St. Peter Church

190 Adams Ave. Memphis, TN 38103 (901) 527-8282

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VOLUNTEER

OUR MISSION: The mission of the Eucharistic Community of
St. Peter Catholic Church is the proclamation of the good news of Jesus Christ by sustaining our historic Dominican traditions and serving the needs of our parishioners and the greater Memphis community.

WELCOME TO ST. PETER CATHOLIC CHURCH
A Ministry of the Dominican Friars

Summer 2009

Greetings!

Summer is a time for travel, vacation, taking it easy, and trying to stay cool.

After a very busy and eventful Easter season, we’re glad to be settling in to summer here at St. Peter’s. 

I am pleased to announce two new additions to our staff:  Deacon Eddie Ramsey and Jenna Molinski.  Deacon Eddie has ministered for nine years as a deacon at neighboring St. Patrick Parish.  This spring, Bishop Steib asked Deacon Eddie to move over to St. Peter’s.  He joined us in April.  We’re very happy to have him.  Deacon Eddie will be serving in liturgical ministries, in addition to working with RCIA and ministry to the sick.

In June, Jenna Molinski began as youth director.  Jenna recently returned to her native Memphis after earning her degree from LSU and working in Teach America.  Jenna is very excited to be working with our young people, and has several events already planned, including a trip to the Redbirds game on
June 16.  Welcome to St. Peter’s!

Even during the summer, we have educational opportunities for our parishioners.  Sister Cathy Galaskiewicz, O.P., presents a summer adult lecture series on the Moral Teachings of the Catholic Church from 9:45-10:45 AM on Sundays, through June 28, in the Crystal Room.

In August, we celebrate the feast of St. Dominic, founder of the Dominican Order.  This year we will celebrate his feast with a special vespers service on Sunday, August 9, at 5:00 PM.  All are invited.

Don’t forget the needy during the summer!  I think the longest continuous ministry at St. Peter’s is the sandwich ministry, providing for the hungry.  If you’d like to help with this ministry, see our weekly bulletin, or contact the church office.  We are also collecting children’s books for the library at nearby Holy Names School (Grades 1-8) this summer.  Their library was flooded with the heavy spring rain.  You may drop off your book at church on Sunday or at the church office by July 12.

Have a great summer!  See you at church!

Fr. Tom Condon, O.P.

Pastor


Please note: Our website is regularly updated with additional information and photos.

OUR HISTORY: St. Peter Catholic Church, located on the corner of Third Street and Adams in downtown Memphis, Tennessee, traces its origins to the fall of 1840 when Bishop Richard Miles, O.P., the first Bishop of Nashville, appointed Father Michael McAleer as the first pastor of St. Peter. Just one year after the first Catholic mass was celebrated in the parlor of the adjacent Magevny House, the parish opened its doors. The oldest Roman Catholic parish in the region; the present structure is one of the oldest surviving buildings in Memphis.

On October 29, 1841, John S. Claybrook, trustee of Judge John Overton's estate, conveyed block 409 of the original plan of Memphis to Bishop Miles. As a partial donation, the price was made a nominal $500.00, which was generously subscribed by a number of Protestant Memphians as a gift to the Catholic community. In the summer of 1842 a brick church, 30 by 70 feet, was begun. It was completed the following year, reportedly at a cost of $5000.00. Rev. Joseph Sadoc Alemany, O.P. was named the new pastor in 1846 and later became the first Provincial of United States Dominicans, then the first Bishop of Monterey, California, and, finally, was appointed as the first archbishop of San Francisco. The Dominican Order has served continuously at St. Peter since 1846.

Construction of the present church began in 1852 around the intact older original sanctuary and was completed in 1855. Once built, parts of the original church were dismantled and carried out the doors, piece by piece. The new church was dedicated by Bishop Miles in 1858.

With its vaulted ceilings, Gothic characteristics and upward thrusting arches, St. Peter Church is a historical masterpiece and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Designed by Patrick Charles Keely, an eminent architect, the church's beautiful, stained glass windows narrate the events in the life of Christ and several saints. The beauty of the church is magnified by the Casavant Organ located in the choir loft.

The church has had multiple expansions throughout its many years beginning with the construction of the present rectory in 1873, followed by the addition of the Crystal Room and former chapel in 1891. In 2001, a new 3-story building added six classrooms, parish hall with kitchen, choir room and other meeting facilities, all handicapped accessible.

A new chapel houses the national Shrine of St. Martin de Porres, a sixteenth-century Dominican and the patron saint of social justice. The Shrine is open daily for prayer and also sponsors various events throughout the year.

TODAY: St. Peter Church is a living monument to the Catholic faith, and stands in tribute to the brave Dominicans who, through their compassion and unwavering faith, willingly sacrificed their lives to nurse the victims of epidemics that besieged Memphis in the mid and late 1800's. St. Peter Church has a proud history thanks to the Dominicans and families who have helped to make our parish one of the outstanding historical milestones in Memphis.

St. Peter has grown from a handful of Catholics in its beginning years into a thriving, vibrant congregation of over 400 families. It is our hope that while celebrating the rich history of our parish, that we promote the promise of the future through an increased sense of family, fellowship, and faith.



BULLETIN  JUNE 27 & 28

Eucharistic Ministries List JULY / AUG/ SEPT

Children's Book Donations Needed by July 12
Holy Names School has lost much of its library in a recent flood. Please help by donating new or gently used books appropriate for Grades 1-8. Please place your donations in the West Tower. Thank you!
Click here for downloadable PDF

Scaffolding in Church:  Scaffolding is now over the main altar so that repair work to plaster and painting may be finished. Please be careful to stand clear while the scaffolding is in place. Click here to see interesting photos.

RCIA - Join the Team!
Would you like to serve on St. Peter's RCIA Team?
Click here for details

LITURGICAL SCHEDULE:
Saturday: 5:00PM
in Church Sanctuary
Sunday: 8:30 & 11:00AM
in Church Sanctuary
Click here for Liturgical Ministries Schedule

Weekdays: 12 Noon
Tuesday-Friday
in Shrine Chapel. Please use west entrance just off Third St.

Holy Days:
Call for schedule

Holiday Services:
Click here for schedule

Confessions:
Saturday: 4:20-4:45PM
(or by appointment)

Nursery:
Available during
8:30AM & 11:00AM Masses
9:45 Adult Lecture Series
(& some special events)


Church Staff:
Click here for info & e-mail

Church Office:
Click here for info & e-mail
190 Adams Avenue

Memphis, TN 38103
Phone: (901) 527-8282
Fax: (901) 526-6882
Hours: Monday-Thurs.
8:00AM-4:00PM
Friday: 8:00AM-Noon

St. Martin de Porres
Shrine & Institute

Phone: (901) 578-2643
Fax: (901) 578-3735
www.stmartinshrine.org

St. Peter Church and St. Martin Shrine are disabled access compliant.





© 2006-08 St. Peter Catholic Church • 190 Adams Avenue at Third Street • Memphis, Tennessee • 901-527-8282