A group of Catholic sisters criticized Archbishop of New York Timothy Dolan for his recent
comments about the late conservative activist Charlie Kirk, suggesting the cardinal is
“confusing the true witness of the Gospel” by likening Kirk to a biblical saint. On Wednesday
(Sept. 24), Sisters of Charity of New York issued a statement in response to remarks Dolan
made earlier this month during an appearance on “Fox & Friends.” While discussing Kirk’s
killing, Dolan cast the work of the activist, an evangelical Christian, in religious terms.
“The more I learned about (Kirk), I thought, this guy is a modern-day Saint Paul,”
Dolan said. “He was a missionary. He’s an evangelist. He’s a hero. He’s one, I think, who
knew what Jesus meant when He said, ‘The truth will set you free.’”
Dolan joins many conservatives who have publicly compared Kirk to Christian saints and
martyrs after he was shot and killed while speaking at a college campus in Utah earlier this
month. The Sisters of Charity of New York condemned the comparison, noting Kirk’s history
of inflammatory rhetoric — which includes criticism of Catholicism itself — and arguing that
conflating him with biblical heroes could lead Catholics astray.
“What Cardinal Dolan may not have known is that many of Mr. Kirk’s words were marked
by racist, homophobic, transphobic, and anti-immigrant rhetoric, by violent pro-gun
advocacy, and by the promotion of Christian nationalism,” the sisters’ statement read. “These
prejudicial words do not reflect the qualities of a saint. To compare Mr. Kirk to St. Paul risks
confusing the true witness of the Gospel and giving undue sanction to words and actions that
hurt the very people Jesus calls us to love.”
In contrast to Kirk, who supported hardline immigration policies during his life, the Sisters of
Charity noted their own history of working with immigrants who arrive in the United States
“with nothing but hope,” adding, “they deserve true examples of discipleship, not false
prophets.”
“In this moment, we reaffirm our mission: to walk with all people who are poor and
marginalized, to welcome immigrants and refugees, to defend the dignity of LGBTQ+
persons, and to labour for peace in a world saturated with violence,” the statement read.
“These are the marks of authentic discipleship. These are the qualities of saints.”
The statement was signed by the group’s leadership, which includes Sisters Donna Dodge,
Margaret O’Brien, Mary McCormick, Mary Ann Daly, Sheila Brosnan and Margaret Egan.
