39th Annual Red Mass of Los Angeles

Wednesday, October 20, 2021, at 5:30 pm

The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels

555 W. Temple St. Los Angeles, CA, 90012

The St. Thomas More Society of Los Angeles (STMSLA) cordially invites you to attend the 39th Annual Red Mass. The Red Mass is an ecumenical, civic celebration which honors judges, lawyers, legislators, and legal professionals. Members of all faiths and traditions are invited to attend.

We are pleased that our Homilist will be Archbishop Christophe Pierre, who serves as the Holy See's Apostolic Nuncio to the United States and will join us in person from Washington, D.C. Our Lector will be Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Jacqueline A. Connor (Ret.), and Petition readers will include Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda L. Solis, Acting United States Attorney Tracy Wilkison, and Los Angeles Police Department Assistant Chief Beatrice Girmala.

STMSLA is honored that Los Angeles County Superior Court Presiding Judge Eric Taylor has asked the Honorable Samantha P. Jessner to deliver closing remarks after the Mass. Judge Jessner serves as the Assistant Presiding Judge and previously served as the Supervising Judge of the Civil Division, the Assistant Supervising Judge of the Civil Division and the Supervising Judge of the Mental Health Courthouse. She also served in the Criminal Division. Prior to joining the court, Judge Jessner was an Assistant United States Attorney with the United States Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California for approximately 11 years. In between two tenures at the United States Attorney’s Office, she was in-house counsel for The Boeing Company and an Assistant Inspector General for the Los Angeles Police Commission. Judge Jessner earned a bachelor’s degree from Stanford University and a law degree from Berkeley Law.

First celebrated in Paris in 1245, the Red Mass is a tradition celebrated annually at the opening of the Judicial Year, significantly that of the U.S. Supreme Court each October. Judges and lawyers attend in a body, joined by public officials and law faculty members. The Red Mass received its name from the Celebrant’s vestments in red, and the Lord High Justices' robes of brilliant scarlet. In Los Angeles, this annual tradition is sponsored by STMSLA. Federal and State judges, as well as local public officials, normally attend the Mass and lead the entrance procession.

The Red Mass will be live-streamed; members of all faiths and traditions are invited to attend either in person or virtually. In person attendees are asked to wear masks indoors at the Cathedral and hand sanitizer will be available. The Cathedral has seating capacity for 3,000 people, so there will be ample space for social distancing. Those attending in person can join us immediately after Mass for a complimentary reception with drinks and hors d'oeuvres with members of the clergy, bench, diplomatic corps, and bar. The reception’s caterers will follow all applicable state and local government health and safety guidelines.

We hope you will join us in person or virtually on October 20. For more information, please visit www.stmsla.org.

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