​Cardinal Wilton Gregory: From Atlanta Archbishop to Potential Papal Candidate​Wikipedia

Fol­low­ing the death of Pope Fran­cis, the Catholic Church is prepar­ing for a con­clave to elect a new pope. Among the car­di­nal elec­tors is Car­di­nal Wilton Daniel Gre­go­ry, the for­mer Arch­bish­op of Atlanta and Wash­ing­ton. ​

A Trailblazer in the American Catholic Church

Born on Decem­ber 7, 1947, in Chica­go, Illi­nois, Car­di­nal Gre­go­ry has had a dis­tin­guished career in the Catholic Church. He was ordained a priest in 1973 and has served in var­i­ous lead­er­ship roles, includ­ing Aux­il­iary Bish­op of Chica­go, Bish­op of Belleville, Arch­bish­op of Atlanta, and Arch­bish­op of Wash­ing­ton. In 2020, Pope Fran­cis ele­vat­ed him to the Col­lege of Car­di­nals, mak­ing him the first African-Amer­i­can car­di­nal in the his­to­ry of the Catholic Church. ​Wikipedia

Role in the Upcoming Conclave

As a car­di­nal under the age of 80, Gre­go­ry is eli­gi­ble to par­tic­i­pate in the upcom­ing papal con­clave, where he will join approx­i­mate­ly 135 oth­er car­di­nal elec­tors in select­ing the next pope. While any bap­tized Catholic male is tech­ni­cal­ly eli­gi­ble for the papa­cy, tra­di­tion since 1378 has seen only car­di­nals elect­ed to the posi­tion.

Potential as a Papal Candidate

Car­di­nal Gre­go­ry’s exten­sive expe­ri­ence and lead­er­ship with­in the Church have led some to con­sid­er him a poten­tial can­di­date for the papa­cy. His his­toric appoint­ment as the first African-Amer­i­can car­di­nal and his tenure in sig­nif­i­cant arch­dio­ce­ses posi­tion him as a fig­ure of uni­ty and progress with­in the Church. How­ev­er, the con­clave’s out­come remains uncer­tain, as the selec­tion of a new pope is influ­enced by var­i­ous fac­tors, includ­ing the­o­log­i­cal per­spec­tives, geo­graph­ic rep­re­sen­ta­tion, and the desire for con­ti­nu­ity or change with­in the Church’s lead­er­ship.​Wikipedia

As the Catholic Church nav­i­gates this peri­od of tran­si­tion, Car­di­nal Gre­go­ry’s par­tic­i­pa­tion in the con­clave under­scores the evolv­ing diver­si­ty and glob­al rep­re­sen­ta­tion with­in the Church’s hier­ar­chy.​

For more on Car­di­nal Gre­go­ry’s role in the upcom­ing con­clave, watch the fol­low­ing video: