Three Churches, One Family of Faith
Along the banks of the Merrimack River and out toward the marshes of the upper North Shore, three Catholic churches share a single pastoral life. The Holy Redeemer and Immaculate Conception Collaborative brings together Immaculate Conception Church on Green Street in Newburyport, the Church of the Nativity on Green Street in Merrimac, and St. Ann Church on Main Street in West Newbury. Together they form a community of faith that serves the Catholic population of four neighboring towns: Merrimac, Newbury, Newburyport, and West Newbury. The collaborative's motto, drawn from the prophet Isaiah, reads: "Come all you who are thirsty, come to the waters..."
The collaborative was created in 2015 by the Archdiocese of Boston under the direction of Father Timothy Harrison, who continues to serve as pastor. It is built on what its pastoral plan calls a common mission of "faith, service, discipleship, and social engagement." The document paints a picture of a community bound together by shared joys, sorrows, prayer, and fellowship, and rooted in the conviction that "we encounter Jesus in [others] and, we hope, they in us." Across more than sixty-five square miles of shoreline, farmland, and village streets, the three churches operate as one family of parishes.
Mass Times Across the Three Churches
Mass is offered at all three churches every weekend, with a daily Mass at Immaculate Conception each weekday morning. The Saturday Vigil is celebrated at 4:00 p.m. at Immaculate Conception, with a second 4:00 p.m. Vigil alternating monthly between Nativity and St. Ann. Sunday Masses are scheduled at 8:30 a.m. at Nativity in Merrimac, 9:00 a.m. at Immaculate Conception in Newburyport, 10:00 a.m. at St. Ann in West Newbury, and 11:30 a.m. at Immaculate Conception during the winter schedule (Labor Day through Memorial Day) or 11:00 a.m. during the summer. Weekday Mass is celebrated Monday through Friday at 9:00 a.m. at Immaculate Conception. The Saturday Vigil Mass at 4:00 p.m. at Immaculate Conception is livestreamed on the collaborative's Facebook page and YouTube channel.
Confessions are heard face-to-face in Immaculate Conception Church every Saturday from 3:00 to 3:30 p.m., with no appointment needed. Confessions are also available at other times and places by appointment through the collaborative offices.
Sacraments: From Baptism to Anointing
The collaborative celebrates all seven sacraments in the Catholic tradition. Baptisms are normally held on the second Sunday of the month during the 11:30 a.m. Mass at Immaculate Conception, or on the second Saturday as a service outside of Mass. Families may also request a date for baptism at Holy Redeemer. There are no baptisms during Lent. Parents and godparents attend a preparation meeting, usually held on the first Sunday of the month at 1:00 p.m. in the Immaculate Conception Parish Center. Godparents must be at least 16 years old, confirmed Catholics living in harmony with the faith; a child may have one Catholic godparent and one baptized non-Catholic who serves as a Christian Witness.
First Reconciliation and First Holy Communion are ordinarily celebrated in second grade, after a year of prior faith formation. Preparation involves both parents and children, with whole-family expectations of daily prayer and weekly Mass. In-person classes are offered on Sunday mornings, Tuesday afternoons, or Wednesday afternoons, with First Communions celebrated at the Easter Vigil of grace at one of the collaborative's Masses.
Confirmation preparation is offered to eighth graders and older teens with recent faith formation, and a separate track exists for adults who have received First Communion but never Confirmation. Adults seeking to become Catholic, or unbaptized children over the age of seven, journey through the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults, now called OCIA, directed by Deacon Aaron Giard. "Exploring Catholicism" inquiry sessions are held on Sunday mornings after the 9:00 a.m. Mass at Immaculate Conception, from about 10:15 to 11:15 a.m., with room for drop-ins.
Married couples preparing for a Church wedding are asked to contact the collaborative at least six months ahead of the date, in line with Archdiocesan guidelines. The Anointing of the Sick is offered to those who are seriously ill, elderly, or facing a hospital stay, nursing home admission, or hospice care. Because priests' schedules are busy, the collaborative encourages families to request the sacrament in advance rather than at the last minute.
Lifelong Faith Formation for Children and Families
Faith formation is treated as a way of life for the whole family, not just a Sunday morning class. The program, run by Deacon Aaron Giard, follows what the staff call a "whole-family approach," seeing parents as the primary formators of their children. Families with children in grades K-1 and 3-7 commit to fifteen minutes of daily family prayer, weekly Mass, in-person catechesis twice a month at Immaculate Conception, and three seasonal "Family Festivals" celebrating All Saints, Lent, and Easter. A Christmas Eve Nativity Pageant is part of the year as well.
