HOMILY
Day of Atonement and Healing – April 9, 2026
Thursday within the Octave of Easter
Brothers and sisters, this is the eighth time in my tenure as Bishop that I’ve gathered with you in our cathedral to celebrate Mass during the month of April – a time dedicated to Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Prevention. We pray during this hour for God’s healing and peace for all survivors of sexual abuse and particularly for those abused by members of the clergy and trusted Church workers. We pray as well for mercy and forgiveness for those who inflicted or enabled such abuse.
It is significant that our prayer today takes place in the heart of the Octave of Easter – eight days that remind us that the cross of Jesus, despite its overwhelming pain, was not the end of Jesus’ story but, through the power of God, gave way to the fullness of life, meaning and peace for Jesus – and for each of us through faith.
Earlier this year, in speaking to the cardinals of the Catholic Church, Pope Leo addressed what he called “the scandal of closed doors.” The Holy Father stressed that while “abuse itself causes a deep wound which may last a lifetime, often the scandal in the Church is that the door was closed and victims were not welcomed or accompanied” by the Church. He went on to share the testimony of a victim with whom he had spoken: “She told me that the most painful part for her was that no bishop wanted to listen”. There, Pope Leo said, “listening is profoundly important.”
Brothers and sisters, while we have celebrated this Mass in a very public way for many years, it continues to be vital that we pray for survivors of abuse. Why? Because there is still pain. And the Church needs to listen to the stories of survivors, to their pain and to the movements of their hearts.
None of us will ever know the depth of the pain that survivors endure. Yet, in courageously sharing their pain, so many of them with whom I’ve spoken over the years have taught me a great lesson. They’ve taught me that if the Church is truly intent upon creating safe environments for its children and all of God’s people, the Church – and especially Church leaders – must never forget or allow time to numb us to the pain that was so willfully inflicted on innocent lives by those who postured themselves as God’s representatives and ministers of his love and mercy. An authentic recognition of the pain of that cross is the only thing that can truly prompt us to change and to create a Church deserving of people’s trust.
Friends, today’s scripture passages remind us of another cross. They remind us of the pain and suffering so unfairly inflicted upon Jesus. They also remind us that sin and death did not have the final word in Jesus’ experience. Nor do we journey through life alone as we carry our crosses. God walks with us – as Jesus walked with the burdened disciples on the road to Emmaus – and as he appeared to others in Jerusalem huddled for fear for their very lives. And we who gather in prayer this day are “witnesses” to the saving, healing presence of God in our world and in our lives as well.
Yet, for many of us, and especially for survivors of abuse, despite the hope that is proclaimed through the faith that we embrace as followers of the risen Jesus, it is still difficult at times to come to terms with such suffering and pain. Time doesn’t always heal.
And the world in which we find ourselves – fraught with wars, hatred and discrimination, and, yes, the constant news stories questioning and chronicling the rampant sexual abuse of minors by individuals of notoriety and fame – has sadly only served to open wounds of so many who have suffered for so long.
It is, however, miraculously in moments of such pain and despair that our faith can help us come to understand how God works best works within our lives. … When we have nowhere else to turn – when we’re no longer capable of fixing the things that have gone awry in our lives – God is finally given room to step into our lives and to carry us when we can no longer walk on our own. In his letter to the Church at Corinth, Saint Paul confronts the reality of his own suffering amid the broken world in which he finds himself, “I willingly boast of my weakness that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9).
If we can see ourselves in Jesus’ suffering and death, our faith tells us that we have nothing to fear. St. Paul once again says that “if we have died with Christ” – not just at the time of our passing from this world but also and especially through the crosses that we carry in life – “we shall also live with him,” not only in eternity but in this moment of our journey of faith.
Brothers and sisters, this is Easter! … That is what we celebrate this day in our prayer during this Eastertide! … God, in Christ, embraces our suffering – all of it, as unfair and as painful as it may be – and gives us hope to move forward in our journey of life and faith.
As Bishop of this local Church, I again apologize for the pain that has been inflicted upon far too many of you by leaders of our Church. In this season of hope and new life, I ask for forgiveness from the countless numbers of you who have suffered so much. And I pledge to continue to do all within my power to keep our Churches and schools safe for our children and for all our people to worship, to pray, to learn and to grow in their faith.
