Cardinal Timothy Dolan led the faithful on “Stand Up Sunday,” September 7, in opposing antisemitism and all faith-based hate, at the 10:15 a.m. Mass at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan. 

Cardinal Dolan said during his welcoming remarks: “Stand Up Sunday, throughout the whole country at houses of worship, people come together and say, ‘We have to stand up against hate,'” he told the faithful. “Hate of all kinds, particularly antisemitism, which is so vicious in our culture and in the world … So pray with us, stand up, kneel down, bow your head against hate today,” he added. 

The Appeal of Conscience Foundation and the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism spearheaded the “Stand Up Sunday” initiative, bringing together an interfaith coalition of religious leaders and houses of worship to stand up against antisemitism and all faith-based hate. 

Honoring grandparents 

September 7 also marked the celebration of Grandparents Day. Cardinal Dolan honored the grandparents in attendance, saying, “We’re grateful today for the company of many grandparents … We pray for grandparents, who are such a source of wisdom, [that they] may be blessed and strengthened; we love them.” He noted that organizers of the Mass, from ArchCare, arranged to have many grandparents attend the annual liturgy. 

In his homily, the cardinal spoke of the difference between knowledge and wisdom, and he noted why they are both necessary. Citing the day’s readings, he said, “Wisdom, that beautiful virtue … Both, wisdom and knowledge, are essential, very valuable; science insists on verification, wisdom (on) trust. Knowledge seems captivated by the now, wisdom, on the eternal … If you’ve got common sense, you’re gonna want both.” 

New saints inspire young faithful 

During the Mass in Honor of Grandparents, Cardinal Dolan noted that earlier that day, Pope Leo XIV canonized Blessed Carlos Acutis and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati as saints of the Church. The cardinal noted how the two new Italian saints “have managed to captivate the imagination and the piety” of the faithful worldwide, especially of teens and young adults. Acutis died at age 15, and Frassati at 24. 

An image of Acutis and one of Frassati were at the sanctuary during the Mass celebration, as were their decoratively encased relics, which the cardinal used in the closing blessing. “I want to bless us this morning through their intercession … May Almighty God bless you, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” 

Cardinal Dolan to receive foundation award 

Speaking with reporters after Mass, Cardinal Dolan was accompanied by several people associated with the Appeal of Conscience Foundation’s cause, including executive vice president Karen Dresbach and Rabbi Joseph Potasnik, executive vice president of The New York Board of Rabbis. The cardinal and others in the group commended one another for their dedicated efforts in speaking out against hate crimes and hateful rhetoric. 

The Appeal of Conscience Foundation announced on September 4 that it will honor Cardinal Dolan with its Appeal of Conscience Award on September 29 at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Manhattan. 

“I’m very honored that they’re going to honor me,” the cardinal told reporters. “And we’re very honored that you are going to be honored,” Dresbach told the cardinal. “People of faith stand up and say: we denounce hatred of all faiths,” she said. 

The foundation will also honor Tony Elumelu, chairman of Heirs Holdings, The United Bank for Africa, and founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, at the same event.