OUR MISSION

Our Lady of Hope Parish strives to be a Catholic community of disciples who work together to build up the Kingdom of God on earth.  We offer to all a share in our faith in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

OUR VISION

Our Lady of Hope Parish envisions a community characterized by spiritual vitality, stewardship, accountability, and social and financial responsibility—all for the sake of fulfilling our mission. 

Directions to Immaculate Conception Church	Directions to Immaculate Heart of Mary Church

NEWS

Father Michael's Installation as Pastor

Father Michael was publicly installed as pastor of Our Lady of Hope Parish on Saturday, September 9, 2017 at the 5:00pm Vigil Mass in Harwinton.  Please see pictures under the Parish Life tab then Photos.

2018 Our Lady of Hope Parish Survey

One of the strategic priorities of our merged parish deals with parish ministries:  Improve existing ministries and create new ministries that are vibrant, relevant, attractive and inclusive; that address the needs of our parishioners, especially the poor and abandoned; our youth; and the needs of our parish community at large. To that end, please help the parish determine how we can successfully address this  priority. Please complete the survey (Click Here for Survey) and return to the Parish Office, mail it in or place in the offertory basket. Surveys are also available at the back of the churches.   If you have any questions you can contact Father Michael or the Parish Council. 

Parish Council:  Sarah Buonocore, John Burke, Gabriel Chabot, Greg Famularo, Laura Garay, and Leah Schatz.

myParish App  --  Download Today!!

There is a new program on the app.  This button will give you daily reflections on the readings of the day. These reflections come from some of the best Catholic bloggers in America. MyParish App has partnered with Catholic teachers, priests, seminarians, the Daughters of St. Paul and so many more great bloggers to bring you the best Catholic content on a daily basis.  The new button is Inspire Daily. 

RELIGIOUS EDUCATION NEWS UPDATE:

Hello Again My Fellow Our Lady of Hope Parishioners - there are Several New Updates for you:

1. PARENT MEETINGS for the Upcoming Religious Ed Year are set!

All Parents of Grades 1-12 students: Please attend this Sunday's Meeting to learn about the new 2018-2019 Religious Education Program:

Sunday June 24^th from 3:30pm-5:pm at the Social Center (Harwinton Campus).

       2.  Catechists, Assistants & Small Group Leaders are Needed! 

If you are a man or woman, single or married who can commit to 1 hour twice a month, you’ll be perfect!  Training will be provided, and you’ll also learn a lot as you have fun leading the kids/teens intheir faith journey!

Please email Amy Paquin at Religious.Ed@OurLadyofHopeParish.com to inquire or sign up!

            Grades 1-5 will have a catechist and assistant in each classroom.   

            Grades 6-12 will have small group leader/catechist for each grade.

3. The 2018-2019 Schedule Is Here (mostly)! 

•  Grades 1-5 will have a choice of every other Monday or every other Thursday from 5:45-6:45pm.  Classes will be held at Ann Antolini School.
•  Grades 6-8 will have the choice of every other Tuesday or every other Wednesday from 7:00-8:15pm at the Social Center in Harwinton.
•  Grades 9-12 will meet once a month on Wednesdays.  Click here for High School Registration Form 2018-2019

      4.      Sacrament Preparation:

• If your son/daughter has prepared for the Sacrament of Confirmation last year and will be getting confirmed in the Fall of 2018, please note that we will have a get to know you session and rehearsal scheduled once we get the Confirmation Ceremony date from the Archdiocese of Hartford. 
• This year children in 2^nd grade will be receiving both the Sacrament of First Reconciliation and the Sacrament of First Holy Eucharist!
• If your 3^rd grader has made the Sacrament of First Reconciliation in 2^nd grade, they will also be making their First Holy Eucharist this year! 

 We’re In This Together!  If there is anything at all that I can do to help you or your family grow in your  journey of faith, please let me know!  You can reach me at 860.806.5347 or         Religious.Ed@OurLadyofHopeParish.com

Amy Paquin, Director of Religious Education
Our Lady of Hope Parish

Religious Freedom Week  "Serving Others in God's Love"

Religious Freedom Week will take place from June 22 – 29, 2018.  It begins with the feast day of Sts. Thomas More and John Fisher, includes the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, and ends with the feast of Sts. Peter and Paul.

The theme for this year is Serving Others in God’s Love. Religious freedom is necessary if we are to have the space to continue to serve in areas like education, adoption and foster care, health care, and migration and refugee services.  USCCB has produced resources for prayer and action on these issues for each day of the week. We encourage Christians to reflect on the importance of religious freedom so that the Church might have space to carry out her mission of service and mercy. We also invite Christians to pray for our brothers and sisters who face intense persecution in other parts of the world.

