Martin J. Hagan, Esq., an independent attorney in Pittsburgh, will be the keynote speaker at the fortieth annual Red Mass, to be held on Friday, September 21 at noon in the Saint Vincent Archabbey Basilica. Most Rev. Lawrence E. Brandt, J.C.D., Ph.D., will be the principal celebrant. Archabbot Douglas R. Nowicki, O.S.B., will concelebrate. The Red Mass is sponsored by Saint Vincent Archabbey, Seminary, and College and the Diocese of Greensburg.
Martin J. Hagan is an independent attorney in Pittsburgh, where he practices in the areas of estate planning, estate and gift taxation, elder law, estate and trust administration, and probate and trust litigation. Mr. Hagan is a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, and a member of the Probate, Trust, and Real Property Sections of the American, Pennsylvania, and Allegheny County Bar Associations.
Mr. Hagan received his A.B. and J.D. degrees from the University of Notre Dame, where he served as a member of the Editorial Board of the Notre Dame Law Review. His community activities include providing pro bono legal assistance to the indigent elderly through the Legal Aid Society. He has also served as President of the Parish Council of Saint Bernard’s Parish, Mt. Lebanon, Pa., and was a member of the Board of Directors of the Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Greater Pittsburgh.
Martin and his wife, Susan Darin Hagan, are active in their Parish’s marriage preparation program, and serve as foster parents for infant children through the Children’s Home of Pittsburgh. They are the proud parents of five children: John, Margaret, Claire, Teresa, and Patrick.
The Red Mass has a long history within the Catholic Church dating back to the thirteenth century when it marked the official opening of the new term for courts in most European countries.
The participants in the celebration of the Red Mass—clergy, government officials, lawyers and judges—would process into the church clothed in red vestments, signifying their plea for the Holy Spirit’s guidance in pursuing justice in their daily lives.
This important tradition was introduced in the United States at the Church of Saint Andrew in New York City in 1928. It was presided over by His Eminence Patrick Cardinal Hayes, who strongly encouraged the members of the entire legal community to give witness to the Word of God through their commitment to justice for all.
The Red Mass is currently celebrated throughout the United States to invoke God’s blessings upon the members of the bench, bar, legislature, law enforcement and governmental agencies — all protectors and administrators of the Law. The Diocese of Greensburg and Saint Vincent Archabbey, College and Seminary have jointly sponsored the Red Mass in this Diocese since 1968.
The Red Mass is attended by judges, lawyers, political leaders, and officials of all faiths who come together to ask God to bless, strengthen and enlighten them as servants of the Law so that, in cooperation and mutual trust, they may more effectively pursue justice and freedom for all.
