About Divine Mercy Parish - St. Mary Church · Quincy, Massachusetts
Divine Mercy Parish is a Roman Catholic community in Quincy, Massachusetts, formed in August 2020 through the merger of three historic Quincy parishes: St. Mary (established 1840), Sacred Heart (established 1903), and St. Ann (established 1922). The merged parish is led by its first pastor, Fr. Louis R. Palmieri, and continues to serve the Quincy neighborhoods of West Quincy, Wollaston, North Quincy, Squantum, and Marina Bay from three worship sites. It belongs to the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Boston and offers Mass in English and Swahili, a robust faith-formation program, and an unusually broad list of liturgical and social-justice ministries.
- Established
- 1840
- Patron
- St. Mary (Blessed Virgin Mary) — patron of the original St. Mary parish; the merged parish takes the devotional name 'Divine Mercy' (in honor of the Divine Mercy of Jesus, popularized by St. Faustina).
- Rector
- Rev. Louis R. Palmieri (Fr. Lou)
- Diocese
- Metropolitan Archdiocese of Boston
Why belong here
Divine Mercy Parish brings together three historic Quincy parishes under one roof — literally, with three worship sites — so a visitor can find a wide range of Mass times in English and Swahili, daily confessions on Saturday afternoons, Eucharistic adoration twice a week, and a Lenten 'Chowder and Stations' tradition at Sacred Heart. The parish invests heavily in faith formation: a graded religious-education program for grades 1–6, a two-year Confirmation program for grades 7–8, adult faith formation built around Vatican II, RCIA for adult catechumens, and an active Vocation Crucifix prayer program. Add to that a real roster of ministries — lectors, Eucharistic ministers, greeters, altar servers, music ministry, men's group, a Tuesday prayer group for those affected by substance abuse, the St. Vincent de Paul Society, and a Finance and Pastoral Council — and you have a parish where it is genuinely easy to get involved.
Mass times at Divine Mercy Parish - St. Mary Church
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 3:00–3:30 PM at St. Mary and Sacred Heart
- And by appointment
Adoration times
- Thursday 12:00 PM – 2:30 PM in the chapel at Sacred Heart
- Tuesday 12:00 PM – 3:00 PM (per Ministries page)
About Divine Mercy Parish
Divine Mercy Parish is a consolidated Catholic parish of the Archdiocese of Boston, formed in August 2020 from the merger of St. Mary Parish (est. 1840), Sacred Heart Parish (est. 1903) and St. Ann Parish (est. 1922). It is led by founding pastor Fr. Louis R. Palmieri and serves the Quincy neighborhoods of West Quincy, Wollaston, North Quincy, Squantum and Marina Bay from three worship sites.
- Merged in August 2020
- Serves West Quincy, Wollaston, North Quincy, Squantum, Marina Bay
- Three worship sites: St. Mary, Sacred Heart, St. Ann
- Founding pastor: Fr. Louis R. Palmieri
- Archdiocese of Boston
History
The oldest of the three predecessor parishes is St. Mary, established in 1840 in West Quincy — the first Catholic church on Massachusetts' South Shore. It was built by immigrant stonecutters using local Quincy granite, and former President John Quincy Adams attended its dedication. Cardinal Seán O'Malley marked the 175th anniversary with a Mass in October 2015. Sacred Heart Parish followed in 1903 and St. Ann in 1922; the three were brought into a collaborative in 2014 and merged into Divine Mercy Parish in 2020.
- St. Mary Parish established 1840 — oldest Catholic church on the South Shore
- Built with Quincy granite (same stone as the Bunker Hill Monument and Minot's Ledge Lighthouse)
- John Quincy Adams present at 1840 dedication
- Sacred Heart Parish established 1903
- St. Ann Parish established 1922
- Collaborative formed 2014; merged into Divine Mercy Parish August 2020
Parish Staff
Divine Mercy Parish is staffed by three priests and a full lay team. Fr. Louis R. Palmieri is pastor; Fr. Gabriel Chukwu and Fr. Brian Delaney serve as parochial vicars; and Fr. Peter Casey is senior priest in residence. The lay staff includes Christine Coulsey (Finance & Operations), Denise Gleason (Religious Education), Howard Lotis (Pastoral Associate / Music Director), John DiStefano (Events), Meg Venuti and Arlene Dooley (Admin Assistants), Michael Batson and Dan Sullivan (Organists), and custodians David Pekkinen (also Cemetery Supervisor), Patrick McGahan and Thomas Cunniff.
- Fr. Louis R. Palmieri — Pastor
- Fr. Gabriel Chukwu — Parochial Vicar
- Fr. Brian Delaney — Parochial Vicar
- Fr. Peter Casey — Senior Priest in Residence
- Christine Coulsey — Finance & Operations Manager
- Denise Gleason — Religious Education Director
- Howard Lotis — Pastoral Associate / Parish Music Director
- John DiStefano — Events Coordinator
- Meg Venuti — Administrative Assistant
- Arlene Dooley — Administrative Assistant
- Michael Batson — Organist
- Dan Sullivan — Organist
- David Pekkinen — Custodian & Cemetery Supervisor
- Patrick McGahan — Custodian
- Thomas Cunniff — Custodian
Fr. Louis R. Palmieri — Founding Pastor
After graduating from Boston College, Fr. Lou taught at St. Stanislaus School in Chelsea before entering St. John's Seminary, where he earned a Master of Divinity and was ordained in 1993. He served as pastor of St. Michael Parish in Avon, Holy Family Parish in Amesbury, and Star of the Sea Parish in Salisbury, and has been pastor of the three Quincy parishes since the collaborative was formed in 2014 — making him the first pastor of Divine Mercy Parish when it was created in 2020.
