Washington Cardinal Wilton Gregory was named the recipient of the “Jubilate Deo” award at this year’s convention of the National Association of Pastoral Musicians, held July 8-11 in Kansas City, Missouri.
The award is given in recognition of a substantial contribution to the development of pastoral liturgy in the United States.
While Cardinal Gregory’s accomplishments in the current century – including leading the Archdioceses of Atlanta and Washington, D.C. and his three-year term as president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops – are well known, lost in those achievements has been his work in the field of liturgy.
While a priest of the Archdiocese of Chicago, Cardinal Gregory earned a doctorate in sacred liturgy in 1980 from the Pontifical Liturgical Institute Sant’ Anselmo in Rome.
Since his appointment to the U.S. Catholic hierarchy, he has frequently been a member of the U.S. bishops’ Committee on Divine Worship, and served from 1991 to 1993 as its chair.
“Cardinal Gregory has faithfully served the Catholic Church for over 50 years in varied ways,” said a statement by Mary Prete, a National Association of Pastoral Musicians member. “As a fellow Chicagoan, I knew him as the most popular bishop for the sacrament of Confirmation. He also was active in our Office of Divine Worship where he advocated for the enactment of the Vatican II mandates.”
“Named as one of the youngest bishops, he served faithfully in Belleville (Ill.) and then was assigned to Atlanta, where he again called the faithful to embrace change by being attentive to the needs of the Spanish speaking communities,” Prete added. “His focus always remains with the people and the liturgy we pray. He is a holy man, a man who cares about the people he serves, and is always ready to stand for those who have no standing.”
Cardinal Gregory was unable to accept the award in person, as there was a schedule conflict. But in his taped acceptance speech, he turned the focus away from himself and on Church musicians and their ministry.
“The gifts that you share are vital to our liturgical life. You inspire and assist us in witnessing to the love of Christ and sharing the Gospel message of love and hope today,” the cardinal said. You serve the church in a special way – expressing the rich diversity of languages and cultures of God’s people who are present in-person and online in our local communities. “
He added, “With your music ministry, you are helping to lead the assembly in prayer and praise – often when many are at a loss for spoken words. It is an incredible grace and blessing that through music, we are able to fully open our hearts to listen attentively to the Lord.”
Only three other prelates have been given the Jubilate Deo award: Cardinal Daniel DiNardo of Galveston-Houston in 2016, retired Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles in 1999, and the late Archbishop Rembert Weakland of Milwaukee in 1997.
The Jubilate Deo award has been conferred on one other Washingtonian: Msgr. Raymond East, pastor of St. Teresa of Avila Parish in Southeast Washington, in 2009.
Musicians whose work is still being sung in churches today who are past recipients of the Jubilate Deo prize include the St. Louis Jesuits (“Glory and Praise to Our God”), Father Clarence Rivers (“God Is Love”), Father Michael Joncas (“On Eagle’s Wings”), Jacques Berthier and the Community of Taizé (“Jesus, Remember Me”), Mercy Sister Suzanne Toolan (“I Am the Bread of Life”), and Jesuit Father Joseph Gelineau (“My Shepherd Is the Lord”).
