholic legal theory.
Affiliated with the Program on Church, State & Society at Notre Dame Law School.

Wednesday, September 13, 2017

"The Nation's Premier Christian Law School"?

By Rick Garnett

I see that our good friends at Pepperdine have started to market themselves as "The Nation's Premier Christian Law School."  I certainly agree that Pepperdine is an excellent institution that does a very good job of engaging and meaningfully embracing its Christian character.  I hope, though, that they have not fallen into the old error -- and, knowing so many at Pepperdine, I have to believe they have not -- of excluding Catholics (and, more specifically, certain outstanding Catholic law schools) from their definition and understanding of "Christian"!  Remember, Evangelicals and Catholics Together (on law)!

UPDATE:  Although (as I hope is clear!) I intended this post as a gentle and affectionate bit of teasing, and not a critique, I should add that in various other places and communications of Pepperdine's it is said that the institution "aspires" or has "aspirations" to be the Nation's Premier Christian Law School.  And, Dean Paul Caron has stated:

Since my first day, I have loved working towards our shared goal to become the nation's premier Christian law school by combining academic and research excellence with a deep-rooted commitment to our Christian mission that welcomes people of all faiths and backgrounds. 

Such aspirations are, of course, entirely appropriate and to be celebrated.  Those of us who teach at the Nation's Premier Christian Law School welcome the competition!  =-)  (I kid, I kid.)

UPDATE:    Dean Caron has written a gracious follow-up post which sets everything straight and kindly concludes:

 I am of course a huge fan of Notre Dame and the other great Christian law schools, and of the fine faculties at those schools.  None of us at Pepperdine would in any way ever intimate that Notre Dame or other Catholic law schools should not be considered Christian law schools.  Indeed, we have a large number of Catholics on our faculty (in addition to Jewish, Muslim, ans Sikh faculty).  Like Rick, we believe we are all "fellow laborers in the vineyard."

Monday, September 11, 2017

12 September 2001 / Pope John Paul II / General Audience

By Rick Garnett

Link here:

I cannot begin this audience without expressing my profound sorrow at the terrorist attacks which yesterday brought death and destruction to America, causing thousands of victims and injuring countless people. To the President of the United States and to all American citizens I express my heartfelt sorrow. In the face of such unspeakable horror we cannot but be deeply disturbed. I add my voice to all the voices raised in these hours to express indignant condemnation, and I strongly reiterate that the ways of violence will never lead to genuine solutions to humanity’s problems.

Yesterday was a dark day in the history of humanity, a terrible affront to human dignity. After receiving the news, I followed with intense concern the developing situation, with heartfelt prayers to the Lord. How is it possible to commit acts of such savage cruelty? The human heart has depths from which schemes of unheard-of ferocity sometimes emerge, capable of destroying in a moment the normal daily life of a people. But faith comes to our aid at these times when words seem to fail. Christ’s word is the only one that can give a response to the questions which trouble our spirit. Even if the forces of darkness appear to prevail, those who believe in God know that evil and death do not have the final say. Christian hope is based on this truth; at this time our prayerful trust draws strength from it.

With deeply felt sympathy I address myself to the beloved people of the United States in this moment of distress and consternation, when the courage of so many men and women of good will is being sorely tested. In a special way I reach out to the families of the dead and the injured, and assure them of my spiritual closeness. I entrust to the mercy of the Most High the helpless victims of this tragedy, for whom I offered Mass this morning, invoking upon them eternal rest. May God give courage to the survivors; may he sustain the rescue-workers and the many volunteers who are presently making an enormous effort to cope with such an immense emergency. I ask you, dear brothers and sisters, to join me in prayer for them. Let us beg the Lord that the spiral of hatred and violence will not prevail. May the Blessed Virgin, Mother of Mercy, fill the hearts of all with wise thoughts and peaceful intentions.

 Today, my heartfelt sympathy is with the American people, subjected yesterday to inhuman terrorist attacks which have taken the lives of thousands of innocent human beings and caused unspeakable sorrow in the hearts of all men and women of good will. Yesterday was indeed a dark day in our history, an appalling offence against peace, a terrible assault against human dignity.

I invite you all to join me in commending the victims of this shocking tragedy to Almighty God' s eternal love. Let us implore his comfort upon the injured, the families involved, all who are doing their utmost to rescue survivors and help those affected.

I ask God to grant the American people the strength and courage they need at this time of sorrow and trial.

