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The Diocese of Knoxville mourns the loss of Nancy Feist, the bishop’s executive secretary, and her newborn son, Peter. Read the obit here.

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‘A church very much alive’ Sunday, June 21, 2009 ‘THE CHURCH NEEDS YOU TO PROCLAIM JESUS CHRIST’ Bishop Richard F. Stika (center) was the principal celebrant for St. Patrick Parish’s 50th-anniversary Mass on May 31. With him at the altar are (from left) associate pastor Father Joseph Hammond, CHS; Deacon Jim Fage; and pastor Father Pat Garrity. View more photos at dioceseofknoxville.org. Photo by Dan McWilliams Bishop Richard F. Stika began his homily at the golden-anniversary Mass for St. Patrick Parish in Morristown on May 31 by looking out at the assembly and commenting on a particular—but appropriate—color of attire worn by many in the pews. “Was there a sale on green T-shirts here?” he asked. St. Patrick outgrew its 1959 church long before its current building was dedicated in 2002. The new and much larger nave still could not hold all of the worshipers gathered for the 50th-anniversary celebration, with many having to stand while others sat in the daily Mass chapel that was formerly the back half of the old church. Longtime pastor Father Patrick Garrity and associate pastor Father Joseph Hammond, CHS, concelebrated the Pentecost day anniversary Mass, with St. Patrick Deacons Jim Fage and Bob Smearing assisting. Sabra Buchanan, one of a handful of charter parishioners remaining at St. Patrick, was among the gift bearers. Morristown was part of the 34-county mission field served by Father Emmanuel F. Callahan in the first decade of the 20th century, according to St. Patrick’s silver-anniversary history publication. Mass was celebrated in the homes of area Catholics in the 1930s and ’40s. Liturgies moved to the Kingmyer Hotel dining room and the Coca-Cola Bottling Co. building before finding a longer-lasting home in the Morristown City Hall. Bishop William L. Adrian established Notre Dame Parish in Greeneville in 1955 and made the surrounding eight counties its mission territory, with Father Albert Siener as the first pastor. Father Siener then began the effort to start a parish in Morristown for the approximately 70 Catholics who lived there.  more...			• Year for Priests website highlights international celebration • Web exclusive: Slideshow from Bishop Stika’s ordination Mass • Web exclusive: Bishop Stika speaks to kids on summer vacation • Would you like to receive the ETC electronically? • Save with early registration for Diocesan Day • Lea aquí LA COSECHA del mes de JUNIO: Boletín de la Comunidad Hispana Católica de la Diócesis • Mercy scraps plans to build new hospital at Baptist Riverside site • Web exclusive: Four years ago—the papal transition • Obituary for Nancy and Peter Feist • Web exclusive: Video from Father Richard Armstrong’s ordination
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