Second-grade sacramental preparation is the most intensive year, with classes offered on Sunday mornings, Tuesday afternoons, or Wednesday afternoons, and a family retreat in the spring. The two-year Confirmation cycle was recently shortened to a six-to-seven-month preparation in eighth grade, with a required prior year of faith formation in sixth or seventh grade. Registration fees are $185 for grades K-1 and 3-7, $215 for second-grade sacramental preparation, and $200 for eighth-grade Confirmation prep; families facing financial hardship can request a payment plan or a scholarship. Parents who volunteer as catechists or classroom aides receive half off the registration fee. Every volunteer who works with children completes a CORI background check.
Adult faith formation is its own world at the collaborative. Beyond the OCIA process for those entering the Church, the staff organizes Centering Prayer, Lectio Divina, faith-sharing, and a subscription to Formed, a Catholic streaming platform with movies, talks, audio dramas, ebooks, and children's content that is free to parishioners. Deacon Aaron Giard leads a live recitation of the rosary on Facebook on Tuesday and Thursday mornings at 8:30, with intentions welcomed in the comments.
Prayer and Spiritual Life: Adoration, Centering Prayer, and Lectio Divina
Eucharistic Adoration is offered three times a week across the collaborative. On Wednesday afternoons from 3:00 to 4:00 p.m., adoration is held at Nativity Church in Merrimac. On Thursday evenings from 7:00 to 8:00 p.m., it is held at Immaculate Conception in Newburyport. On Friday mornings, adoration opens immediately after the 9:00 a.m. Mass at Immaculate Conception and continues until noon; if a funeral is scheduled, the church opens for "Sacred Silence" only. No experience is necessary to come and pray.
Centering Prayer and Lectio Divina are offered together by Zoom every Wednesday from 6:00 to 7:00 p.m. The first half hour is spent in silent Centering Prayer, resting in God's presence. The second half hour is given to group Lectio Divina, an ancient Benedictine practice of praying with Scripture, listening for what God is saying, and discerning how to respond. The two practices together foster a deeper interior life and a more open heart, as participants quiet the noise of daily life and let God's word take root.
Women at the Well meets on Tuesdays at 6:30 p.m., in person at the IC Parish Center and on Zoom, gathering women of all ages and stages of faith for prayer, conversation, and connection. The HRIC Prayer Shawl Ministry knits and crochets prayer shawls and lapghans that are given freely to anyone in need of comfort. Volunteers meet on the first Thursday of every month at 2:00 p.m. at Nativity Hall in Merrimac, and no knitting or crochet experience is required.
Community Outreach: Sandwiches, Saint Vincent de Paul, and Haiti
The collaborative's outreach network is one of its defining features. The HRIC Soup and Sandwich Program, formerly the HR Sandwich Program, delivers roughly 150 sandwiches, plus about five gallons of soup or salad and several casseroles, to Lazarus House in Lawrence and the Good Shepherd Center on the second and fourth Wednesday of every month. Sandwiches are dropped off at St. Ann Church Hall in West Newbury between 7:00 and 9:00 a.m. on the designated Wednesday. Cold cuts and peanut butter and jelly, with no condiments, are the staples, and casseroles in foil pans are picked up and returned filled. A detailed step-by-step guide makes the work accessible even to first-time volunteers, and the program is described as a meaningful family activity.
The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul operates two conference branches within the collaborative. The Holy Redeemer St. Vincent de Paul conference serves those in need in the Merrimac and West Newbury area, with funding raised through parish activities and donations placed in poor boxes at St. Ann and Nativity. The Immaculate Conception St. Vincent de Paul conference assists residents of Newburyport and Newbury with food, clothing, rent, utilities, gas, and other necessities, and members gather weekly to prepare and serve a "Breaking Bread" dinner at the Parish Center for neighbors in need.
IC Haiti is a separate, nonprofit ministry of the collaborative. Founded in 2008 in response to a sermon by Father Paul Berube, IC Haiti partnered with the Saint Boniface Haiti Foundation in Fond des Blancs, Haiti, to build and operate the Fr. Marc Piché Elementary School in the rural community of Puit Chacha, complete with a deep water well, a daily hot lunch program, and a dental care program. The school serves about 200 students, and secondary school scholarships are offered to its graduates. IC Haiti also funds maternal and child healthcare and dental programs at Saint Boniface Hospital and has responded to emergencies ranging from the 2010 earthquake to Hurricane Matthew and the COVID-19 crisis. An annual "Cookies for Haiti" bake sale started by a third grader has raised more than $55,000 to date.