May the risen Jesus heal us of our pain, fill us with his love and strengthen us to walk together in faith and so reflect his life and love to a world so desperately in need of it.
HOMILY
Easter – April 5, 2026
Welcome on this day of Resurrection – this day that lies at the heart of our lives as Christians. … Welcome to our Cathedral Church. … Welcome to our Catholic family – to our brothers and sisters from different Christian religions and faith traditions – and especially, welcome to our Jewish brothers and sisters who are celebrating Passover during these sacred days that we treasure in our Church. … It is good that we are here together. … This is the day the Lord has made!
With the entire Church of Scranton, we first give thanks today for the blessing of all those who have opened their hearts to the risen Lord and responded to his call to discipleship. Here in our Cathedral and in parishes throughout our Diocese, in numbers that we have not experienced in years, well over three hundred catechumens and candidates were baptized and received into full communion in the Catholic Church. How blest we are by their presence and commitment to journey with Christ and with us, his Church.
Yet, for all that this day of resurrection imparts to our lives of faith, sadly, its joy is tempered as we acknowledge the suffering endured by so many of our brothers and sisters. Wars are raging in Iran, throughout the Middle East, for four years in Ukraine, and in far too many places to name around the world. At this very hour, men and women in our armed forces are in harm’s way as they seek to secure a more peaceful existence for all. Right here, in our own land, immigrants – our neighbors and friends – fear for their very well-being as their hopes for a better life for themselves and their families are dashed. Antisemitism, fueled by hatred, has once again raised its ugly head. And amid such upheaval and pain, we have our own stories to tell of the crosses that we carry – crosses made of grief and loss, illness, addiction, loneliness and sin.
In the face of such heartbreak, these sacred days beckon us to turn to the only place that enables our broken world and lives to find forgiveness, healing, hope and peace: the Paschal Mystery – the Easter miracle – the promise won for us through the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus!
Years ago, Pope Benedict offered these profound words that speak to the hope we all seek in life and that prompts us to be present here today. “Christian hope means to know about evil and yet to go to meet the future with confidence.” … Hope, then, for the Christian – for me and you – does not emerge from the absence of suffering and pain in our lives. Hope grows from a relationship with the risen Jesus and our belief that, out of love for us, the power of God enabled his cross and death to give way to life and resurrection. This relationship, this love, brothers and sisters, is pure gift!
But my friends, the Word of God also reminds us that while we seek the risen Jesus’ promise of hope and peace, these are not gifts to be selfishly acquired solely for our own well-being. No – the resurrection of Jesus compels us to move beyond ourselves. In Saint Matthew’s gospel proclaimed during the Easter Vigil, the women, who go to the tomb to anoint the body of Jesus and discover that it is missing, while told first, “Do not be afraid,” are directed to “Go and tell his disciples” that the Lord has been raised from the dead. And in this morning’s gospel from Saint John, Mary of Magdala runs to Simon Peter and the disciple whom Jesus loved to inform them of the empty tomb. The gift of Easter, beginning in the very first moments following the resurrection, is received by the followers of Jesus and then, with urgency, shared with others still consumed with grief and pain.
The great theologian Karl Rahner put this divine mission entrusted to the first believers into perspective. “The Risen Christ is not a being in the clouds but the hidden presence of God in the midst of our everyday life, raising the world from its suffering.”
Like the first believers to experience the resurrection, we too, strengthened by the presence and grace of the risen Jesus within us, are given the same mission to raise God’s people from suffering and pain. In a world torn apart by sins of greed, hatred and an absence of respect for the human person, it is incumbent upon us as Christians to give life to the presence of God and to proclaim the good news of God’s mercy. … We believers in the risen Jesus are called to care for the lost and abandoned, the immigrant and the refugee, the life that is different than our own, the marginalized and ridiculed, the imperfect and forgotten. … We are called to welcome into our Church all those who seek a fuller life through faith in Jesus. … And we are called to love, to forgive and to work for peace in our families, among our friends and in the world that God has given to us.
Easter, then, is not simply the warm and reassuring presence of the risen Jesus that wells up within our hearts during this hour of prayer and worship. No – it is much more. Decades ago, William Sloane Coffin, the renowned and sometimes controversial American Protestant clergyman spoke of a concern for the ways in which so many of us have come to understand Easter: “Too often, Easter comes across very sentimentally– airy and sweet. But there is nothing sentimental about Easter. Easter represents a demand as well as a promise, a demand not that we sympathize with the crucified Christ, but that we pledge our loyalty to the Risen One” in whom we find the fullness of life, a pattern for our own and the gift of eternity.
