Kevin J. Sweeney

A native of the New York borough of Queens, Kevin J. Sweeney was born on January 10, 1970, to the late James and Agnes (Blewitt) Sweeney. He has a sister, Marie Shanahan, and a brother, Brendan. His parents are immigrants from Ireland.[1]

He grew up in St. Luke's Parish in Whitestone, New York, and attended Cathedral Prep from 1984 to 1988 and was a star on the high school seminary's baseball team, excelling as an infielder, outfielder and pitcher. He was inducted into the school's Hall of Fame in 2013.

After high school, he entered the Cathedral Seminary House of Formation in Douglaston, New York, and studied at St. John's University in New York, where he earned a bachelor of arts in philosophy in 1992. He then entered the Seminary of the Immaculate Conception in Huntington, New York, where he received a master of divinity degree in theology. During his time at the seminary in Huntington, he spent a pastoral year at St. Agatha's Parish in Brooklyn.

On June 28, 1997, he was ordained a priest for the Brooklyn Diocese by the late Bishop Thomas V. Daily. His first assignment was as parochial vicar at St. Nicholas of Tolentine Parish in Jamaica, New York, from 1997 to 2003. He was then assigned to Our Lady of Sorrows Parish in Corona, New York, serving there from 2003 to 2004.

In 2004, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio named Sweeney diocesan vocations director, a position he held until 2010. During this time, he also served as the first director of the Pope John Paul II House of Discernment.

In January 2010, Sweeney was appointed pastor of St. Michael's Parish in Brooklyn's Sunset Park section.

Pope Francis appointed Sweeney Bishop of Paterson on April 15, 2020.[2][1] His consecration and installation has been scheduled for July 1, 2020.[3]