Other outreach programs include Communion Calls, which bring the Eucharist to the homebound, the hospitalized, and those in nursing homes; the IC Consolers Circle, which provides a free light meal for up to seventy-five people in St. Louis Hall after a funeral Mass; Alcoholics Anonymous meetings at Immaculate Conception (Mondays at 10:30 a.m. and Fridays at 6:00 p.m.) and a women's AA meeting at St. Ann on Tuesdays at 7:00 a.m.; Boy Scout Troop 21 chartered by Immaculate Conception, plus other troops chartered by Holy Redeemer; and the Pelican Intervention Fund, a community partner. The Knights of Columbus Newburyport Council 231, founded in 1897, serves all three parishes and meets on the second Tuesday of every month at 7:00 p.m. at Immaculate Conception.
Immaculate Conception School and St. Mary's Cemetery
Immaculate Conception School is the collaborative's parish school, located on the Newburyport campus. Under the leadership of Principal Joan Sullivan, the school provides a Catholic elementary education and is a frequent partner in the collaborative's outreach efforts, from raising funds for IC Haiti to hosting the annual IC Harvest Fair. The Harvest Fair, held on the Saturday of Columbus Day weekend in the IC School gym, features themed basket raffles, vintage goods and jewelry, a wall of wine, holiday items, a scratch ticket tree, baked goods, lunch, and hourly door prizes. Recycled stained glass jewelry, paper-beaded bracelets, and whimsical pottery are recent additions, and the fair includes a children's table with activity sheets, face painting, and a section of handmade Barbie outfits, fairy garden kits, sensory kits, and paint kits geared to younger children.
St. Mary's Cemetery, located at 36 Storey Avenue in Newburyport, is managed by Joseph Viel and serves as a ministry of the collaborative, offering a sacred place for the burial of the faithful departed.
Becoming Catholic, Returning, or Joining a Parish
For those exploring the Catholic faith, the collaborative offers a welcoming front door. The Order of Christian Initiation of Adults begins with a period of inquiry called "Exploring Catholicism," held most Sunday mornings after the 9:00 a.m. Mass at Immaculate Conception. Sessions are led by a team of catechists and cover the Gospel message, the Creed, the sacraments, the moral life, and growing in prayer. The collaborative notes that "becoming a Catholic Christian is not just a matter of learning doctrines and consenting to them intellectually. It is about encountering and entering into life in Jesus Christ and His Body, the Church."
Those who are already Catholic and have been away are warmly welcomed. Visitors do not need to put money in the offering basket when attending Mass, and those who decide to make a parish their home are encouraged to register. Registration is handled separately for Holy Redeemer and Immaculate Conception, reflecting the two-parish structure of the collaborative. Online giving is available for both parishes, with a choice of funds (Offertory, Monthly, and Grand Annual at Holy Redeemer, and four funds at Immaculate Conception), and the staff encourages parishioners who manage their other bills online to consider giving online as well.
Pastoral Leadership and the Collaborative's Heart
Father Timothy Harrison leads the collaborative as pastor, supported by two senior priests in residence, Father George Morin and Father Charles Stanley, and by two senior deacons, Deacon John Moranski and Deacon Paul Dow. The Faith Formation team is led by Deacon Aaron Giard, with Melinda Burrell as administrative assistant. The office team includes Business Manager Dennis LaMalfa, Administrative Assistant and Bookkeeper Christine Breslow, and Coordinator of Media Outreach Karen Leff. Facilities are overseen by Facilities Manager Eddie Martinez and building maintenance staff at both parishes.
A Collaborative Pastoral Council, formed in 2019, assists the pastor in planning, organizing, and reviewing evangelization, worship, religious education, and service across both parishes. Members are chosen by lot after a period of prayer and silent reflection and serve three-year terms. Liturgical ministries at the Mass include lectors, extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion, altar servers (open to anyone in fourth grade or older who has made their First Communion, as well as adults), greeters, and a music ministry that brings together organists, cantors, choir directors, and the youth choir at IC. The collaborative's stated approach to parish life is captured well in a line from its pastoral plan: "We meet people where they are. We minister to personal needs in personal ways. We tend to the body, mind, heart, and spirit of the souls of those whom God has called us to serve." From the riverside parishes of Newburyport to the fields of West Newbury and the village of Merrimac, that mission shapes the rhythm of every week.