Title: Caring and Faithful: Georgetown Welcomes New Archbishop of Washington Wilton Gregory

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Members of the Georgetown community welcomed Pope Francis’ appointment of new Archbishop of Washington Wilton Gregory today.

“Archbishop Gregory has provided important leadership in addressing many of the complex issues we face in our national and global community,” says Georgetown President John J. DeGioia. “We look forward to welcoming him to Washington, DC, the contributions he will make and working with him on many efforts in this new role.”

Rev. Mark Bosco, S.J., vice president of mission and ministry at Georgetown, called the the new archbishop’s work “inspiring.”

“His unique voice and leadership in the American Church on the most pressing issues facing Catholics today are inspiring,” Bosco says. “We look forward to working on the ways that Georgetown can collaborate with Archbishop Gregory and the Washington Archdiocese in the work of reconciliation and promoting a faith that does justice.”

Gregory is the first African American bishop to lead the Archdiocese of Washington.

‘Long Overdue Recognition’

Marcia Chatelain, associate professor of history at Georgetown says the appointment of Gregory, who previously served as Archbishop of Atlanta, is significant, since the Washington metro area is “the heart of black Catholic history in the United States.”

“I think that his appointment represents a long overdue recognition of the fact that there are millions of Catholics of African descent who yearn to see themselves represented in the Church’s leadership,” says Chatelain, who served on a Georgetown panel with Gregory two years ago.

The university welcomed Gregory to campus in November 2017 for an event called Confronting Racism in Our Hearts and in Our Nation sponsored by Georgetown’s Initiative on Catholic Social Thought and Public Life (CST).

The panel on confronting racism in the wake of the tragic events in Charlottesville, Virginia, was moderated by CST founder and director John Carr, and also featured civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis (D-Georgia) and Rev. Jim Wallis, president and founder of Sojourners magazine.

Caring and Faithful

Carr, who has convened several CST conversations at Georgetown about the current crisis in the Church, says Gregory’s appointment is a step in the right direction.

“Archbishop Gregory is a caring, faithful, strong and smart leader at a time when Washington needs all these qualities,” he says. “No one has done enough on clerical sexual abuse, but Archbishop Gregory showed determination and commitment in leading the effort to adopt the Dallas Charter, zero tolerance and lay review boards in 2002.”

The Dallas charter, also known as the Charter for the Protection of Children and Young People, established a comprehensive set of procedures for addressing allegations of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic clergy. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, for which Gregory once served as president, created the charter.

During Gregory’s 2017 visit to Georgetown, he shared thoughts on the role of religious faith and the pursuit of the common good along with efforts to promote racial justice.

Watch Gregory in conversation at Georgetown (November 2017)

Another Notable Clergyman

Chatelain notes the significance of the April 4 announcement of Gregory’s appointment on the anniversary of the assassination of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., another notable clergyman from Atlanta.

“The day is a poignant reminder of the history of racial violence against African Americans, who organized among faith communities, and demanded the nation take responsibility for its deep investment in maintaining white supremacy,” Chatelain says. “I hope Archbishop Gregory’s move from Atlanta to Washington, DC will be the first step in helping American Catholics initiate racial justice work within their parishes and schools.”