Welcome to Our Lady of Mount Carmel American National Catholic Church, located in Melrose, Massachusetts. We are a joyful, inclusive, and Spirit-led Catholic community where all are truly welcome, affirmed, and embraced. 

We are part of the American National Catholic Church (ANCC), a self-governing jurisdiction of the ancient Catholic tradition which professes one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. The ANCC is juridically independent from Rome. While fully Catholic, professing our credal faith in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church, our parish is not affiliated with the Roman Catholic Church or the Archdiocese of Boston. Our Presiding Bishop is His Excellency, Bishop George Lucey, FCM, whose pastoral vision guides and inspires our wider church family.

Our parish is entrusted to the care of the Carmelite Missionaries of Merciful Love in Action (CMMLA)—a new and emerging religious order within the ANCC. Rooted in the Carmelite contemplative tradition and dedicated to the Beatitudes and Works of Mercy, the CMMLA unites prayer and service, contemplation and action, to reveal God’s tender, merciful love to every person.

At Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, we believe that God’s love is expansive, abundant, and unconditional—a love that leaves no one behind and excludes no one from the life of grace.

A Catholic Community Where All Are Welcome

The American National Catholic Church is a vibrant and welcoming community rooted in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. We joyfully celebrate Catholic tradition while embracing the Gospel’s call to inclusivity, justice, mercy, and compassion. Our mission is to live the Gospel in a way that honors every person’s dignity and affirms God’s unconditional love for all.

We welcome everyone who seeks a spiritual home:

• those disenchanted with authoritarian or fundamentalist expressions of faith

• women seeking equal voices and full participation

• the divorced and divorce-remarried

• the LGBTQIA+ community, including those called to ministry

• married clergy or married individuals discerning ministry

• former clergy seeking to serve again

• anyone who has ever felt marginalized, excluded, or spiritually homeless

Here you will find a loving, affirming, and non-judgmental parish community made up of people from all walks of life—a place to be fully known, fully accepted, and fully loved.

Rooted in the Ancient Catholic Tradition

The ANCC is part of the independent Catholic movement, which maintains:

• valid sacramental life

• apostolic succession

• fidelity to the Apostolic faith

• a commitment to Vatican II’s vision of the Church

Like the Eastern and Old Catholic Churches, independent national Catholic jurisdictions have existed throughout history. For the first eleven centuries of Christianity, the Church was composed of many self-governing national churches. Diversity of practice—such as liturgical forms, clerical disciplines, and the date of Easter—was normal in the one Body of Christ.

We stand within that tradition today:
a contemporary expression of an ancient faith, celebrating the sacraments with reverence while embracing the needs and insights of the modern world.

Our Commitments

Ordination of Women

We joyfully welcome women to ordained ministry as priests, deacons, and bishops. We affirm that all genders can and do bear Christ’s presence 'in persona Christi' at the sacrificial altar.

Welcoming Divorced-Remarried

We recognize that relationships can end and new beginnings can emerge. Divorced persons are fully welcome, may receive the Eucharist, and may remarry without an annulment process. God’s healing is for all.

LGBTQIA+ Inclusion

LGBTQIA+ persons are beloved children of God, fully welcome in every aspect of Church life—including the sacraments of marriage and ordination.
We affirm that God creates His children exactly as they are, and we celebrate the presence, gifts, and vocations of LGBTQIA+ people in our community.

Open Communion

We practice open communion, inviting all who seek Christ and believe in the true presence of Christ in the Eucharist to receive Communion. The Eucharist is a gift of grace needed for healing and transformation—not a reward for perfection. 

Our Carmelite Identity

Under the leadership of the Carmelite Missionaries of Merciful Love in Action, our parish draws deeply from:

• the wisdom of Carmel

• the contemplative life of prayer

• a mission to bring God’s merciful love to society's most lonely and forgotten

• a commitment to social justice, life lived according to the Beatitudes and practicing of the Works of Mercy

• the "Little Way" of St. Therese

Our Carmelite spirit fuels both our worship and our outreach. We strive to listen deeply, pray intensely, and act boldly for the sake of love.

A Church of Vatican II, A Church of the People of God

We embrace the vision of Vatican Council II, which calls the Church to:

• be a living Body of Christ in the world

• read the signs of the times with wisdom and courage

• center the People of God in all aspects of Church life

• proclaim God’s mercy and justice in word and deed

Our theology is shaped by a belief that the Holy Spirit continues to renew and re-create the Church today. 

We trust that God has called us into existence to be a healing presence for all who have been wounded, excluded, or left behind.

Our Mission

As an intentional Catholic community, we seek to:

• embody God’s extravagant love

• celebrate the sacraments with reverence and joy

• care for the poor, lonely, and marginalized

• offer refuge to those who have been turned away

• uphold justice, mercy, and compassion

• co-build a Church where unity is not mistaken for uniformity

• proclaim the Gospel with courage and tenderness

Whether you are returning to faith, exploring Catholicism, searching for healing, or longing for a home where you can be fully yourself—you belong here.

Come Join Us

We invite you to pray with us, to grow with us, and to walk with us in the spirit of Christ, who came so that none may be lost and all may know the depth of God’s merciful love.

Welcome home!
All are welcome. All are affirmed. All are loved.