Florida Catholic | Faith At Work

Judge sees lots of opportunities to affect people’s lives

JULIE BETTINGER | FLORIDA CATHOLIC CORRESPONDENT

Published: 12.14.07

SHALIMAR | As an elected official, Circuit Court Judge Terry Ketchel spends a lot of time educating people about the office he holds. Unless they’ve personally experienced the court system, they may not understand its magnitude.

“You could summarize our court system largely as families in crisis,” Ketchel said. “Our day-to-day activities involve handling family matters — divorce, custody, domestic violence, civil injunctions. It’s almost like the court is your last resort to resolve some of these problems — and it’s not always a good place to resolve them.”

On the positive side, Ketchel said that because of the number of difficulties, there are a lot of opportunities to affect people’s lives. “That’s what makes the job gratifying,” he said.

Compassion, understanding and wisdom are primary requirements of a job as a circuit court judge. But he understands that these can be elusive gifts, especially when confronted daily by the human condition.

“That’s where my faith comes in,” he said. Many decisions Ketchel makes are heartrending, such as removing children from their homes, or choosing which parent gets primary custody in a divorce. “When you go to court, there are not a lot of winners,” he said. “Divorce is an example — it’s a very difficult thing.”

When saddled with such burdens, it’s easy for a person to lose heart, or to feel overwhelmed and limited by the solutions available through the justice system; it would be easy to focus on what you can’t do, said Judge Ketchel.

“What I can do is pray, do my very best, and have faith,” Ketchel explained. “I know that sounds very simplistic. But oftentimes, when I am making difficult decisions, I really do feel God’s presence and the presence of the Holy Spirit.”

That support and that faith, in a very practical and immediate way, are part of Ketchel’s daily job.

He quoted Micah 6:8, saying, “You have been told, O man, what is good, and what the Lord requires of you: only to do right and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God.”

“To me, that’s the true calling of lawyers and judges,” Ketchel said, “‘to walk humbly with your God.’ And that makes faith very much a central point in our work.”

DEEPER DEFINITION

Ketchel said his faith is nourished and supported by daily practice. “It’s like being an athlete, you can’t just work out once a week,” he explained

“To me, that’s the true calling of lawyers and judges, ‘to walk humbly with your God.’ And that makes faith very much a central point in our work.”

Attending daily Mass and weekly adoration is part of Ketchel’s preparation and faith-building process. He prays the rosary on his 30-minute commute to the courthouse in Crestview, particularly if he knows he’ll be facing a difficult day.

“I also start my day with prayer, first thing in the morning,” he said. “Those things really strengthen me.”

Ketchel started using centering prayer several years ago and said that it has become “one of the bedrocks of my daily practice.” He also has attended workshops hosted by the Monastery of the Holy Spirit in Conyers, Ga., and occasional weekend prayer retreats in Mobile, Ala. He and his wife are also past participants in the Cursillo program, a weekend retreat that leads to lasting connections with others of faith.

“There’s no question that Cursillo certainly had a deepening effect,” he said.

A “cradle” Catholic who attended St. Mary Catholic School in Fort Walton Beach, Ketchel credits his wife, Carolyn, with really getting him involved in the faith. She converted to Catholicism about 20 years ago, when the couple lived in Washington, D.C.

“You know about converts — people say they are even stronger in the faith than cradle Catholics because they choose to be Catholic,” he said. Recognizing he had a choice is what prompted him in his own conversion. “The will is a critical factor in faith, the desire to push through the faith and go deeper,” he said. “It’s not an automatic thing. ”

DAILY ATTENDEE

About 10 years ago, a priest approached Ketchel’s wife, a daily Mass attendee, about becoming an extraordinary minister of holy Communion. “I think he was a bit embarrassed to ask her while I was standing there,” Ketchel said, “so he extended the offer to me as well. I really felt that was God reaching out. It was a very tangible thing, a way to be more involved with the Eucharist. It helped me get back and be more consistent.”

That’s when he started attending Mass during the week. “Daily Mass had a very dramatic affect on my life. It’s a daily grace, a daily constant,” he said.

Practices are critical to the Catholic faith, Ketchel said, and that the great thing about being Catholic is that there are plenty of options to nurture spiritual growth.

“If you’re interested in study, my goodness, there’s so much available. There’s contemplative prayer. My wife is a third order Carmelite. And if you need structure, there’s the rosary.”

There are so many things available to Catholics to assist in deepening faith, he said, “but we have to take advantage of them.”

Since he started to increase his time in prayer and practice, “I have more understanding, more peace; I enjoy more loving relationships with people,” Ketchel explained. And although some Catholics view it as a burden or requirement, he said, “being involved in the faith is not about sacrifice. Yes, we do sacrifice but we really get so much more out of it than we put into it.”

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Judge sees lots of opportunities to affect people’s lives

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