Thursday, September 7, 2017

Paul Horwitz on religious tests, animus, and judicial nominations

By Rick Garnett

Worth a read (as per usual).

Some quick thoughts on "Land O'Lakes" at 50

By Rick Garnett

A few days ago, at Notre Dame, the Cushwa Center convened an event to mark the 50th anniversary of the "Land O'Lakes" statement.  Included in the event was a very thoughtful talk about the event, its context, and its implications by my friend and colleague, Dean John McGreevy (author of, among other things, this great book).  To simplify, Dean McGreevy described the statement as ambitious, not naive, and as reflecting a commitment to deepen Catholic institutions' Catholic character, not to secularize.

The address is not yet available online, but I expect it will be soon.  I enjoyed and appreciated the presentation and -- for the most part -- agreed with it.  Two quick thoughts:  First, I think that discussions of the effects of Land O'Lakes should not focus on the University of Notre Dame.  I agree with Dean McGreevy that Notre Dame is in most respects more meaningfully and interestingly Catholic than it was 50 years ago -- and, as the Statement's writers hoped, it 's certainly better and more important.  I also think that this is, at least in part, a product of the commitments and aspirations expressed in the Statement.  That said, the critics of the Statement, and of the state of Catholic higher education generally, seem to be on solid ground when they say that at many Catholic institutions, this deepening and improving has not happened, and there has been a tendency to secularization, a loss of distinctiveness, etc.  

Next, with respect to the Statement's famous and much discussed opening claim that Catholic universities must have "a true autonomy and academic freedom in the face of authority of whatever kind, lay or clerical, external to the academic community itself":  My sense is that many of those who invoke and endorse the Statement frame this claim as being almost entirely about resisting clunky and ham-handed interventions by bishops in matters of university policy and governance.  Such interventions are, indeed, unhelpful.  However, in today's world, it seems pretty clear to me that the "external" interferences we should be more worried about come in the form of regulations, research-funding conditions, "Dear Colleague" letters, student-loan eligibility, employment law, NCAA policies, and -- increasingly corporate sponsorships.  It seems much more likely that the Department of Education, or the NCAA, or UnderArmour are much more likely to undermine a Catholic university's appropriate autonomy than is the local ordinary.  I see no pressing need for Catholic universities to shy away from healthy, constructive, deferential relationships with the "institutional Church"; I do have serious worries about the implications of our increasing entanglements with ideologically oriented corporations and with regulators.

Wednesday, September 6, 2017

Paul Blanshard lives . . . in the U.S. Senate

By Rick Garnett

I was very proud of my friend and colleague, Prof. Amy Coney Barrett, during her excellent, clear, and composed presentation before the Senate's Judiciary Committee today.  The performance of several of the senators, however, was disgraceful.  Sens. Feinstein, Durbin, Hirono, etc., basically served as a living Thomas Nast cartoon.  I'm hoping that Democrats for Life and others who profess to desire civility, dialogue, and charity will repudiate the tactics employed by these senators. 

UPDATE:  And in Steve Bannon's head.

Tuesday, September 5, 2017

Oren Cass on "Reforming Labor Unions"

By Rick Garnett

In the latest print issue of City Journal (a great publication), and also in this podcast, Oren Cass discusses ways that labor unions themselves, and our labor-regulatory framework, could be reformed to better account for changed realities since WWII and also to strengthen unions -- he proposes "labor coops" -- to make them more meaningful civil-society institutions (rather than primarily partisan actors).  Check it out.  

And, in case you don't have it handy, here's Laborem exercens (1981).

Tuesday, August 29, 2017

Infranca on "(Communal) Life, (Religious) Liberty, and Property"

By Rick Garnett

I really enjoyed this new paper by John Infranca (Suffolk).  Here is the abstract:

Property rights and religious liberty seem to share little in common. Yet surprisingly similar claims have long been made on their behalves, including bold assertions that each of these two rights uniquely limits the power of the state and serves as the foundation for other rights. This Article reframes the conception of property rights and religious liberty as foundational by foregrounding communitarian aspects of each right. Property and religious freedom are a foundation for other rights, but in a different manner than traditional accounts suggest. It is not the individual exercise of these rights that provides a foundation for other rights, but rather the complementary roles these rights play in the formation of normative communities that, in turn, serve as counterweights to the state. 

