Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio

Brooklyn Diocese to Announce Launch of Capital Campaign

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GOF_LogoOn Sunday, May 3rd, the Diocese of Brooklyn, together with the Catholic Foundation for Brooklyn and Queens, will officially announce the launch of Generations of Faith, a comprehensive fundraising initiative to meet the spiritual and material needs of the diocese.

Continuing the unprecedented generosity of the 1996 Alive in Hope campaign, this 2015-2016 effort aims to raise a minimum of $80 million. The campaign will be conducted in the 186 parishes of Brooklyn and Queens, inviting the more than 1.5 million Catholics in the diocese to participate.

Generations of Faith, named after the numerous generations of Catholics raised and living in the many tightknit neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens, will focus on three main goals: to strengthen the parishes of Brooklyn and Queens (50%), serve and care for senior priests (37.5%), and foster the formation of the Catholic faith for future generations (12.5%). Read more »

‘Strengthening the Future of the Diocese’ by Bishop DiMarzio

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April 29, 2015 – Excerpted from “Put Out Into the Deep,” Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet:

My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,

Today, we find ourselves at a transitional point in the history of the Church of Brooklyn and Queens. As we celebrate the great work of the many generations that preceded us, our parishes and Diocese must also look to the future with plans to strengthen our faith.

For more than 150 years, the Diocese of Brooklyn has embraced and celebrated our communities, and our families. Under the guidance of remarkable priests, generations of Catholics have been raised and lived in the many tight-knit neighborhoods in Brooklyn and Queens, and come together as one family of faith at our vibrant parishes.

We are now more than 1.5 million Catholics, young and old, celebrating Mass in 33 different languages. Families of immigrants have transformed our Diocese, and while some have arrived more recently than others, we represent dozens of nationalities from all over the world. Our Diocese is a microcosm of the worldwide Church. We have been richly blessed.

Read the full text of the Bishop’s column on The Tablet website.

Brooklyn Diocese Hosts Media Conference; Prepares For Pope Francis Arrival To U.S.

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Our 2017 World Communications Day Catholic Media Conference is May 17 at the BRIC Arts Media House in Brooklyn. Learn More and Sign Up

On Wednesday, May 13th, the Diocese of Brooklyn will host its 24th Annual World Communications Day Catholic Media Conference at the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge, 333 Adams Street, Downtown Brooklyn. In preparation for Pope Francis’ first pastoral visit to the United States in September, the conference will focus on how to cover the Holy Father and provide insights on what to expect from his visit.

During the event, the diocese will honor Austen Ivereigh with the St. Francis DeSales Distinguished Communicator Award. He will also be the principal speaker for the occasion.

Austen Ivereigh, Ph.D., is a British writer, journalist, and commentator, and author of the internationally acclaimed biography The Great Reformer: Francis and the Making of a Radical Pope, published in the English-speaking world last Fall. He is also the co-founder and director of the international media project Catholic Voices, a project to train ordinary people to make the case for the Church on contentious issues in the media. His work also includes the books Faithful Citizens: a Practical Guide to Catholic Social Teaching and Community Organising, Catholic Voices: Putting the Case for the Church in the Era of 24-Hour News, and How to Defend the Faith Without Raising Your Voice. Read more »

Brooklyn Eagle Covers Mass of Hope and Healing

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brooklyn-eagle-logoThe Brooklyn Daily Eagle covered the Mass of Hope and Healing on Wednesday, April 15th at the Cathedral Basilica of St. James:

“ (…) Members of the survivors group shared a different perspective on justice and healing than did the protesters stationed outside the cathedral. The survivors group said that both can happen concurrently.

Moreover, Bishop DiMarzio and members of the group told the Eagle on April 15 that they have been meeting for more than a year as a support group and to organize the healing mass and that they developed the idea together. Read more »

Pilgrimages to Italy and the Philippines

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The Diocese of Brooklyn has organized two pilgrimages to two very exciting locales! The first one will take you to Sordevolo, Italy to witness the world-famous Passion Play, as well as visits to the cities of Rome, Assisi, Venice, Padua, and the Piedmont region of Italy. Bishop Raymond Chappetto and Msgr. Steven Aguggia will chaplain the trip. For more information on this amazing opportunity, click here.

The second pilgrimage will be to the 51st International Eucharistic Conference in Cebu, Philippines from January 22 to February 1, 2016. Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio and Cardinal Timothy Dolan and will both be making the trip! For more information or to register for this once-in-a-lifetime trip, click here.

We hope to see you on one (or both!) of these pilgrimages!

