About Diocese of Knoxville
The Diocese of Knoxville (Latin: Dioecesis Knoxvillensis) is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church covering the 36 counties of East Tennessee. Erected on May 27, 1988 by Pope John Paul II from the eastern counties of the Diocese of Nashville, it is a suffragan of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Louisville. With roughly 82,000 registered Catholics in 51 parish and mission churches, it is one of the fastest-growing dioceses in the United States, and its see church is the Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus in Knoxville, dedicated in 2018 as one of the newest cathedrals in the country.
- Bishop
- James Mark Beckman
- Established
- 1988
- Cathedral
- Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, 711 S. Northshore Drive, Knoxville, TN 37919
- Territory
- The 36 counties of East Tennessee, covering approximately 14,241 square miles (36,872 km²)
- Parishes
- 51 (50 parishes + 1 mission parish)
- Province
- Archdiocese of Louisville (Ecclesiastical Province of Louisville; Metropolitan Archbishop: Shelton Fabre)
History of the Diocese of Knoxville
Catholic life in East Tennessee dates to the 1840s, when Irish immigrants arrived with the railroads. Sts. Peter and Paul Parish in Chattanooga (1851) and Immaculate Conception in Knoxville (1855) were the earliest parishes, and the territory was administered successively by the Diocese of Bardstown and then the Diocese of Nashville. The diocese itself was erected by Pope John Paul II on May 27, 1988, the culmination of a proposal submitted to the Vatican in November 1987. Sacred Heart Church in the Bearden neighborhood of Knoxville, built in 1956, was elevated to cathedral status the same day. The diocese has now had four bishops — Anthony O'Connell, Joseph Kurtz, Richard Stika, and Mark Beckman — with Archbishop Kurtz going on to lead the Archdiocese of Louisville and serve as USCCB president.
- 1808 — Diocese of Bardstown created; Tennessee included
- 1837 — Diocese of Nashville created; Knoxville area assigned to it
- 1851 — Sts. Peter and Paul Parish founded in Chattanooga
- 1855 — Immaculate Conception Parish founded in Knoxville
- 1987 — Full proposal for new diocese submitted to the Vatican
- May 27, 1988 — Diocese of Knoxville erected by Pope John Paul II
- September 8, 1988 — Bishop Anthony J. O'Connell installed as first bishop
- October 26, 1999 — Bishop Joseph E. Kurtz installed as second bishop
- March 19, 2009 — Bishop Richard F. Stika installed as third bishop
- 2009 — Sts. Peter and Paul Church elevated to minor basilica
- March 3, 2018 — New Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus dedicated
- June 2023 — Pope Francis accepts Bishop Stika's retirement; Archbishop Shelton Fabre named apostolic administrator
- July 26, 2024 — Bishop James Mark Beckman installed as fourth bishop
The Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
The mother church of the Diocese of Knoxville is the Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, located at 711 S. Northshore Drive in the Bearden neighborhood of Knoxville. The original 1956 Sacred Heart Church — a 7,500-square-foot building seating about 580 — served as the cathedral from 1988 until it was replaced in 2018. The new cathedral, designed by BarberMcMurry Architects of Knoxville and James McCrery Architects of Washington, D.C., and built by Merit Construction, is a 28,000-square-foot, $30.8 million structure crowned by a 144-foot dome decorated with murals of the Twelve Apostles and sixteen saints, with a 25-foot Sacred Heart of Jesus portrait at its center. The altar is an 11-foot slab of Michelangelo Statuario marble from the same Italian quarry that produced Michelangelo's Pietà, and a 45-foot baldacchino rises over the sanctuary. Pope Francis blessed the dedication stone in October 2015, and Cardinal Justin Rigali, a Knoxville resident, donated a relic of the True Cross. The cathedral seats more than 3,200 registered families.
- Address: 711 S. Northshore Drive, Knoxville, TN 37919
- Phone: 865-588-0249
- Dedicated: March 3, 2018 by Bishop Richard Stika
- Architects: BarberMcMurry (Knoxville) and James McCrery (Washington, D.C.)
- General contractor: Merit Construction (Knoxville)
- Altar of Michelangelo Statuario marble; 45-foot baldacchino; 144-foot dome
- Original 1956 church on site preserved as parish fellowship hall
Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul (Chattanooga)
The Basilica of Sts. Peter and Paul in downtown Chattanooga, at 214 East 8th Street, is the oldest Catholic parish in East Tennessee (founded 1851) and serves as a co-cathedral-style landmark for the diocese. Pope Benedict XVI elevated the church to the rank of minor basilica in 2009, the same year Bishop Stika was installed. The basilica also holds the relics of Servant of God Father Patrick Ryan, transferred there in 2021 from Mount Olivet Cemetery in Chattanooga as part of his diocesan cause of canonization.