Brothers and sisters, the promise of Easter is that Jesus lives among us. Assured by our Holy Father, Pope Leo, that “love has conquered sin forever and life triumphs over death,” may we open our hearts to the consolation and peace that only Jesus can give. And may we go forth from this cathedral blessed with hope, to continue to encounter and proclaim the resurrection – in our families and neighborhoods – in the uncertainty of our wounded world – and especially in the suffering souls who look to us for signs of the risen Jesus’ love and mercy.
This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad!
HOMILY
Chrism Mass – March 31, 2026
Brothers and sisters, welcome to our cathedral. … Thank you for your presence as the Church of Scranton gathers this day to celebrate our faith in Jesus Christ, to acknowledge his saving grace in our lives and to affirm our call to discipleship.
What a glorious gathering this is! Yet, for all its splendor, it’s fair to say that it takes place during sobering times. Our world is fraught with suffering, pain and uncertainty. Wars are raging around the globe, with brave men and women of our own armed forces in harm’s way at this very hour. Immigrants who have come to our land like generations before, simply seeking a better life for their families, are treated with little dignity and subjected to actions that they do not deserve. Hatred spawned by antisemitism is rampant. And each of us carries our own stories of crosses that have made their way into our lives in one way or another.
Nonetheless, our presence during this time of prayer affirms that what we celebrate has the power to give us hope in the face of adversity, doesn’t it? We engage an ancient tradition in which the richness of our diversity, roles and responsibilities coalesce in a spirit of unity. We acknowledge with gratitude our rightful places within the Church as disciples of Jesus Christ, entrusted with the gift of sharing in Jesus’ priestly identity and work through baptism. We also joyfully affirm those called forth by God to share in Jesus’ ministerial priesthood.
And we gather for a purpose. In a few moments, oils will be presented – the Oil of the Sick, the Oil of Catechumens, and Sacred Chrism. These sacramental oils used to sanctify each of us as faithful members of the Church are channels of holiness that will be blessed and consecrated in the presence of so many of you – the Church of Scranton – as we, your priests, renew our commitments to serve.
Listen once again to the Word of God that speaks to us through the Book of Revelation. “Grace to you and peace from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead and ruler of the kings of the earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by this Blood, who has made us into a Kingdom, priests for his God and Father, to him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen.”
While these opening words of Revelation are reminiscent of many New Testament epistles, their significance ought not be lost because of their familiarity. The blessings of grace and peace, which John proclaims, issue from a God immersed and active in our world – a God present in Jesus Christ. The very titles of Jesus enumerated by John – the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead and ruler of the kings of the earth – spoke directly to the earliest Christians in the face of persecution, giving them reason for patient endurance – giving them hope – and giving them the assurance of God’s presence abiding in their lives.
Brothers and sisters, we need to allow the Word of God from the Book of Revelation to speak to our hearts as well, lest we lose a sense of its relevance in our world today that just as desperately needs the reassurance of God’s presence as did the first communities of believers.
My brother priests, it is our responsibility to preach that Word! We are charged in a unique way to proclaim Jesus’ presence and to be God’s instruments in bringing his life and love to our suffering world. From the very day of our priestly ordination, we were both set apart and immersed in the lives of God’s people to sow seeds of mercy, promise and peace.
Yet, in as much as we have been called to this lofty and privileged task, because we hold these truths in earthen vessels, we often struggle to experience Jesus’ consolation in our own lives, don’t we? It’s worth noting that sixty years ago, with the promulgation of Presbyterorum ordinis, the Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests issued in the documents of the Second Vatican Council, the Fathers of the Council offered these words, “Having before our eyes the joys of the priestly life, this holy synod cannot at the same time overlook the difficulties which priests experience in the circumstances of contemporary life. For we know how much the scale of values is changed. As a result, the ministers of the Church and sometimes the faithful themselves feel like strangers in this world, anxiously looking for the ways and words with which to communicate with it.”
