Archbishop Shawn McKnight

06/03/2026

During the confirmation liturgy at Holy Angels Parish in Basehor on Sunday, we read the familiar words from Gospel of John, 3:16, “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.”

True belief in Jesus goes beyond just believing with our minds; it requires us to believe with our hearts and live that faith in our words and deeds. May the Holy Spirit strengthen the newly confirmed to be witnesses of God’s unimaginable love for the world.

06/02/2026

Your voice is needed! From June 1 to June 22, please participate in the vital third phase of our archdiocesan pastoral planning process by completing a brief online survey In English at https://tinyurl.com/heartlandkck or in Spanish at https://tinyurl.com/espheartlandkck .

In 2026, the Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas launched a pastoral planning process called Renewal from the Heartland, and I am excited to share this opportunity for you to participate in its third phase.

The first phase, Beatitudes from the Heartland, was a small group series offering reflections on scripture and Church documents regarding the responsibilities we all share as baptized Catholics within our parishes and other ecclesial communities.

The second phase, Listening with the Heart, offered prayerful settings for people from all walks of life to listen to one another regarding two prompts: 1) Please share a story about your experience with the Church that has shaped you. 2) What is the Holy Spirit asking of us?

This third phase is an Archdiocesan-wide Synodal Survey built directly from responses collected from 1000+ phase 2 participants. Responses from both phases 2 and 3 will serve as the source material for the archdiocesan pastoral planning process which I will initiate at a diocesan convocation for parish leaders on September 12, 2026.

I urge you to participate in the survey. Your voice is vital to the mission of the Church in our archdiocese!

06/01/2026

Pentecost celebrates the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon the disciples in the Upper Room. Fittingly, we choose this Solemnity to invoke that same outpouring upon baptized Catholic adults from across the archdiocese who have prepared to receive the sacrament of confirmation.

Congratulations to all who were confirmed at the Cathedral of St. Peter last Sunday! May the Holy Spirit grant you every gift and grace to fulfill the unique mission God has designed for your life.

05/31/2026

“A great mystery, a mystery of love, an ineffable mystery, before which words must give way to the silence of wonder and worship.”
—St. Pope John Paul II on the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, June 11, 2000

On the Solemnity of the Holy Trinity, we are especially invited to ponder the mystery of the Trinity: one God with a single divine nature in three distinct, co-equal divine Persons—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—who are in a constant, eternal communion of love, each being fully God, whole and entire. The Church defines a mystery as a supernatural truth that cannot be known unless revealed by God and cannot be fully comprehended by our finite human minds. This is not to say we can never increase our understanding. We must imitate Mary, pondering these things in our hearts, allowing God to give us glimpses into the mystery of himself, and receive it with reverence and awe.

05/31/2026

Wednesday, May 27, marked my one-year anniversary as the Archbishop of Kansas City in Kansas, followed the next day by the anniversary of my ordination to the priesthood. I could never have imagined 32 years ago, the unique challenges I would face or the abundant blessings I would receive.

I was grateful to celebrate Mass and share a celebratory lunch with the chancery staff, during which they gifted me a deluxe s'mores kit to enjoy around my fire pit and a glass print of a stunning sunset captured right from the chancery property. (We truly have the best sunset views out here!)

It has been a whirlwind year, and I am so very thankful to all who have contributed their time, energy and talent to help me further the mission of the Church in Northeast Kansas.

05/30/2026

St. Catherine of Alexandria, virgin and martyr, is best known for her wisdom that silenced a room of fifty pagan philosophers (and even converted a few), her fortitude to rebuke the Roman Emperor for his cruel persecution of Christians, and her steadfast faith in the face of martyrdom. May the gifts of the Holy Spirit given to the newly confirmed at St. Catherine Parish in Emporia enable them to serve Christ with that same unwavering wisdom, fortitude and faith.

05/28/2026

The mystical reality of apostolic succession is never more deeply felt by a bishop than during the Sacrament of Holy Orders. In this sacred moment, he repeats the gesture of laying on of hands in the context of the consecratory prayer.

On Saturday, I had the distinct privilege of ordaining Father William Sutherland, Father Robert Rooney, and Father John Donart to the priesthood, alongside our new transitional deacon, Deacon Alex Rickert.

Please join me in prayers of thanksgiving for these young men, who mirror Christ’s own surrender: “Into your hands, Father, I commend my spirit.”

05/27/2026

In response to the gift of Pope Leo XIV's encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, I have written an op-ed that was published in The Kansas City Star. The article, which addresses the themes of the encyclical such as the protection of human dignity, human interaction, human creativity, work, truth and freedom in the age of artificial intelligence, can be read here.

The new pope fears the awesome power of artificial intelligence will rob the authenticity of human encounters for the benefit of only a few. From the archbishop of Kansas City in Kansas:

05/27/2026

We are privileged citizens of a kingdom which Christ the King has purchased with his own blood. In the reading from the Acts of the Apostles during the confirmation Mass at Christ the King Parish in Kansas City, Kansas, St. Paul urges us to be mindful of the price of our redemption and to be on guard against forces that would try to steal our inheritance.

May the newly confirmed enthrone Christ as King of their lives, using the sacramental graces received to defend truth, build up God’s Kingdom and serve the weak, remembering that it is more blessed to give than to receive.

05/26/2026

In a spirit of thanksgiving, last Friday I spent time in adoration before the Blessed Sacrament with the young men who were ordained this past weekend, their joy-filled family members, our other seminarians, and the priests supporting the work of the vocations office.

It was my privilege to bless the chalices and patens they will use to celebrate the Eucharist. I give thanks for the families that nurtured these men in the ways of the Lord, providing our archdiocese with the gift of these new vocations.