A major area of concern this year is freedom for child welfare service providers. The opioid crisis is putting a strain on the foster care system. The number of children in need is going up.  The number of families willing to take the children into their homes is going down. And in places like Illinois, Massachusetts, California, and D.C., the service providers who have a track record of excellence in recruiting and assisting foster families have been shut down.

Eight bishops who serve the Committee for Religious Liberty have created eight short videos to be used for Religious Freedom Week—one video for each day.   Click Here for videos

Also please see the Archdiocese of Hartford website for further information.

TMIY

That Man is You! Honestly addresses the pressures and temptations that men face in our modern culture, especially those relating to their roles as husbands and fathers.

6:00am @ IHOM Social Center

2nd & 4th Wednesday in June, July & August

Summer Program:

“The Bible and the Sacraments”

Open to all men in the parish 18 and older.  Please join us for breakfast, video review and group discussion.  Please call John L. @ 203.623.3474 or Bill D @ 860.940.8092 with any questions

Knitting & Crocheting Outreach Ministry

As we complete our 12^th consecutive year of knitting, crocheting and praying for those in need, the Knitting and Crocheting Outreach Ministry extends our deepest thanks to our entire parish family.  Thanks to those who weave their own personal prayers into the articles as they knit and crochet them; and those who donate yarn and other materials; and those who package up the finished articles for distribution; and those who create beautiful artwork to accompany our ministry message of Christian outreach enclosed with every article; and to Father Michael and each parishioner as the articles are prayed over and blessed during Mass. The ministry has now distributed 5,291 articles bearing God's Healing Grace to those in need.  It takes the whole parish family to do the work of this ministry – THANK YOU!

Reminder:  Handmade blessed prayer shawls are available for anyone who is struggling through a time of transition, crisis or need.  If you know of someone in need of a prayer shawl, please contact Jan Hirchak at 860-485-1319.

RCIA

The Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. This faith formation program is available to non-Catholic adults and young adults past the age of reasoning who wish to become members of the Catholic Church, and to Catholic adults and young adults past the age of reasoning who have not yet received the sacraments of First Eucharist and Confirmation.  Classes meet on a weekly basis, and can be begun at any time.  Contact Father Michael (860-379-5215) if you are interested. Young adults under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult over the age of 18.

Change for Life

Your spare change can make a big difference in the lives of babies and their families!

Our Lady of Hope Parish bottle drive will again take place this year to benefit Two Hearts Pregnancy Care Center in Torrington.  Empty baby bottles are available.  Please take them home, fill them with change, bills, and/or a check and return them on Father's Day.  Tax receipts available for checks payable to Our Lady of Hope Parish with “Two Hearts” in the memo. 

Two Hearts Pregnancy Care Center offers free assistance and support to young women, men, and couples who are pregnant, as well as new parents. They offer parenting classes, resources to young parents, and other services to new parents in need. Two Hearts is a place where they can find hope, help, and life-affirming support reflecting the pro-life teachings of the Catholic Church. 

Come with your Fellow Parishioners to the Holy Land!!  A Trip of a Lifetime.....October 17 - 25, 2018

It is our joy to invite you to join with Father Michael and our parishes on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land where you will find a new dimension of understanding Christian history and the life of our Lord, the Blessed Mother and the Apostles.

We will walk where Jesus walked, taught, and performed miracles.  We will have mass at holy sites like the Church of the Nativity, Church of the Beatitudes, Church of the Holy Sepulcher and more.  We will visit the Mount of Olives, Western Wall, Upper Room, Bethlehem and Shepherd’s Field, Mount Tabor, walk the Garden of Gethsemane, Capernaum, Via Dolorosa and more, including a boat ride on the Sea of Galilee.  

We look forward to sharing this trip of a lifetime with you.

Online Giving Message

We are proud to announce that Our Lady of Hope is keeping up with technology, and now has the ability for online giving.  Contributions can be made to the parish online safety via an encrypted website.  Online giving makes it easy when you are unable to attend Mass.  It's real simple to do.  Here are two simple ways:

     1.  Sign up here at the website.  Click on the "online giving" button that is found on the home page.  For the first time user, just click on "create new account".  This is a one-time account set-up.  This allows you to make donations to the church with options as a one-time gift or recurring.

     2.  The second way for accessing online giving is from your phones. Simply download the app for free from Apple or Google stores.  The name of the app is "Online Giving by Our Sunday Visitor".  From there it's the same login process as the website.

IMPORTANT:  All current IHOM online givers please sign up on the Our Lady of Hope Parish portal and cancel your current account on the IHOM portal.   

Upcoming Events

Please see Event Calendar for further details