This Article makes three distinct contributions to existing legal literature. First, it reveals the significant similarities in historical and theoretical conceptions of the foundational status of these two rights. Second, it integrates the developing scholarly literature on the communal and institutional nature of these two rights. Third, it builds upon this literature to contend that the right to property and religious freedom can indeed provide important foundations for rights more generally, but only if we sufficiently protect and nurture, through law, the communities and institutions upon which these rights depend. The Article concludes by suggesting new approaches to assessing a diverse set of contemporary legal disputes: religious communities seeking to locate in the face of local government opposition, Native American communities challenging government actions on sacred lands, and Sanctuary churches opposing immigration enforcement by sheltering individuals on their property.

 

Call for Papers: Fred C. Zacharias Memorial Prize for Scholarship in Professional Responsibility

By Rick Garnett


Fred C. Zacharias Memorial Prize for Scholarship in Professional Responsibility

Submissions and nominations of articles are being accepted for the eighth annual Fred C. Zacharias Memorial Prize for Scholarship in Professional Responsibility. To honor Fred's memory, the committee will select from among articles in the field of Professional Responsibility, with submissions limited to those that have a publication date of calendar year 2017. The prize will be awarded at the 2018 AALS Annual Meeting in San Diego.  Please send submissions and nominations to Professor Samuel Levine at Touro Law Center: [email protected]<mailto:sl[email protected]>.  The deadline for submissions and nominations is Sept. 1, 2017.

Monday, August 28, 2017

The pardon of ex-Sheriff Joe Arpaio

By Rick Garnett

The other day, on Twitter, my friend (and fellow Prawfsblogger) Daniel Rodriguez tweeted a plea ("[W]here is the Holy Father where you need him?")  for Pope Francis to weigh in on the current President's decision to pardon former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio of his criminal contempt conviction.  I'm not sure, actually, I want the Pope to weigh in on specific matters like this, but put that aside.  A few, decidely not-papally-endorsed thoughts:

First, I take it that there is no "Catholic" position on the questions (a) whether our Constitution gives the President the power to grant this pardon and (b) whether our Constitution authorizes federal judges to review this (or any other) pardon.  I assume the answer to (a) is "yes" and the answer to (b) is "no."  

Second, I believe, and have often said publicly, that executives should use their pardon and commutation powers, to correct injustices or to show mercy, more often and more generously than they do.  Yes, the power has often been abused (e.g., Marc Rich should not have been pardoned, in my view, and Chelsea Manning's sentence should not have been commuted when and as it was), but it should be prudently and meaningfully exercised.  

Third, it seems to me that the pardon of ex-Sheriff Arpaio is a gross misuse of the pardon power.  (My family moved to Arizona in the mid-1980s, and I'm very familiar with Arpaio's record, which is not "conservative" so much as it is petty, cruel, grandstanding, and ugly.)  The pardon, like the President's responses to the events in Charlottesville, sends a terrible message and reveals (or, rather, confirms) the President's unfitness for the office he holds.  The remedies for this abuse are political (e.g., public criticism, elections, impeachment, etc.) not judicial, but an abuse it still is. 

Fourth, we should distinguish entirely warranted criticisms of Arpaio and his record from broader questions about the content and enforcement of immigration law and policy.  One can (easily) think that Arpaio's record is indefensible and that it is not racist or contrary to Catholic Social Teaching to (reasonably and humanely) enforce borders and immigration laws.  Of course, to the extent this latter position is identified with Arpaio and his record, it will lose credibility in the minds of many.

So, when the Holy Father calls, Dan, that's what I'll say!  =-)

Monday, August 21, 2017

Philip Bess in Communio on "An Urban Pilgrim's Progress"

By Rick Garnett

The current issue of Communio is about "The City," and my friend and colleague Philip Bess, with whose work MOJ readers are likely familiar, has a nice essay called "City Stories of Nature and Grace:  An Urban Pilgrim's Progress."  Here's a quick description:

The Winter 2016 issue of Communio explores “The City.” Modern urban life challenges us to examine the principles according to which cities either foster or hinder the human person and community in their relation to God.


Philip Bess reflects on good urban order in “City Stories of Nature and Grace: An Urban Pilgrim’s Progress.” A city’s architecture and objective pattern educates its inhabitants, whether poorly or well, in their role as “intermediaries” between the sacred and mundane. “Cities (like families) point beyond themselves to transcendent truths and realities of which their denizens may be but dimly aware, if at all.” In tracing the emergence and features of contemporary cities, Bess shows how a well-structured city is centered on the thriving of local neighborhoods and, by its very form, reflects the sacramental cosmos in which it is embedded.

Here is a link to Bess's piece ( Download Bess City Stories).

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