Rev. George B. Wilson., SJ, was born on November 29, 1928, in Philadelphia, PA. He attended St. Joseph’s Prep and entered the Society of Jesus at the Novitiate of St. Isaac Jogues in Wernersville, PA, on July 30, 1946. He earned three degrees from Saint Louis University, a Bachelors and a Masters in the Classics, and a Licentiate in Philosophy. He also received a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from Woodstock College in Maryland and later went on to receive his Doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome. He was ordained a priest on June 21, 1959.
Following ordination, Fr. Wilson spent seven years teaching Theology at Woodstock College in Maryland. When the college moved to New York City, Fr. Wilson followed, where he continued to teach Pastoral Theology until just prior to Woodstock College closing in 1974, which profoundly saddened this committed professor of Theology.
In 1975, Fr. Wilson moved to Cincinnati, OH, where he began work with the Management Design company, a career that would span more than 40 years. His work specialized in helping staff focus their processes toward a specified mission—how to collaborate best with each other to achieve common goals. During this time, he also wrote many articles on a variety of subjects, from leadership and ethics to the question of ordaining women. Fr. Wilson never shied away from an issue. He published a book entitled Clericalism: The Death of Priesthood, dealing primarily with the sexual abuse scandal in the Church.
On Martin Luther King Jr. Day in 2019, Fr. Wilson received the “Keep the Dream Alive” award for his service to the African-American community of Cincinnati. This was especially poignant for him because in 1963, he marched and stood on the elevated platform of the Lincoln Memorial to witness MLK’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
2019 was also the year Fr. Wilson moved to the Colombière Jesuit retirement community in Baltimore, where he served in pastoral ministry. In 2022, he moved to the Manresa Hall Jesuit health center in Philadelphia, missioned to pray for the Church and the Society of Jesus. He died peacefully on August 26, 2024.
