Today, Pope Francis announced that he will name Most Reverend Wilton D. Gregory, Archbishop of Washington, D.C., to the College of Cardinals on November 28, 2020. I congratulate Cardinal-designate Gregory on this most welcome news. As the first Black Cardinal of the United States, this historic announcement is an honor and blessing for him as well as for the entire Church in our country.  

Cardinal-designate Gregory is a friend for whom I have the greatest respect and admiration. He has a distinguished record of providing sound leadership to the Catholic Church in the United States, including his service as president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops from 2001 to 2004, Archbishop of Atlanta from 2005 to 2019 and currently as Archbishop of Washington, D.C., since 2019. 

It was a great privilege to work with then-Archbishop Gregory as my Metropolitan Archbishop when I served as Bishop of Raleigh, NC from 2006 to 2016. His arrival in Washington, D.C., last year enabled us to continue working in close collaboration, which has been both a joy and an honor for me. Cardinal-designate Gregory is a model of pastoral leadership and he provides a much-needed voice on the issues facing the Church and our society.

At this time, and with all in the Diocese of Arlington, I also congratulate the priests, deacons, consecrated religious, and lay faithful of the Archdiocese of Washington on this most notable occasion.