Scharfenberger was born in Bushwick, Brooklyn. He is the oldest of five children of Edward Scharfenberger Sr. and Elaine Magdal. Scharfenberger has Russian Jewish ancestry through his mother. His father died in 2015 at the age of 94, and his mother died on November 6, 2019, at the age of 99. Scharfenberger attended Our Lady of Miraculous Medal Elementary School in Ridgewood, Queens, and graduated from Cathedral Preparatory Seminary High School in 1965. In 1969, Scharfenberger graduated with a degree in English from Cathedral College of the Immaculate Conception in Douglaston, Queens. He "earned a bachelor's degree in sacred theology in 1972 from Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome; earned a licentiate in sacred theology from the Academy of St. Alphonsus in Rome in 1977 and a licentiate in canon law from Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., in 1980; graduated with a law degree from Fordham University in 1990"; and was admitted to the New York State Bar in 1991.
Ordination and ministry
Scharfenberger received his priestly ordination July 2, 1973, in St. Peter's Basilica at the hands of Bishop James Hickey, rector of the North American College. He was incardinated into his native diocese, the Diocese of Brooklyn. Scharfenberger was pastor of St. Matthias Church in Ridgewood from 2003 to 2014. In addition to doing pastoral work for decades, he held various roles in the diocesan curia. He served as a member of the diocesan tribunal, a judicial vicar, an adviser to the canonical Ordinary, and a promoter of justice and member of the committee for sexually abused children. From 2013, he was the episcopal vicar for Queens. Scharfenberger is polyglot and speaks fluent Italian, Spanish and German. He speaks enough Polish to celebrate Mass, and knows some Hebrew, Russian and Portuguese as well.
On December 4, 2019, Pope Francis appointed Scharfenberger Apostolic Administrator of Buffalo, New York, following the resignation of Bishop Richard Malone. According to The New York Times, Malone resigned his post following a Vatican investigation on the handling of sex abuse matters in the Diocese of Buffalo. The Times reported that in recent years, Scharfenberger had "gained a reputation for taking a more empathetic approach in his handling of the abuse crisis." At a news conference announcing his appointment, Scharfenberger said, "I am here to walk with you, and I am to help you heal." Scharfenberger's responsibilities as Bishop of Albany are unchanged.
Views
Abortion
In keeping with Catholic teachings, Scharfenberger is pro-life and against abortion. In February 2017, Scharfenberger criticized three Catholic politicians, Mayor of AlbanyKathy Sheehan, State Assemblywoman Patricia Fahy and Congressman Paul Tonko, for supporting and attending a rally for Planned Parenthood. In January 2019, Scharfenberger wrote an open letter to New York GovernorAndrew Cuomo in response to the passage of the Reproductive Health Act:
Interfaith dialogue
On March 8, 2016, at an interfaith event, Scharfenberger said: "Christians cannot be anti-Semitic and be Christian." In July 2019, Scharfenberger was appointed by Pope Francis as consultor to the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews. On October 18, 2018, Scharfenberger celebrated the feast day of Our Lady of Walsingham together with dean Leander Harding at the Episcopal Cathedral of All Saints in a celebration that is observed both by Catholics and Anglicans. Afterwards Scharfenberger told the Episcopalian congregation that there were more similarities than differences between the two denominations.
Sexual abuse crisis
Scharfenberger said in 2018 that laypeople should investigate bishops accused of sexual abuse and failure to address cases of sexual abuse. In responding to Donald Wuerl's suggestion that a committee of bishops should investigate allegations into other bishops in the aftermath of the sexual abuse scandal of former cardinal Theodore McCarrick, Scharfenberger said that "we have reached a point where bishops alone investigating bishops is not the answer." On April 28, 2020, Scharfenberger sent a letter to 23 suspended, as well as accused, Diocese of Buffalo clergy, informing them that due to the Diocese's bankruptcy agreement, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Buffalo can no longer pay them or provide them with retirement funds, health care, car insurance or dental care effective May 1, 2020.
