June 5
| 2022
VOL 31 NO 10
IN THIS ISSUE PRAISE OF OF FAITH A5 IN A4 STUDY HOLY FAMILIES ON ROCKY TOP Sister of Mercy is also a college co-ed
KDCCW convenes at St. �érèse of Lisieux
GOLDEN MILESTONE B1 AMsgr. Al Humbrecht celebrates his 50th anniversary as a priest
He dwells among us ......................... A3 Parish news ....................................... B4 Diocesan calendar ............................ B5 Columns ............................................. B6 Catholic schools ........................B10-12 La Cosecha ............................Section C
Bishop Stika dedicates Rutledge church New St. John Paul II Catholic Mission building serves Grainger County faith community By Dan McWilliams
Dedicated to St. John Paul II Left: Bishop Richard F. Stika incenses the altar in the sanctuary of the new St. John Paul II Catholic Mission building. Observing from behind the altar are St. John Paul II Catholic Mission pastor Father Neil Pezzulo, GHM, and Father Chet Artysiewicz, GHM. Below: Bishop Stika blesses the mission building with holy water. A standingroom-only gathering of the faithful joined in the dedication Mass on May 29 in Rutledge. nardville were created more than a decade ago. Deacon Larry Rossini assisted at Mass, and Deacon Walt Otey was master of ceremonies. Glenmary Brother Joe Steen, who designed the new church and helped build it, was in attendance. Glenmary Father Steve Pawelk, the founding pastor of the Rutledge and Maynardville communities, who is now serving as director of the Glenmary novitiate in Cincinnati, was remembered by Bishop Stika at the Mass. “One of the great decisions I’ve made in my life as a bishop was to say yes to the Glenmary community when they wanted to come back to the diocese,” Bishop Stika said. “Because of their work and their ambition and their dedication, we now have two new parishes and this mission: we have St. Michael the
BILL BREWER
DAN MCWILLIAMS
W
hen 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 wearing a Pope St. John Paul II Totus Tuus vestment for the occasion, which was attended by some 150 of the faithful as they filled the new worship space on Memorial Day weekend. “Coming together this day, I have been waiting for this for a long time,” he said. “In my short life of 65 years, I had the privilege of meeting St. John Paul probably 10 or 12 times, so I’m thinking about that and all those moments. I was at his beatification and his canonization, so this is very, very dear to my heart. This vestment actually came from Poland. It was given to me by some Sisters.” Bishop Stika blessed the altar and walls in the new building at 161 Bryan Road at the corner of Rutledge Pike, praying, “Sanctify therefore with your blessing this water You have created, that, sprinkled on us and on the walls of this church dedicated to St. John Paul, it may be a sign of the cleansing waters of salvation in which we have been cleansed in Christ and made a temple of Your Spirit.” St. John Paul II pastor Father Neil Pezzulo and Father Chet Artysiewicz, both Glenmary fathers, concelebrated the Mass. Father Artysiewicz is with the Glenmary Home Missioners development office and was president of Glenmary when St. John Paul II Mission and its sister parish St. Teresa of Kolkata in May-
Archangel [in Erwin] and St. Teresa of Kolkata and now the mission of St. John Paul.” As a successor of the Apostles, Bishop Stika said that “because of
their work so many centuries ago, we’re in Rutledge, Tenn., dedicating a church under the title of St. John Paul.” Dedication continued on page A15
Diocese delivers Synod report to USCCB Chancellor calls process ‘inspiring and illuminating’ as local document heads to Rome
JIM WOGAN
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hen Pope Francis laid out his plan for the upcoming Church Synod, Deacon Sean Smith knew it eventually would come to this. Collecting the thoughts and opinions of more than 1.2 billion Catholics around the world sounded like an admirable and historic ambition. But in practice, the process was going to be a challenge for individual dioceses and Deacon Smith knew it. Despite that, and under Deacon Smith’s direction, the Diocese of Knoxville fulfilled the mandate it received from the Holy Father last year. On May 7, Deacon Smith forwarded to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops the official diocesan synthesis for Synodus Episcoporum, Synod 2021-2023. With that, the deacon, who also serves as chancellor of the Diocese of Knoxville, took a deep breath, smiled, and reflected on what had just happened. “This was an inspiring and illuminating process. Yes, it was filled
In support of immigration Bishop Richard F. Stika joins dozens of other Diocese of Knoxville parishioners taking part in the V Encuentro initiative for Hispanic ministry, which is a key element in the diocese’s Synod report. with its share of logistical challenges,” Deacon Smith said. “But thanks to the help I received from my colleagues Lisa Healy, Deacon Scott Maentz, and John Steger, and from all of our parish group leaders,
our diocesan Synod team members, our pastors, school leaders, ministry directors, and the faithful, I am pleased to say that the mission given to us by Pope Francis has been fulfilled.”
By Jim Wogan
Deacon Smith and Mrs. Healy were appointed by Bishop Richard F. Stika in September 2021 to lead the diocesan Synod effort. They quickly assembled a diocesan Synod team that was composed of 26 members and reflected the diversity of the Catholic Church in East Tennessee. The team helped formulate an online survey to be used by parishes, schools, and ministries. A second survey was designed for non-Catholics, and a third survey was developed for people who lived on the margins of society—primarily the homeless. “We did our best to reach everyone,” Deacon Smith said. The most daunting part of the process was compiling thousands of pages of raw data Deacon Smith received from the online diocesan survey, and reports from townhall-style listening sessions held at locations around the diocese—and then synthesizing the results into a concise 10-page summary for the USCCB. Synod continued on page A20