About St. Peter (St. Peter Parish) · Portland, Maine
St. Peter Parish is a Roman Catholic parish in downtown Portland, Maine, located at 72 Federal Street and part of the Portland Peninsula & Island Parishes cluster under the Diocese of Portland. The parish was founded to serve the Italian immigrant community of Portland's 'Little Italy' neighborhood centered on India Street, and its current church was built in 1929. The parish is celebrated for its annual Italian Bazaar, which celebrated its 97th year in 2023 and its centennial in 2024, and is now pastored by Very Rev. Seamus Griesbach. Daily 7:00 AM Mass is celebrated at the church each weekday, with a Saturday vigil at 5:15 PM and a Sunday Mass at 9:00 AM, and the church also hosts a monthly Spanish Mass (Wednesday evenings).
- Established
- 1911
- Patron
- Saint Peter (the Apostle)
- Rector
- Very Rev. Seamus P. Griesbach (Rector of the Portland Peninsula & Island Parishes cluster)
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland (Maine)
Why belong here
St. Peter's is the spiritual home of Portland's historic Italian-American Catholic community, where weekday Mass is offered every morning at 7:00 AM right in the church and a Saturday Vigil and Sunday Mass anchor the weekend. The parish is part of a vibrant five-parish cluster whose shared Pastoral Center runs faith formation for all ages, RCIA ('Becoming Catholic'), the Catholic young-adult ministry Casco Bay Catholics, the lay-formation program Sequitur, a campus ministry, and Sunday Vespers with Catholic teachings. Parishioners also share in beloved traditions like the Italian Bazaar, the diocesan-wide social and sacramental life of downtown Portland, and the daily rhythms of adoration and reconciliation offered across the cluster.
Mass times at St. Peter (St. Peter Parish)
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM at Saint Peter Church (before the 5:15 PM Vigil Mass)
Adoration times
- Thursday 7:30 AM – 8:30 AM at St. Peter's (Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, preceding the morning daily Mass)
About St. Peter Parish
St. Peter Parish is a downtown Portland, Maine Roman Catholic parish located at 72 Federal Street and administered as part of the Portland Peninsula & Island Parishes cluster under the Diocese of Portland. Founded to serve the Italian immigrant community of the India Street neighborhood, the present church was built in 1929 and remains a center of Italian-American Catholic heritage on the peninsula, best known for the annual Italian Bazaar. Daily 7:00 AM Mass is offered Monday through Friday in the church, with a 5:15 PM Saturday Vigil and a 9:00 AM Sunday Mass, plus a monthly evening Spanish Mass on selected Wednesdays.
- Founded 1911; present church built 1929
- 72 Federal Street, Portland, ME 04101
- Pastor: Very Rev. Seamus P. Griesbach
- Part of 'Cluster 21' with the Cathedral, St. Louis, St. Christopher, and Sacred Heart/St. Dominic
History
The parish was established in 1911, during the era when Bishop Louis S. Walsh's tenure was welcoming a great new wave of Polish, Italian, Slovak and Lithuanian immigrants into Maine. The Italian families of the India Street neighborhood — Portland's 'Little Italy' — needed a spiritual home of their own, and the parish's first Italian Bazaar was actually held even before the church was completed. The current St. Peter's Catholic Church on Federal Street was built and dedicated in 1929, with 'Tu Es Petrus' inscribed over its center door. More than a century later, the parish has grown from a neighborhood ethnic parish into a downtown anchor of a five-parish peninsula cluster whose sacramental records and staff are coordinated through the Portland Catholic Pastoral Center at 307 Congress Street.
- 1911 — Parish established for Italian Catholic community of India Street / 'Little Italy'
- Pre-1929 — First Italian Bazaar held in connection with the parish
- 1929 — Present church built at 72 Federal Street
- Today — One of five 'Cluster 21' parishes served from 307 Congress Street
The St. Peter's Italian Bazaar
The Italian Bazaar is St. Peter's signature parish event, held annually around the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the Feast of St. Rocco and recognized by the Diocese of Portland as a celebration of the Italian-American Catholic community on the peninsula. The bazaar marked its centennial in 2024, following its 97th edition in 2023. It features old-fashioned carnival games, live music, traditional Italian food, and a week of volunteer baking in the parish hall that produces thousands of Italian pastries.
- Honors the Solemnity of the Assumption (Aug 15) and the Feast of St. Rocco (Aug 16)
- Centennial held in 2024 after 97th running in 2023
- Volunteers bake approximately 13,000 cookies, 3,000 cannoli and 4,000 pizzelles each year
- Bishop James Ruggieri celebrated Mass at St. Peter Church during the bazaar
Clergy & Staff
St. Peter's is pastored as part of a unified team serving all five peninsula-and-island parishes, with a Rector/Pastor overseeing the cluster, parochial vicars, an in-residence priest, and a deacon, supported by a Pastoral Center staff of lay directors for finance, communications, buildings, faith formation, music, and pastoral ministry.
- Rector/Pastor — Very Rev. Seamus P. Griesbach
- Parochial Vicar — Rev. Sylvester Nwaokolo, OP
- Part-Time Parochial Vicar & Hospital Chaplain — Rev. Paul R. Marquis
- In Residence — Rev. Roland N. Berngeh
- Deacon — Deacon Michael B. Augustino
- Director of Music @ St. Peter — Jim Ciampi
Faith Formation & Ministries
St. Peter's parishioners have access to a full slate of cluster-wide formation and ministry programs run out of the Portland Catholic Pastoral Center: RCIA for adults becoming Catholic, faith formation for all ages, a Catholic young-adult ministry called Casco Bay Catholics, a lay-formation program called Sequitur, a campus ministry that reaches college students, and a Young Adult Ministry, alongside the regular Sunday Vespers and Catholic-teaching evenings.
- Becoming Catholic / RCIA
- Faith Formation at Any Age
- Casco Bay Catholics (young adults)
- Sequitur (lay formation)
- Campus Ministry
- Young Adult Ministry
Sacraments
All sacramental preparation, scheduling and record-keeping for St. Peter's is coordinated through the Portland Pastoral Center at 307 Congress Street. Families preparing for Baptism, children enrolling in Confirmation preparation, engaged couples beginning marriage prep, and those needing Anointing of the Sick, home blessings, or pastoral counseling all begin by contacting the Pastoral Office.
- Baptism — register through the Pastoral Office
- Marriage — schedule through the Pastoral Office
- Confirmation — enroll through the Parish Office
- Reconciliation — Saturday 4:00–5:00 PM at St. Peter Church (also Cathedral Chapel daily)
- Anointing of the Sick — call (207) 773-7746
- RCIA — 'Becoming Catholic' inquiry
Visiting & Contact
St. Peter's Church is on Federal Street in downtown Portland at the edge of the India Street Little Italy neighborhood. The parish's mailing address and shared offices are at the Portland Pastoral Center, 307 Congress Street, Portland, ME 04101, phone (207) 773-7746, open Monday through Friday 9 AM to 5 PM, with general inquiries handled by email.
- Address — 72 Federal Street, Portland, ME 04101
- Pastoral Center — 307 Congress Street, Portland, ME 04101-3695
- Phone — (207) 773-7746
- Email — [email protected]
- Office hours — Mon–Fri, 9 AM–5 PM
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Very Rev. Seamus P. Griesbachpresent (as of 2024-2025)
Current Rector / Pastor of the Portland Peninsula & Island Parishes cluster; writes the 'Pastoral Corner' weekly reflection.