DUNEDIN (NEW ZEALAND)
The Otago Daily Times
April 10, 2019
By Michael McGough
You don’t have to be Catholic to take an interest in the announcement last week that Pope Francis has chosen the Most Rev Wilton D. Gregory, the longtime archbishop of Atlanta, as the new head of the archdiocese of Washington, DC.
Gregory’s appointment is interesting from several vantage points: He will be the first African American archbishop of the nation’s capital and he also was a leader in the American church’s early response to sexual abuse by clergy – an issue that tripped up his immediate predecessor, Cardinal Donald Wuerl. (Wuerl was preceded as archbishop by Theodore McCarrick, the former cardinal who was defrocked this year after being found guilty by a church tribunal of sexual misconduct with children and adults.)
Gregory’s appointment is notable for another reason: He was born on December 7, 1947, meaning that he is 71. It might seem odd that the Pope would appoint a septuagenarian to this important post in the American church, especially in light of the fact that bishops must submit their resignations at age 75.
But at least one commentator thinks that the choice of an older archbishop is part of a pattern. Writing in the Catholic publication La Croix International, Robert Mickens notes that Francis has often tapped older prelates for important assignments because of their “wealth of experience” and because they “share his vision for church reform and his interpretation of the Second Vatican Council”.
It’s also true that, in the church as in politics, leaders are living longer. If Joe Biden (76) and Bernie Sanders (77) can contemplate running for president, why can’t a 71-year-old cleric assume spiritual authority in Washington?
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