Faith Formation for Children
The Child Religious Education program, directed by Denise Gleason, serves grades 1–8 with graded classes for grades 1–6 and a two-year Confirmation preparation track for grades 7–8 held Sunday mornings at St. Ann. Sacramental preparation for First Reconciliation and First Communion is a two-year program in grades 1–2. Following an Archdiocese of Boston mandate, the Confirmation program has been restructured so that grade 7 begins the two-year prep process and grade 8 receives the sacrament in the spring.
- Grades 1–6 religious education
- Sacramental prep for First Reconciliation & First Communion (grades 1–2)
- Confirmation preparation (grades 7–8) on Sunday mornings at St. Ann
- Grade 6 added to Sunday mornings (Sacred Heart 8:45–9:45 AM; St. Ann 9:45–10:45 AM)
- Director: Denise Gleason ([email protected])
- Tuition reduction for parent catechists
Adult Faith Formation & RCIA
The Adult Faith Formation program explores the four constitutions of the Second Vatican Council and covers Bible study, Church history, prayer and liturgy. Catechumens and candidates for full communion prepare through the parish's RCIA program; the website also points newcomers to catholicscomehome.org and the online Catechism of the Catholic Church.
- Bible study, church history, prayer and liturgy sessions
- Vatican II constitutions
- RCIA for adult candidates
- Online Catechism resource linked
Ministries & Parish Life
Divine Mercy Parish maintains a wide ministry roster, with liturgical roles (adult and child altar servers, lectors, Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, sacristans, ushers, greeters, music ministry and choir), formation and prayer groups (RCIA, Tuesday Prayer Group for those affected by substance abuse, Men's Group, Vocation Crucifix program) and social-justice outreach including visiting the homebound, food-pantry volunteering and the St. Vincent de Paul Society. The parish is governed by a Parish Pastoral Council and a Finance Council.
- Liturgical: Adult & Child Altar Servers, Lectors, EMHCs, Sacristans, Ushers, Greeters, Music Ministry
- Formation: RCIA, Adult Faith Formation, Vocation Crucifix
- Prayer & fellowship: Tuesday Prayer Group, Men's Group (Thursday evenings), Monthly Dinner Committee
- Outreach: St. Vincent de Paul Society, visiting the homebound, food-pantry volunteering
- Governance: Parish Pastoral Council, Finance Council
- Music: Choir rehearsals Tuesday 7 PM; sings 11:30 AM Sunday Mass
- Chowder and Stations — Friday evenings in Lent at Sacred Heart
Our Faith
A dedicated 'Our Faith' page introduces Catholic belief and practice to newcomers and cradle Catholics alike, beginning with 'What Do Catholics Believe?' and the seven sacraments. It links to Newcomer resources for those exploring or returning to the Church.
Sacraments & Devotions
In addition to the daily and Sunday Mass schedule, the parish celebrates the Anointing of the Sick on the 2nd Saturday of each month after the 4 PM Mass, hears confessions weekly on Saturday afternoons, and exposes the Blessed Sacrament for adoration weekly at Sacred Heart. The Saturday 12 noon Kenyan Mass in Swahili and the parish's multilingual website (English, Spanish, Tagalog, Swahili) reflect the diversity of the Quincy Catholic community.
Locations, Bulletin & Giving
The parish mailing address is 386 Hancock Street, Quincy, MA 02171 (Sacred Heart Church / parish office). Worship sites are St. Mary Church at 115 Crescent Street, Sacred Heart Church at 386 Hancock Street, and St. Ann Church at 755 Hancock Street. The parish publishes a weekly bulletin online and provides online giving from the homepage.
- Parish office: 386 Hancock Street, Quincy MA 02171
- St. Mary Church — 115 Crescent Street
- Sacred Heart Church — 386 Hancock Street
- St. Ann Church — 755 Hancock Street
- Phone: (617) 328-8666
- Email: [email protected]
- Online giving and weekly bulletin linked from the homepage
Archdiocese of Boston
Divine Mercy Parish belongs to the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Boston, which the parish describes as a vibrant, ethnically diverse and spiritually enriching faith community that operates schools educating more than 46,000 students annually and a social-service outreach assisting more than 200,000 individuals each year, with Mass celebrated in more than twenty languages each week throughout the archdiocese.
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Louis R. Palmieri2014–present
First pastor of Divine Mercy Parish; led the St. Mary / Sacred Heart / St. Ann collaborative from 2014, then became the founding pastor when the three were merged in 2020. Previously pastor of St. Michael (Avon), Holy Family (Amesbury) and Star of the Sea (Salisbury). Ordained 1993 after studies at Boston College and St. John's Seminary.