Had I not referenced the Council decree, most of us would have attributed these words to Pope Leo, Pope Francis or some other contemporary Church leader rather than presuming that they were written over two generations ago. For some of us, no doubt, the timeliness of these words prompts some questions. Have we learned nothing over the past sixty years? Why do we still struggle to engage our world in a convincing manner? What of those words of consolation proclaimed by Saint John in the Book of Revelation?
While we have surely grown in wisdom and knowledge over the past sixty years, these words of the Council Fathers are timeless. The Gospel of Jesus will always be counter cultural. And the cross will never be eradicated from our lives.
Brothers, I know it’s frustrating to face the challenges that our ministry confronts every day, from fewer people worshipping, to parish modifications, to a lack of resolve on the part of many to embrace the teachings of our faith, not to mention the growing need to simply keep our people safe within our churches. But let’s not delude ourselves into believing that with enough careful planning, proper catechesis and episcopal wisdom, we can rid our world of the folly that has pervaded it and the crosses that have been planted within it. Of course we need to be wise and courageous in confronting the evils of our age, to plan for our future and to soothe the wounds of our brothers and sisters – and our own. But we also need to remember whose kingdom we are building. Recall these words of Pope Leo offered to newly ordained priests, “The Holy Spirit has constituted you as stewards. Not masters, but keepers. The mission belongs to Jesus. He is Risen, therefore He is alive and goes before us. None of us is called to replace him.”
So, brothers, there’s no reason to despair in the challenges that I’ve named. There is good news to proclaim. Don’t doubt for a moment that the miraculous works of Jesus still abound in our world – in this local Church – providing us with consolation and hope. They flourish among us, less in the offices of the Holy See or in the halls of our chancery, and much more in your parishes through the works accomplished by you, our priests, with the faithful souls whom you serve.
Listen to these words that I received recently – about you, “While we belong to a different parish, we often attend the church in the neighborhood where we now live, having recently moved. Day in and day out, Father has been wonderful to our family. He is always kind to us, welcomes us and provides wonderful homilies. The community has embraced us, and it is entirely due to the leadership of the pastor who fosters a spirit of service, kindness and hospitality. My children are growing up to know how the Church loves as Christ taught us, and it is a remarkable gift.”
Or these words, “I reached out to Father when my family was facing some difficult challenges. He took time to listen to my story. Through his understanding he’s brought me even closer to God. He saved me and helped me to become a better person, a better father to my children and a better husband to my wife. I believe that Father is in my church for a divine reason beyond what I could ever understand.”
These words aren’t contrived to make you feel good. Two of you here today know that very well, as I’ve shared these messages with them. No, these words represent the lives of people who have been touched by your service and care.
And there are more signs of God working mightily in our midst. … This year, in a phenomenon sweeping the Church in our land, well over three hundred men and women from our parishes will be baptized and received into full communion in the Church. They are being led to communion and discipleship not by chance but by the power of God working in families, in friends and particularly in and through the life and ministry of your parishes.
Similarly, vocations to the priesthood don’t just happen but are born in families of faith and in parish families as well. As we celebrate this day the gift of priestly service in our Church, I am so pleased to share with you that by September of this year, we anticipate being blessed with eighteen men in formation for the priesthood for the Diocese of Scranton, most of whom are with us this afternoon. We haven’t experienced such numbers in decades. The Spirit is surely at work among us!
Because of you, my brother priests, and because of the commitment of the faithful People of God who are the Church of Scranton, while there will always be disappointments, missed opportunities and far too many crosses to bear, God is building his Kingdom among us and we are richly blessed.
And one more thing, brothers, for all that we are called to embrace as priests of Jesus Christ, sometimes we expect too much of ourselves – and not enough from God. So, be humble and wise enough to give Jesus space in your lives and in your ministry and allow him to be that faithful witness of God’s great love and mercy.
In his final reflection to Pope Leo and the Roman Curia during their recent Lenten retreat, Bishop Erik Varden recalled Saint Augustine’s perspective on the ministry that we share, particularly in challenging times. “Though the pastoral burden does have a fearful aspect, it is fearful only if we fail to notice who puts the burden on our shoulders. For it is no less a participation in the sweet yoke of Christ, who lets us discover that the crossbar entrusted to us is luminous and light, that a share in it is joyful. … So, bear your own load to the end. If you hate it, it will be heavy. If you love it, it will be light.”
