Tiny St. James Church overflows with visiting students

St. James the Apostle Parish in Sneedville is easily the smallest in the Diocese of Knoxville. Normal Mass attendance is approximately eight to 10 on a given Sunday, but on April 24 at approximately 11:25 a.m. that changed. A huge charter bus from Franklin, Tenn., pulled up and unloaded the …

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Catholic author includes St. JPII Mission in new book

Daniel Markham has traveled the United States to chronicle unique ministries for ‘52 Masses’ By Gabrielle Nolan Out of all the Catholic churches in the state of Tennessee, writer Daniel Markham chose to visit St. John Paul II Catholic Mission in Rutledge. One element in particular attracted him to the …

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Monsignor Humbrecht celebrates 50th anniversary

Bishop Stika, Cardinal Rigali, more than 20 priests, and many others join in for the occasion By Dan McWilliams When a church is filled with the faithful at a priest’s 50th-anniversary celebration, and when some two dozen priests turn out for the occasion, it speaks to the love for the …

Bishop Stika dedicates Rutledge church

New St. John Paul II Catholic Mission building serves Grainger County faith community By Dan McWilliams When Bishop Richard F. Stika dedicated the new church building for St. John Paul II Catholic Mission in Rutledge on May 29, he shared his personal connection with its namesake pope. The bishop was …

Knights’ Silver Rose visits St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Madisonville

A Silver Rose was featured prominently in a special liturgical service March 30 at St. Joseph the Worker Church in Madisonville. The Silver Rose program, sponsored by Knights of Columbus Council 15585, is a national devotion in honor of Our Lady, with a specific dedication to the sanctity of human …

Easter basket project in Chattanooga brings joy to children in need

An Easter basket project in Chattanooga started about eight or so years ago with one individual person, Joni Hotchkiss, who liked to bring joy by making Easter baskets for others in need. Once she was making more baskets than she could handle by herself, it grew into a Lenten service …

 St. John XXIII Parish (finally) marks 50th anniversary

By Jim Wogan It took longer than expected, but parishioners of St. John XXIII last month finally marked the 50th anniversary of their parish’s dedication—52 years after it happened. The COVID pandemic stalled the original plans for the Catholic community’s jubilee by two years, but the delay didn’t mask the …

Father Sturm installed as pastor of two parishes

Bishop Stika performs the rite at OLPH in LaFollette and again at Christ the King in Tazewell   By Dan McWilliams Father Sam Sturm recently had the feeling that it was déjà vu all over again, to quote the great Yogi Berra. Although Father Sturm has had his current assignment for …

Speaker Melissa Foley leads Lenten talk, prayer for women at St. John Neumann

Speaker Melissa Foley leads Lenten talk, prayer for women at St. John Neumann By Gabrielle Nolan “Am I worth dying for?” Women of the diocese were presented with this question at a Lenten evening of reflection at St. John Neumann Church in Farragut on Mar. 31. Nearly 100 women gathered …

On the road again

Bishop Stika resumes a full confirmation schedule as youth prepare to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit By Dan McWilliams Bishop Richard F. Stika is back on the road conferring confirmations after COVID paused most of his celebrations of the sacrament last year, and no one may be any …

Following GPS during the holiest of seasons

Does God’s Plan for Salvation include you? IC Lenten ecumenical service offers a map to penance By Bill Brewer In the holiest spirit of neighborly ecumenism, downtown Knoxville churches celebrated the Lenten season leading into Easter by sharing each other’s faith practices, and Immaculate Conception Church was at the forefront. …

Mission: Possible

St. Dominic Parish hosts first men’s conference, hopes to turn it into an annual Lenten event By Bill Brewer When the mission is sainthood, achieving the holiest of endeavors—getting to heaven—is of utmost importance to anyone of faith. And for dozens of men in the Five Rivers Deanery who aspire …