Photo courtesy of Geskus

Welcome to the official website of Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal Parish in Hampton, NH.  Our parish includes the Mission Church of St. Elizabeth of Hungary in Seabrook, NH.  We have a combined parish community of 1,400 families, with a wide variety of ministries and programs.

In addition, we are fortunate to have a parochial school. Sacred Heart School has an enrollment of well over 200 students, a competent and dedicated staff, and a host of parents who are very involved.

Please visit the various pages on this website and see the many ways in which we strive to serve God through service to His people.  We have a list of information for your convenience; including online giving, calendar of events and registration forms.

We hope this will allow you to find out a little bit about who we are and what we do.

In addition, we are fortunate to have a parochial school. Sacred Heart School has an enrollment of well over 200 students, a competent and dedicated staff, and a host of parents who are very involved.

Please visit the various pages on this website and see the many ways in which we strive to serve God through service to His people.  We have a list of information for your convenience; including online giving, calendar of events and registration forms.

We hope this will allow you to find out a little bit about who we are and what we do.

 

Changes to the Liturgy

 

Dear Friends:

CHANGE IS COMING…

You may have already heard that on Nov. 27, 2011, the first Sunday of Advent we will begin to use the third edition of the Roman Missal.  This new edition will give the entire English-speaking world a new translation of virtually every prayer we pray at Mass the whole year long.

This new English translation of the Roman Missal -- many years in the making -- was approved for use by the Vatican just before the summer of 2010.  The goal of the new translation, which will ask us to use language that is perhaps a little more formal than we are used to, is to make the liturgy conform as closely as possible to the original Latin texts, and thus bring to the surface the richness of our tradition contained in the texts.

The structure of the Mass will remain unchanged, but the prayers and responses with which we have grown familiar over the past 40 years will change. This will occur throughout the world in English-speaking nations.   The majority of the changes will affect the celebrant's parts of the mass.  All priests will use these newly translated texts when they celebrate the Mass. The prayers and some responses of the congregation also will change. In addition, sacred chants and music used in worship are being modified to be harmonious with the language of the new missal.

While most of the changes affect those celebrating the Mass, musicians and others responsible for the liturgy, you'll also have some changes to make. For example, the new translation asks you to respond a little bit differently to the priest's greeting, "The Lord be with you!" With the new missal, your response will be, "And with your Spirit," instead of, "And also with you."

Please have no worries that you won't know what to do or say at Mass! Over the next several months you will hear much about the new translation through information that will be given to you through our bulletin, website, inserts, pulpit announcements and homilies, through parish gatherings and, hopefully, through a short video.  Our local Diocese has established a committee to help implement the third edition of the Roman Missal and we will incorporate whatever resources they offer.

It is my hope that we as a parish community will be open to these changes.  It is always difficult to let go of the old, tried and true, but change is good.  It forces us to appreciate what many of us may have taken for granted.  God blesses us in various ways and don't be surprised that graces will come our way.  So our first challenge is to welcome the revised missal with respect and humility.

 

In the meantime you can check out and visit www.usccb.org/romanmissal/.  It has a variety of materials that you will find helpful. 

Have a great week.                                                              

Fr. Gary

About Fr. Gary

I was born on May 20, 1963. I was raised by my mom and dad in Buffalo, NY. I am the middle of three children.  My older sister and her husband have two boys; one who is in college and the other in high school. They live in the suburbs of Buffalo. My younger sister lives in the country with her husband and their dog, Blue. My family visits me at least once, sometimes twice a year. Hopefully you will get to meet them.

Education

I was educated at Transfiguration Catholic School in Buffalo, St. Mark High School Seminary Prep in Erie, PA, and Wadhams Hall Seminary College in Ogdensburg, NY where I received my BA in Philosophy. My theology formation and schooling was at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, MD. I was ordained a Deacon on my birthday in 1989 and ordained a priest on June 2, 1990. My assignments have been at St. Bernard in Keene as an Associate Pastor where I spent six years, and at St. Joseph in Laconia as Pastor for 13 years. I assisted the Laconia Police Department as their Chaplain and the Gilford Fire Department as their Chaplain. Both experiences gave me an opportunity to meet and be part of the larger community in the Lakes Region.

Interests

I have many interests; however, one probably is more evident than any of the others and that is I love to golf! I also enjoy swimming, exercising, wakeboarding, biking and racquetball. I love to eat. Some of my favorite meals are spaghetti and meatballs, hot dogs and hamburgers and pizza. I love vanilla ice cream, dark chocolate and lemon meringue pie.

In addition to all of this, I am easy to get to know and I love sharing my faith in God with others. I think that is why I have always wanted to be a priest ever since I was a young boy.

I look forward to getting to know you. Please be patient with me as I learn your names and make my way through the parish.

Fr. Gary