- Address: 214 East 8th Street, Chattanooga, TN 37402
- Phone: 423-266-1618
- Parish founded 1851 — oldest in the diocese
- Elevated to minor basilica in 2009
- Houses remains of Servant of God Fr. Patrick Ryan since 2021
Parishes and Missions
The diocese is home to 51 parish and mission churches spread across 36 counties. In addition to the cathedral in Knoxville and the basilica in Chattanooga, parishes serve Johnson City, Kingsport, Oak Ridge, Crossville, Cleveland, Maryville, Sevierville/Pigeon Forge, and dozens of small communities in the Appalachian foothills. Recent growth has come from the elevation of three mission churches to full parish status: St. Teresa of Kolkata in Maynardville (originally established by the Glenmary Home Missioners in 2011, elevated 2014), the Church of the Divine Mercy in Knoxville — a parish that serves the Vietnamese Catholic community (elevated November 2014), and St. Michael the Archangel in Erwin, another Glenmary mission (elevated September 2018).
- All Saints, Knoxville
- Blessed Sacrament, Harriman
- Christ the King, Tazewell
- Church of the Divine Mercy, Knoxville (Vietnamese community)
- Good Shepherd, Newport
- Holy Cross, Pigeon Forge
- Holy Family, Seymour
- Holy Ghost, Knoxville
- St. Catherine Laboure, Copperhill
- St. Christopher, Jamestown
- St. Dominic, Kingsport
- St. Elizabeth, Elizabethton
- St. Francis of Assisi, Fairfield Glade and Townsend
- St. Henry, Rogersville
- St. James the Apostle, Sneedville
- St. John Neumann, Knoxville
- St. John Paul II Catholic Mission, Rutledge
- St. Michael the Archangel, Erwin
- St. Teresa of Kolkata, Maynardville
Catholic Schools
The Diocese of Knoxville operates ten Cognia-accredited Catholic schools, comprising eight foundational (Pre-K through 8) schools and two high schools in Knoxville, Chattanooga, Kingsport, Johnson City, and Oak Ridge. The system reports a 100% graduation rate and 99% college attendance rate, and offers tuition assistance through the Catholic Education Trust Fund and the Dr. Aurelia Montgomery Memorial Catholic School Fund. The flagship school, Sacred Heart Cathedral School in Knoxville, was founded on September 4, 1956 — the same year Sacred Heart parish was established — and now serves more than 600 students with over 80 faculty members. The schools use the Circle of Grace child-safety curriculum and welcome students of all religious backgrounds.
- Sacred Heart Cathedral School, Knoxville (est. 1956)
- Our Lady of Perpetual Help School, Chattanooga
- St. Dominic School, Kingsport
- Notre Dame High School, Chattanooga
- Knoxville Catholic High School
- Catholic Education Trust Fund (tuition assistance)
- Dr. Aurelia Montgomery Memorial Catholic School Fund
Campus Ministry
The diocese supports Catholic campus ministry at three public universities in East Tennessee: the University of Tennessee Knoxville, the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, and East Tennessee State University in Johnson City. St. John XXIII Parish at UT Knoxville, located at 1710 Melrose Place, is one of the diocesan campus-parish centers.
- Campus Ministry at UT Knoxville — St. John XXIII Parish (1710 Melrose Place)
- Campus Ministry at UT Chattanooga
- Campus Ministry at East Tennessee State University (Johnson City)
Faith Formation & Religious Education
Beyond Catholic schools, the diocese supports parish-based faith formation for children, youth, and adults, including sacramental preparation for First Communion, Confirmation, and RCIA. Bishop Stika emphasized the central role of the saints in the cathedral's design — including statues of Sts. Peter, Paul, Teresa of Kolkata, and Faustina, and a shrine to co-patron St. John Paul II — to inspire 'a desire for heaven and union with God.' Diocesan youth and young adult ministry is coordinated through the Office of Youth Ministry and the synodal process encouraged by the universal Church.
