“How
does a lawyer called to live the Gospel of Jesus Christ reconcile his
faith with the secular calling to the legal profession?”
Co-Authored by Mark Caruso & Michael Morgan
There are two popular propositions that
address this question. The first proposition is that it is simply not
possible to be a Christian and a lawyer. The other proposition is that a
lawyer must separate his personal faith from his professional career. I
disagree with both of these propositions.
1.The Christian Lawyer: False Prophet or Truth-Teller?
Many critics of the legal profession use the words “lawyer” and “liar” interchangeably. This scorn is partially a product of the rules of evidence and legal ethics, both of which present opportunities for lawyers to bend the truth through advocacy. The art of advocacy entails the emphasis of favorable facts and the underscoring of damaging facts. However, there is a stark contrast between a zealous advocate and a blatant liar. The former artfully mixes the paints provided on a palate to create a favorable picture; the latter adds new colors to the palate and slaps an impossible picture on the canvas.
Consider the following passage from 1 Samuel. God instructed Samuel to anoint David, but Samuel was fearful of the consequences should Saul discover this business. In order to keep Samuel safe, God actually instructed Samuel to deceive Saul: “Take an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.” While that was not a blatant lie, Samuel was concealing his true purpose, and God condoned it.
Skeptics of the legal profession also point to the defense of a guilty man to highlight the “irreconcilable” conflict between Christianity and the law. “How could you represent a man who you knew was guilty?” Well, if I were to model my practice after Jesus, the guilty would make up 100% of my client base. Consider the passage in John 8 when a crowd of men were about to stone a woman for prostitution. Jesus knew that she was guilty, but he came to her defense calling, “let he who is without sin, cast the first stone.” Yet, the only man who was without sin was ultimately tried and condemned to death without the assistance of a lawyer in Pontius Pilate’s kangaroo court. Jesus once again came to the aid of the guilty as he represented a guilty humanity on the cross.
2. Separation of Personal Faith and Professional Careers: to Compartmentalize or Not to Compartmentalize?
No doubt, there are many attorneys who compartmentalize their work from other aspects of life. Similarly, there are many professionals who leave their faith at home when they suit up and walk out the door. In fact, there are many people who separate faith from just about everything that they do. Paul identifies these people as Carnal Christians. In 1 Corinthians 3:1-3 Paul speaks to the Carnal Christians, “But I, brothers. could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, for you are still of the flesh…and behaving only in a human way.” Here, Paul is calling Christians to feed on the spiritual food that God offers, so that we may also bear fruit. We must not remain complacent in our salvation; rather, we must make our faith the foundation of all of our decisions.
1.The Christian Lawyer: False Prophet or Truth-Teller?
Many critics of the legal profession use the words “lawyer” and “liar” interchangeably. This scorn is partially a product of the rules of evidence and legal ethics, both of which present opportunities for lawyers to bend the truth through advocacy. The art of advocacy entails the emphasis of favorable facts and the underscoring of damaging facts. However, there is a stark contrast between a zealous advocate and a blatant liar. The former artfully mixes the paints provided on a palate to create a favorable picture; the latter adds new colors to the palate and slaps an impossible picture on the canvas.
Consider the following passage from 1 Samuel. God instructed Samuel to anoint David, but Samuel was fearful of the consequences should Saul discover this business. In order to keep Samuel safe, God actually instructed Samuel to deceive Saul: “Take an heifer with thee, and say, I am come to sacrifice to the Lord.” While that was not a blatant lie, Samuel was concealing his true purpose, and God condoned it.
Skeptics of the legal profession also point to the defense of a guilty man to highlight the “irreconcilable” conflict between Christianity and the law. “How could you represent a man who you knew was guilty?” Well, if I were to model my practice after Jesus, the guilty would make up 100% of my client base. Consider the passage in John 8 when a crowd of men were about to stone a woman for prostitution. Jesus knew that she was guilty, but he came to her defense calling, “let he who is without sin, cast the first stone.” Yet, the only man who was without sin was ultimately tried and condemned to death without the assistance of a lawyer in Pontius Pilate’s kangaroo court. Jesus once again came to the aid of the guilty as he represented a guilty humanity on the cross.
2. Separation of Personal Faith and Professional Careers: to Compartmentalize or Not to Compartmentalize?
No doubt, there are many attorneys who compartmentalize their work from other aspects of life. Similarly, there are many professionals who leave their faith at home when they suit up and walk out the door. In fact, there are many people who separate faith from just about everything that they do. Paul identifies these people as Carnal Christians. In 1 Corinthians 3:1-3 Paul speaks to the Carnal Christians, “But I, brothers. could not address you as spiritual people, but as people of the flesh, as infants in Christ. I fed you with milk, not solid food, for you were not ready for it. And even now you are not yet ready, for you are still of the flesh…and behaving only in a human way.” Here, Paul is calling Christians to feed on the spiritual food that God offers, so that we may also bear fruit. We must not remain complacent in our salvation; rather, we must make our faith the foundation of all of our decisions.
Don’t compartmentalize your faith; clip it onto your Full Windsor and wear it to work.
As a personal injury attorney, I have experienced
the full range of emotions with my clients. As I attempt to shoulder
their burdens and simultaneously struggle with my own, the soul takes a
beating. The operative word is “attempt.” Humans are not equipped to
carry such weight; rather, Christ carries this weight for the whole
world. This knowledge shapes every decision that our firm makes.
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