Father Hilgartner Slated To Head Bishops Divine Worship Office In 2011, Succeeding Msgr. Sherman

WASHINGTON—Father Richard Hilgartner, 41, a priest of the Archdiocese of Baltimore and associate director of the U.S. Bishops’ Secretariat for Divine Worship, has been tapped to become head of the secretariat in 2011. The current head, Msgr. Anthony Sherman, plans to return to the Diocese of Brooklyn, New York, in Spring 2011.
           
Father Hilgartner is currently enrolled in a doctoral program at The Catholic University of America and holds a license in Sacred Theology (Sacramental and Liturgical Theology) from the Pontificio Ateneo Sant' Anselmo, Rome, Italy.
           
Msgr. David Malloy, general secretary of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), announced the appointment.
           
“I am very grateful for Father Hilgartner’s generous agreement to undertake this service and thank Archbishop Edwin O’Brien of Baltimore for permitting Father Hilgartner to continue to serve at the USCCB.  Finally, I am extremely grateful to Msgr. Tony Sherman for his excellent and dedicated service over the last eight years, and for these final months as he contributes to the preparation for the implementation of the new translation of the Roman Missal.  I am confident that this transition will continue the excellence all have come to expect from the Secretariat for Divine Worship, Msgr. Malloy said.
           
In addition to his licentiate degree from Sant’ Anselmo, Father Hilgartner holds a Bachelor of Science degree (business and finance) from Mount St. Mary's College (now University) in Emmitsburg, Maryland, and a Master of Divinity degree and Bachelor of Sacred Theology degree from St. Mary's Seminary and University, Baltimore. He is a member of the North American Academy of Liturgy.
           
In the Baltimore Archdiocese, Father Hilgartner has served in parish ministry and campus ministry, and has taught theology and homiletics.
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Father Richard Hilgartner, Catholic University of America, Sant’ Anselmo, liturgy, Msgr. Anthony Sherman, Msgr. David Malloy, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, liturgy, Baltimore, Secretariat for Divine Wosrship