To my brothers and sisters who make up this local Church, thank you for living your baptism, for embracing the message of the Gospel and for doing your part in building God’s Kingdom. … And to my brother priests, thank you for your priestly service, given so generously, at great personal sacrifice and often with little recognition. Know of my love and deep respect for you, brothers, as colleagues in ministry and men of faith. … May the joy of the Kingdom, which repays all our efforts, spur us on in our mission. Amen!
HOMILY
Palm Sunday – March 29, 2026
Perhaps as a consequence of age, having recently celebrated my seventieth birthday, I have been reflecting a great of late upon my own journey of faith – a journey that eventually brought me to ordained ministry within the Church, first as a deacon, then as priest and eventually as bishop. These reflections inevitably take me back to a very consequential time during my days in college and specifically in campus ministry. There was a scripture passage that I had never much considered up to that time in my life. It seemed to be referenced everywhere – or at least wherever God wanted me to look as I discerned his will for my life. The passage: John 3:16.
Most of you know that passage well. For me, it became life changing as I confronted its message. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.”
Brothers and sisters, it is that very love of God, so selflessly revealed in the cross of Christ, which lies at the heart of the Word of God proclaimed this day.
As we stand on the threshold of Holy Week and prepare to celebrate the great mysteries of our redemption through Jesus’ passion, death and resurrection, the Church invites us to peel away the facades behind which we live our lives and to present ourselves to the Lord as we truly are – all of us – struggling souls in need of God’s love and mercy. To bring such honesty to this moment is hardly a sign of weakness but, rather, a grace-filled awareness of the brokenness of our world and wounds that we carry in life.
Brothers and sisters, how very much we need this Holy Week! Our world and our lives can’t seem to catch a break. Once again, we come to these sacred days with our world engulfed by war and suffering – pain that is real, even if it is far removed from our shores. Right here in our own land, so many of our brothers and sisters are faced with uncertainty about their future as they seek to simply care for their families. And we too have our own stories to tell of the crosses that we carry – crosses made from grief and loss, illness, addiction, loneliness and sin.
No doubt, our spirits resonate with Jesus in today’s gospel. As he prayed in the Garden, we too have cried to God, “Let this cup pass from me,” haven’t we? And when the cup of our suffering hasn’t passed us by, the best of best of us have wondered where God is in the midst of it all.
Father Ron Rolheiser, a contemporary spiritual writer, puts the crosses that invade our lives into a perspective that we often fail to appreciate. Listen to his words, “Jesus never promised us rescue, exemptions, immunity from cancer or escape from death. Rather, he promised that in the end, there will be redemption, vindication, immunity from suffering and eternal life. But that’s in the end; in the early and intermediate chapters of our lives, there will be the same kind of humiliation, pain and death that everyone else suffers.”
God didn’t spare Jesus, as we learn from today’s gospel, yet in the end, through his suffering, death and resurrection, we are reminded that nothing is impossible for God. That belief in the power of God is where resurrection begins to enter our lives, and peace takes hold of our wounded spirits! God doesn’t promise us a perfect world free from suffering, no matter how faithful we are. But he does promise forgiveness, redemption and life because of Jesus’ cross.
In his letter to the Philippians proclaimed a few moments ago, Saint Paul asserts that although he was God, Jesus emptied himself and took the form of a slave – a servant. He sought, according to his Father’s plan, to embrace the brokenness and suffering of our world to save us from ourselves and all that can well up from within us to destroy our peace. In so doing, Jesus gave us the true and only way forward in life.
For all that we bring to this celebration of Palm Sunday and the beginning of Holy Week, may we not forget to enter these sacred days praying for the same spirit of humility that characterized Jesus’ life and his embrace of the cross that gives us hope as we carry our own. For when we are finally humble enough to admit that we cannot save ourselves but need to trust in a power beyond us, it is then that a space will opened in our hearts to be filled by the love of Jesus – a love that alone has the power to carry us to a place of life and peace.
Therein, brothers and sisters, is the true blessing and gift of Holy Week.
Previous Homilies 2026
2026 Lenten Deanery Holy Hour “Finding Peace in Challenging Times”
Solemnity of Saint Joseph March 19, 2026
Saint Patrick’s Parade Day Mass March 14, 2026
Rite of Election February 22, 2026
Ash Wednesday February 18, 2026
Disabilities Mass –5th Sunday in Ordinary Time February 8, 2026