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To: Archdiocesan Clergy and Staff
From: Paula Gwynn Grant, Director, Office of Communications
On Thursday, April 4, Pope Francis named Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory as the seventh Archbishop of Washington. Archbishop Gregory will succeed Cardinal Donald Wuerl, who served as Washington’s archbishop from June 2006 to October 2018.
A news conference was held in the Archdiocese of Washington at 10 a.m. It may be viewed on the Archdiocese of Washington’s Facebook page here.
“I have known Archbishop Gregory for many years and worked with him in a range of pastoral initiatives and programs. He generously shares his talents and his love for the Church,” said Cardinal Wuerl, who has served as apostolic administrator of the Archdiocese of Washington since last October. “As the Church of Washington opens a new chapter and looks to the future, we can all, with great confidence and enthusiasm, welcome our new shepherd.”
The installation of Archbishop Gregory as Archbishop of Washington will take place on Tuesday, May 21, 2019, at 2:00 p.m. at St. Matthew the Apostle Catholic Cathedral.
From Archbishop Gregory:
My dear friends in Christ of the Archdiocese of Atlanta,
In the fourteen years I have served as your Archbishop, it has been my privilege to correspond with you on many occasions – most of it imbued with the joy of serving Jesus Christ as part of this remarkable local Church; some, of course, less so. None up to now, however, has been more bittersweet and challenging for me to write and share with you.
This morning Pope Francis appointed me the seventh Archbishop of Washington. While I am humbled and honored by the confidence the Holy Father has placed in me, I regret that it brings to an end this truly blessed moment in my life as your Archbishop. I have asked you for many things during my time in Atlanta, and you have always responded with a boundless generosity of heart and spirit. My final request is for your prayers as I begin anew in Washington, DC, even as I assure you of my prayers for you in return.
Know that I will carry you always in the closeness of my heart. May God bless you and all who are dear to you, and may God bless the Archdiocese of Atlanta!
Sincerely yours in Christ,
╬Wilton D. Gregory
(Spanish)
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Archdiocese of Washington Founded in 1939, the Archdiocese of Washington is home to over 655,000 Catholics who worship in 139 parishes located in Washington, DC and the five Maryland counties of Calvert, Charles, Montgomery, Prince George’s and St. Mary’s. Each year, the 92 Catholic schools in the Archdiocese educate nearly 27,000 students. The largest non-public social service organization in the region, the archdiocese and its affiliated agencies, including Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington and Victory Housing, provide shelter, food, counseling, medical care, legal assistance, employment training and more to more than 143,000 people each year. www.adw.org.
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