Timothy Cardinal Dolan[1] drew hearty laughs at the funeral for the Rev. Pete Colapietro on Saturday at the jam-packed St. Monica’s Church on East 79th Street.
Police closed down the block, where dozens of cops and sanitation officers in dress uniform were lined up to mourn the Bronx-born “saloon priest” who died Feb. 5 at age 69.
Among those in attendance were former top cop Bill Bratton, sanitation commissioner Kathryn Garcia, Bo Dietl and Tony Guida.
Mickey Rourke[2], who was talked out of killing himself by Father Pete, sent a huge flower arrangement that said, “Love you Pete — Mickey.”
Recalling Pope Francis’ admonition that priests should be “shepherds living with the smell of the sheep,” Dolan said he once told Father Pete, “ ‘You are one of those priests. You smell like the sheep.’ He said, ‘I don’t know about that, but I sure like lamb chops.’ ”
Dolan also recalled being invited with his family to a private box at Yankee Stadium in 2009, the day after he was installed as archbishop of New York. “I felt on top of the world.”
Then he noticed a burly priest in the Steinbrenner family box nearby. “When I went over to meet him, he said, ‘I like you.’ I said, ‘Well, thank you.’
“He said, ‘I like you because I watched you yesterday, and you perspire more than I do.’ ”
Dolan closed by saying, “He moved us and inspired us because he reminded us of Jesus. Jesus was the human face of God, our father.
And Father Pete was the human face of Jesus. That’s why we loved him. And that’s why were going to miss him.”