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Click to see our schedule for Lent, Holy Week, and Easter 2026 including Friday Adoration, Stations of the Cross, Fish Fry, and all the special liturgies. Also note the rules for fasting and abstinence.

We wish to thank all who participated in Bishop Beckman's Called by Name program. Your prayers have been especially beneficial to the parish as we received 20 names of potential candidates for religious life. Please pray for vocations, and in particular for the nominees as each of them begin the journey of discernment.

Girls ages 4th grade and up are invited to join the St. Veronica Ministry, to learn about the things used during the liturgy and to help care for our church. Our Lent meeting will be Sat., March 7, 2026 from 3pm to 5pm in Varallo Parish Hall. We will learn sewing and ironing. Contact Florence Porter to RSVP. Click for more information.

World renowned speaker and author Christopher West and award winning musician, Mike Mangione, are coming to Notre Dame High School Wed. March 4, 2026 7pm-9:30pm with a beautiful multimedia event called MADE FOR MORE: VISIONS OF THE PROMISED LAND on the Theology of the Body. Bring family and friends (age 16+). Purchase your tickets online here or at the parish office ($25). Brought to you by Our Lady of Perpetual Help, The Basilica, and The Theology of The Body Institute.

Retrouvaille is for couples who want to improve their marriages. It can support couples experiencing serious challenges, as well as couples who simply want to deepen an already good relationship. There is an upcoming Retrouvaille Weekend Retreat in Nashville March 6-8. Click for details

Jacqueline Mathis, mother of Basilica parishioner Anthony Mathis, passed away on Jan. 27, 2026, following a battle with Stage 4 lung cancer. Visitation will be Fri., Feb. 6 from 3pm-5pm, with a Rosary at 4:30pm, at Advantage Funeral, Franklin-Strickland Chapel, 1724 McCallie Ave. Funeral Mass will be held at the Basilica of Sts. Peter & Paul Sat., Feb. 7 at 10:30am, followed by burial at Mount Olivet Cemetery. We ask for your prayers for Ms. Jacqueline's soul.

The men of Sts. Peter & Paul and St. Jude have started an inter-parish Bible study at 6:30pm every Friday (Thursdays during Lent). The group meets at the St. Jude Library, and men from all parishes are invited. We will begin studying the Church Fathers and how we can apply their teachings to modern day. Click for info.

Can you spend 1 hour per week to help the poor? You are invited to the Basilica’s Community Outreach Ministry Open House on Saturday, February 7 at noon-1:30 PM at Oscar & Cathy Palisoc’s house. Also, The Basilica of Sts. Peter & Paul is starting a Perpetual Food Drive every week. Our beneficiary through Feb. 15 is CHATT Foundation. Click for details.

The developer, Evelyn Capital, has withdrawn the rezoning petition to build a 12-story building that would have overshadowed the Basilica and threatened its structural integrity. We are collaborating with the developer to discuss alternative solutions that would benefit the community.

Your gift not only funds many of the operations of the Diocese of Knoxville, it funds services that are of great help to the ministries here in our parish, including: Religious Education programs, Campus Ministry, Youth Ministry, Hispanic Ministry, Tribunal, and Catholic Charities. Each Appeal gift enables the diocese to build up the kingdom of God throughout East Tennessee.

It is traditional for parish priests to bless chalk for each family so that they may mark the names of the three Magi over their doors, in the blessing of homes as a witness of their faith and protection against evil. After Mass on the weekend of Jan. 3 & 4, 2026, you can pick up blessed chalk in the vestibule, and take it home for a traditional Epiphany House Blessing. Click to see the instructional flyer.

Our Christmas Masses include: a Vigil Mass in English at 5:30pm on Dec. 24 (prelude music at 5pm); Midnight Mass in Latin at 12am on Dec. 25 (prelude music at 11:30pm Dec. 24), Christmas Day English Mass at 10am, and Spanish Mass at 12pm. On January 1, the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God, a holy day of obligation, we will have three Masses: 12pm English, 6pm Latin, and 8pm Spanish. Click for details.

Melvin Freeman, longtime attendee of the Basilica of Sts. Peter & Paul, has passed away at the age of 68. A service will be held Sat. Dec. 13 at 2pm at the Advantage Funeral Home, Franklin-Strickland Chapel, 1724 McCallie Ave. The Basilica will also offer a Memorial Mass for Melvin Sat., Dec. 27 at 9am. Please pray for the repose of Melvin's soul, especially the Divine Mercy Chaplet. Click to read his obituary.

The traditional Ember Days of fasting for Advent are Wed., Fri., and Sat., Dec. 17, 19, and 20. While a fast is not obligatory, it is a worthy traditional spiritual practice to fast or abstain in some way on one or more of these days.

From Dec. 15 - 21, we will be collecting items in the vestibule that are needed by the CHATT Foundation to serve people experiencing homelessness in the Chattanooga area. CHATT Foundation has a specific list of needs for December. Click to see the list.

As we journey through Advent, may our hearts grow in hope, peace, joy, and love. Are you preparing the way of the Lord? Click to see our schedule of Advent events and devotions, and resources from our Diocese.

ABIDE Respite Ministry, located at around the corner at First-Centenary United Methodist Church. ABIDE seeks to care for and support persons with early to moderate memory issues and their caregivers. Volunteers are able to provide community, socialization, and love through activities and companionship with participants. They also give respite to caregivers, knowing their loved ones are being loved and cared for in a safe environment. Click to find out more.

Each year the Knights of Columbus provides thousands of coats to needy children and families. The Knights of Columbus Council 610 will be collecting new and gently used children's coats for donation to the Chambliss Center. Drop off the coats in the Basilica vestibule between Nov. 22 and Dec. 14. Help keep a needy child warm this winter.

The Basilica’s new Servant of God Library for adults is now open for browsing and borrowing books ranging from Theology to Fiction, at the end of the hallway by the elevators. We have over 800 books in the collection, the majority of them donated by the parishioners of Sts. Peter and Paul; it can truly be called a "community library."

Bishop Beckman has responded to the request of the universal Church to implement Traditionis Custodes in the Diocese of Knoxville. Beginning Nov. 23, 2025, the 11:30 Latin Mass at the Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul will be celebrated according to the Latin edition of the 2002 Roman Missal, with the most traditional options that the current rubrics allow. Click to read Fr. Carter's Pastoral Letter, Bishop Beckman's letter to the faithful, and details about the form of celebration of the 11:30 Mass.