Coat of Arms

Of

Our Lady of Hope Parish

Carle Place, New York

BLAZON: Azure semee of mullets Or; on a chief Or between two escallop shells an ancient crown all Azure. On a scroll below the shield is the motto, “Spes Non Confundit.”

EXPLANATION: The arms of Our Lady of Hope parish reflect its patron and its location. The blue field powdered with five pointed stars (mullets) alludes to the robe on the statue of Our Lady of Hope located at the basilica of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate in Pontmain, France. Our Lady appeared there on January 17, 1871. The robe on the statue of Mary is blue with many gold stars on it.

The upper third of the shield or “chief” is a gold (yellow) background containing a crown between two shells. All of these are blue. The crown in the form of a circlet composed of fleur-de-lis is a further allusion to Mary, the Queen of Heaven. It is placed between the two escallop shells that are taken from the coat of arms of the Diocese of Rockville Centre. In turn, they appear in that coat of arms as an allusion to the Native American word for Long Island which translated as, “Island of Shells.”

The shield is ensigned with a scroll on which there is the motto, “Spes Non Confundit.” In Latin this means, “Hope does not disappoint.” It is taken from the sacred Scriptures: “…and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” (Romans 5:5)

The arms of Our Lady of Hope Parish were designed by Fr. Guy Selvester, a priest of the Diocese of Metuchen, NJ and a noted heraldic designer. Father Selvester is a Fellow of the American College of Heraldry and a member of the Heraldry Committee of the NY Genealogical & Biographical Society. In 2004 he was named “Palma Herald” of the Royal Aragonese College of Arms. For the last 24 years he has designed and emblazoned arms for many prelates and institutions in the Church including the late Bishop James McHugh, third bishop of Rockville Centre.