- Parish religious education / CCD programs
- Sacramental preparation (Baptism, First Communion, Confirmation)
- RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults)
- Youth ministry and Confirmation preparation
- Young adult ministry
Catholic Charities of East Tennessee
Catholic Charities of East Tennessee (CCETN) is the diocesan social-services agency, led by Executive Director Lisa Healy. It operates multiple Pregnancy Help Centers — including in Newcomb, LaFollette, Knoxville, and Helenwood (Scott County) — and provides parenting classes, baby supplies (diapers, formula, cribs, car seats), pregnancy testing, and adoption referrals. CCETN also runs the Hope Kitchen mobile meal program. In 2022, it began partnering with St. Mary's Legacy Clinic to offer wraparound medical and social services in Scott County, and in 2025 it added a mobile ultrasound van to its fleet. According to CCETN, 99.5% of those it serves are not Catholic.
- Pregnancy Help Centers (Newcomb, LaFollette, Helenwood, Knoxville)
- Hope Kitchen (mobile meal program)
- Mobile ultrasound van (2025)
- Adoption services
- Parenting classes in English and Spanish
St. Mary's Legacy Clinic
St. Mary's Legacy Clinic (SMLC) is a diocesan ministry that continues the legacy of the Sisters of Mercy by providing free primary medical care to uninsured and underinsured residents of rural East Tennessee. Operating from a mobile clinic van staffed largely by volunteers and overseen by Medical Director Sister Mary Lisa Renfer, RSM, and Executive Director Martin Vargas, SMLC currently serves about 10 locations in 7 counties, including Knoxville, Athens, Decatur, Crab Orchard, Crossville, Gatlinburg, Helenwood, Rutledge, Washburn, and Pigeon Forge. It also serves uninsured immigrant communities in the Knoxville area. SMLC began joint operations with Catholic Charities of East Tennessee in 2022, formalizing a wraparound-care partnership.
- Free mobile primary care, ~10 sites in 7 counties
- Telehealth appointments
- Medical Director: Sister Mary Lisa Renfer, RSM
- Executive Director: Martin Vargas
- Partners with Catholic Charities for joint deployments
The East Tennessee Catholic (Diocesan Newspaper)
The East Tennessee Catholic (etcatholic.org) is the official newspaper of the Diocese of Knoxville, providing news, columns, and feature stories about parish life, schools, Catholic Charities, the cathedral, and the bishop. It also publishes the diocesan newsletter DioNotes and hosts the Diocese of Knoxville Podcasts.
- Website: etcatholic.org
- DioNotes newsletter
- Diocese of Knoxville Podcasts
Office of the Bishop and Chancery
The diocesan chancery is located at 805 S. Northshore Drive, Knoxville, TN 37919. Bishop Mark Beckman is the fourth and current bishop. Deacon Sean Smith serves as Chancellor and Chief Operating Officer, handling pastoral and canonical matters. The office is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. The diocese is led in pastoral governance by the bishop in concert with the Presbyteral Council, Finance Council, and other consultative bodies.
- Bishop: James Mark Beckman (installed July 26, 2024)
- Chancellor/COO: Deacon Sean Smith
- Vicar General: Father Peter Iorio (per Wikipedia)
- Phone: 865-584-3307
- Fax: 865-584-7538
- Office hours: 9 a.m.–5 p.m. Mon–Fri
Safe Environment
The diocese operates a Safe Environment program to protect children and vulnerable adults, in line with USCCB Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People. The Catholic schools use the Circle of Grace child-safety curriculum (available in English and Spanish for grades K–12).
- Circle of Grace child-safety curriculum (K–12, English and Spanish)
- Background checks and VIRTUS training for clergy, employees, and volunteers
Giving and the Bishop's Appeal
The annual Bishop's Appeal for Ministries is the primary diocesan fundraising campaign, supporting offices and ministries across the 36-county region. Parishes also offer online giving through the parish offertory system. The Sacred Heart Cathedral parish committed to raise $10 million toward the $30.8 million cathedral project, with the diocese's other 50 parishes pledging an additional $4 million beginning in 2015.
- Bishop's Appeal for Ministries (dioknox.org/appeal)
- Parish online offertory
- Major-gift campaigns (Cathedral Campaign, 2014–2018)
Patron Saints and Identity
The patron of the Diocese of Knoxville is the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The co-patron is St. John Paul II, the pope who erected the diocese in 1988 — a tie reflected in a statue of the saint in the cathedral's narthex and relics donated by his longtime secretary Cardinal Dziwisz at the 2018 dedication. The cathedral itself is named for the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, the devotion that has been central to the parish and the diocese from the start.
- Patron: Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary
- Co-patron: St. John Paul II
- Cathedral dedication: Most Sacred Heart of Jesus
