[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 15596]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               CONGRATULATING STS. PETER AND PAUL CHURCH

  (Mr. FLEISCHMANN asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. FLEISCHMANN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the elevation of 
the Sts. Peter and Paul Church in Chattanooga, Tennessee, to the status 
of Minor Basilica on October 22.
  This church sits in my hometown, and it's where I attend services. 
Sts. Peter and Paul Parish was founded in 1852, when Father Henry V. 
Brown became the first pastor. Upon his appointment to pastor in 1887, 
Father William Walsh immediately began plans for a new church. Ground 
was broken on February 1, 1888, and on June 29, 1890, Sts. Peter and 
Paul Church was dedicated.
  Due to the inspired leadership of Bishop Richard F. Stika and 
Monsignor George Schmidt, the church of Sts. Peter and Paul is the 
first church in Tennessee to be honored as a Minor Basilica by His 
Holiness Pope Benedict XVI.
  Monsignor Schmidt, the rector, will continue to lead the faithful in 
worship at the basilica and will celebrate Mass along with Father 
Bertin Glennon. I look forward to continuing to attend services, and I 
congratulate the church on this great honor.

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