Made official today, Cardinal Wilton Gregory will continue as a member of the Dicastery for Laity, the Family and Life, according to a Vatican announcement.
An outspoken seamless garment advocate, Gregory was originally named to the post in 2018, when he was still archbishop of Atlanta.
He would be named head of the Washington archdiocese 6 months later.
The dicastery, one of several in the hierarchy of the Roman Curia, was created in 2016 and replaced the separate Pontifical Councils for the laity and family that had existed since 60s and 80s, respectively.
Alongside other Vatican committees such as the Propaganda and the CDF, Gregory's helps the Pope more efficiently handle various aspects of the Church's mission, via the cardinals and other bishops.
One of its most recent tasks has been to advocate for the sick and elderly during the pandemic, who might otherwise be forgotten or otherwise underserved during this time of unprecedented need.
Unsurprisingly, Gregory himself has often spoken out on the issue.
Nate Tinner-Williams is co-founder of Black Catholic Messenger, a priesthood applicant with the Josephites, and a ThM student w/ the Institute for Black Catholic Studies at Xavier University of Louisiana (XULA).
