Dear Parishioners: It is a great joy to be here and begin my priestly service as the seventeenth Pastor of Our Lady of Mercy Parish in East Greenwich. Since 1853 when Bishop Bernard O’Reilly sent Father Patrick J. Lenihan to the mission territory that was then East Greenwich, sixteen priests have had the great privilege to serve this parish. I offer my thanks to Bishop Thomas J. Tobin for assigning me as your new pastor and I pledge to him and you that I will strive to serve faithfully, lovingly, zealously and enthusiastically during my pastorate.
Like Fr. Lenihan who arrived over a hundred and fifty years ago, I arrive to Our Lady of Mercy as a stranger to you and to the community around us. Also like the first pastor, I arrive committed to proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ in this parish and throughout the community around us. My first duty and greatest joy is to announce the Gospel in all its power and with all its demands.
The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe, and our common mission as Disciples of Christ is to bring the Gospel to all we meet. Indeed, Christ commands us to preach the Gospel to the ends of the earth, and that is our Great Commission: to be evangelists. Evangelization is not something undertaken only by priests and religious or only by missionaries in foreign lands. Evangelization is the common mission of the entire Church, and every Christian shares in the duty and privilege of sharing the Gospel with all people.
In order to evangelize in the 21st century we must use not only the time tested means of preaching and teaching but also adapt to the technological advances in our world. Therefore, we will soon launch our new parish website at www.olmparish.org . It will contain lots information about the parish, the Catholic Church and what we have to offer our community. I will be posting my weekly column there as well as blogging on a regular basis. I would like to eventually establish a parish Facebook page and I may even try my hand at Twitter! This is only the beginning or our mission to spread the Good News of the Gospel throughout East Greenwich, Kent County, Rhode Island and the world!
I am very happy to begin my pastorate at OLM. God is good and I give Him thanks for the many blessings that are Our Lady of Mercy Parish. See you around the parish and perhaps even around town! God Bless! And Go Sox!!
Father Healey