Late Justice Antonin Scalia Honored At Funeral Mass

<p>In a hallowed place where popes have prayed and pilgrims have flocked, Washington capped&nbsp;two days of official mourning for Antonin Scalia with a funeral Mass for the late Supreme Court justice.&nbsp;</p>

Saturday, February 20th 2016, 1:34 pm

By: News On 6


In a hallowed place where popes have prayed and pilgrims have flocked, Washington capped two days of official mourning for Antonin Scalia with a funeral Mass for the late Supreme Court justice.

One of Scalia's nine children, the Rev. Paul Scalia, led the Mass on Saturday at the nation's largest Roman Catholic church, the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. It can hold at least 3,500 people.

Paul Scalia, a Catholic priest serving the diocese of Arlington, Virginia, delivered the homily as politicians and power-brokers, and friends and family joined in honoring one of the country's most influential conservatives.

In highly personal remarks, the younger Scalia has recalled his father's devotion to God and country. But he has said that most important to him and his eight siblings was the love his father showed them.

Mixing humor into the homily, the younger Scalia has said his father sometimes forgot their names or mixed them up but he excused him because there were nine of them.

He recalled how his father reacted once after accidentally standing in his son's confessional line. The justice said: "'Like heck if I'm confessing to you.'"

Paul Scalia joked that "the Roman collar was not a shield against his criticism."

Antonin Scalia, 79, died last weekend at a remote Texas ranch. He had spent nearly three decades on the high court. Burial plans have not been announced.

Among those who attended the Mass was Vice President Joe Biden, along with the eight Supreme Court justices.

President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama were among the more than 6,000 people who paid tribute to Scalia at the Supreme Court on Friday. Scalia's flag-draped casket rested on a funeral bier first used after President Abraham Lincoln's assassination.

Leonard Leo, executive director of the Federalist Society, a conservative legal group, read a passage from the Old Testament, while Justice Clarence Thomas read from the New Testament.

Only one of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's nine children spoke publicly at his funeral Mass on Saturday.

Never before has a funeral for a Supreme Court justice been held at the basilica.

Three popes have visited the basilica: Pope John Paul II in 1979, Pope Benedict XVI in 2008 and Pope Francis last year.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

logo

Get The Daily Update!

Be among the first to get breaking news, weather, and general news updates from News 9 delivered right to your inbox!

More Like This

February 20th, 2016

March 22nd, 2024

March 14th, 2024

February 9th, 2024

Top Headlines

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024

March 28th, 2024