The Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul in Chattanooga will host two special events next week—with the focus on sainthood.
On Thursday the Closing Session of the Tribunal of Inquiry into the Cause for Sainthood of Father Patrick Ryan will take place beginning at 5:30 p.m. The Tribunal of Inquiry opened on Sept. 28, 2020. All materials gathered during the inquiry will officially be sealed during evening prayer in preparation for their delivery to the Vatican for further consideration of the petition for sainthood.
Archbishop Joseph E. Kurtz, former bishop of the Diocese of Knoxville, will lead evening prayer.
Father David Carter, rector of the basilica, is the episcopal delegate for the tribunal. Deacon Gaspar DeGaetano is the tribunal’s diocesan vice-postulator.
A day earlier, Wednesday, the faithful will have a unique opportunity to pray in the presence of one of the Catholic Church’s most beloved saints when the relics of Saint Pio of Pietrelcina (Padre Pio) visit the basilica.
The relics will be available for viewing and public veneration from 12:30-6:30 p.m. with a multilingual Mass in honor of Padre Pio to be celebrated at 7 p.m. Father Carter will be the lead celebrant.
Additionally, reflections on Padre Pio will he hosted in English by Father Michael Hendershott in the Varallo Parish Hall at 5:30 p.m. and in Spanish by Deacon Renzo Alvarado Suarez in the Varallo Parish Hall at 6:15 p.m.
Saint Pio of Pietrelcina, popularly known as Padre Pio, was a Capuchin friar who lived in Italy from 1887-1968 and is best known for his devotion to long hours of prayer, a profound acceptance of suffering and the intense scrutiny he faced from Church authorities for claims of bilocation, receiving the stigmata and other mystical experiences.
The Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul is located at 214 East 8th St. in Chattanooga.