“Our Popular Pope” by Bishop DiMarzio

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April 15, 2015 – Excerpted from “Put Out Into the Deep,” Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet:

My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,

As we prepare for the Papal Visit to the United States, and in particular to New York, during the next several months, it might be well to focus on the Pope whom we will welcome. As can easily be seen from surveys and articles, and most recently in the Wall Street Journal of Saturday, April 4th, we see the Holy Father portrayed as “wildly popular.” One survey even compared the annual popularity of St. John Paul II, Pope Benedict and Pope Francis and it seems that Pope Francis has garnered a most favorable status, even greater than St. John Paul II. Popularity, however, is not what makes a papacy, but it certainly helps.

A recent unauthorized biography of Pope Francis gives some insight into his character and the quite different approach that he has taken to the papacy. His first several speeches clearly indicated his priorities. Remember, the Holy Father said, “I want a poor Church for the poor.” His message on mercy clearly indicates his priority that is appealing. But what is behind the love for the poor of Pope Francis? Certainly, his experience in Argentina where he became Padre Jorge in the barrios of Buenos Aires and for his constant attention to the immigrants who were in that city, because the barrios were populated more by immigrants from Paraguay and Bolivia than Argentineans themselves. He reached out in his personal way to those who were the poorest and most marginalized in his home diocese.

Read the full text of the Bishop’s column on The Tablet website.

Survivors of Sexual Abuse by Members of Clergy Partner With the Diocese of Brooklyn to Sponsor Mass of Hope and Healing

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Survivors of sexual abuse by members of the clergy have partnered with the Diocese of Brooklyn to sponsor a Mass of Hope and Healing for tomorrow Wednesday, April 15th at 7 p.m. at the Cathedral Basilica of St. James, 250 Cathedral Place, Downtown Brooklyn.

The Most Reverend Nicholas DiMarzio, Bishop of Brooklyn, will be the main celebrant and homilist.

“There has been much darkness in the past regarding this issue, but it must come out into the light,” said Bishop DiMarzio. “We must own up to past mistakes and seek to heal those who have been abused, and I must take this opportunity to publicly thank those who have come forward to help us shed light into the darkness of this most serious issue. These survivors have shown us that there is hope for healing and have helped us to identify the pastoral resources which our Diocese makes available to assist them on their journey.” Read more »

Survivors of Sexual Abuse by Members of Clergy Partner With the Diocese of Brooklyn To Sponsor a Mass of Hope and Healing

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Survivors of sexual abuse by members of the clergy have partnered with the Diocese of Brooklyn to sponsor a Mass of Hope and Healing on Wednesday, April 15th at 7 p.m. at the Cathedral Basilica of St. James, 250 Cathedral Place, Downtown Brooklyn.

The Most Reverend Nicholas DiMarzio, Bishop of Brooklyn, will be the main celebrant and homilist.

“There has been much darkness in the past regarding this issue, but it must come out into the light,” said Bishop DiMarzio. “We must own up to past mistakes and seek to heal those who have been abused, and I must take this opportunity to publicly thank those who have come forward to help us shed light into the darkness of this most serious issue. These survivors have shown us that there is hope for healing and have helped us to identify the pastoral resources which our Diocese makes available to assist them on their journey.”

Read more »

‘Preach The Story of Salvation’ By Bishop DiMarzio

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April 8, 2015 – Excerpted from Put Out Into the Deep, Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet:

This is the complete text of Bishop DiMarzio’s homily at the Chrism Mass, March 31, at St. Joseph’s Co-Cathedral, Prospect Heights:

My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,

Tonight, in this Mass of Chrism, we bless the oils used for the administration of the sacraments and recommit ourselves to priestly and diaconal service, which means the service of the Word and the sacraments for the benefit of all of God’s people.

The Gospel tonight of Jesus’s first sermon in the synagogue of Nazareth, ends with the words, “Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing” as at every Eucharist when the word leads us to the sacrament of the living Word, Jesus Christ, who is anointed with the Spirit.

Tonight, I wish to speak to you priests, deacons and religious and lay faithful as preachers and hearers about the sermon or homily.

Read the full text of the Bishop’s column on The Tablet website.

‘Finding Jesus is a Matter of Faith’ by Bishop DiMarzio

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April 1, 2015 – Excerpted From Put Out Into the Deep, Bishop DiMarzio’s column in The Tablet:

My dear brothers and sisters in the Lord,

Several Sundays ago, the Gospel portrayed for us the Greeks who went to Phillip and asked the question, “We want to see Jesus.” This question has been repeated millions of time during the two millennium since the death and Resurrection of Jesus. People want to meet Jesus. They want to meet Him in the flesh, but also, more importantly, they want to meet Him spiritually.

Recently, in an unlikely place, CNN aired an original series entitled, “Finding Jesus: Fact, Faith and Forgery.” It is interesting that the series is based on a book co-authored by Michael McKinley and David Gibson, who is a longtime friend of mine as well as a member of our Diocese. The series contained something for everyone; the faithful, the skeptic, the archeologist, the historian. It became clear that the finding of Jesus is not something of the past, but more something of the present.

Read the full text of the Bishop’s column on The Tablet website.