Father Tom Coughlin, the first deaf man ordained a priest in the U.S., prays the Eucharistic Prayer using sign language during Mass at Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Minneapolis recently.

Parishioners at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Minneapolis, about half of whom are deaf, had the chance to attend Mass where Father Tom Coughlin used American Sign Language to say he came from a “huge, fancy, million-dollar cathedral” in New Jersey to this “cute, little church” that is cozy and warm.

About 80 people attended the Mass at the small church, a fact noted by Father Coughlin in his welcome.

Ordained in 1977 for the Trinitarians, Father Coughlin, 75, left that order and helped found a community of priests and brothers who minister to the deaf, disabled, marginalized and minorities in parishes and hospitals. The order, the Dominican Missionaries for the Deaf Apostolate, is based in Newark, New Jersey.

“I feel all the warmth and love,” he told the congregation. “Jesus is here with you.”

After the liturgy, deaf parishioner Carol Buley said it was “really exciting” to have a deaf priest celebrate Mass, which doesn’t happen often.

“It’s fantastic to be able to see a deaf priest signing directly with us,” she said. “It’s great to have interpreters, but to have somebody of our own culture, having a deaf priest signing directly with us, is just fantastic.”

Interpreter and parishioner Susan Sweezo, born to deaf parents, used a microphone at the front of the church to speak Father Coughlin’s words to the hearing audience.

During parts of the Mass with singing, parishioner Stephanie Stork stood near the altar and signed the words. Two others each took a turn.

Father Coughlin, an incardinated priest in the Diocese of Honolulu, concelebrated Mass with Father Mike Krenik, pastor, who is learning ASL.

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