Pope to appoint two women to Dicastery of Bishops

Sr Nathalie Becquart

Source: Vatican News

Pope Francis has announced his intention to appoint two women to the Dicastery of Bishops, which is involved in the process of choosing new bishops.

In an interview with Philip Pullella from Reuters, who asked about the appointment of women to positions in the Vatican, Pope Francis said he was open should an opportunity arise. He said: ".. two women will be going to the Congregation of Bishops, on the commission to elect bishops. In this way, things open up a little bit."

The Holy Father mentioned that last year he appointed Sister Raffaella Petrini, to the number two position in the Vatican City Governorate, making her the first woman to hold the position.

Pope Francis has appointed more women to key roles usually held by men than any of his predecessors. In January 2020, Pope Francis named Francesca di Giovanni as Undersecretary for the multilateral sector in the Secetariat of State's Section for Relations with States and International Organizations, another first.

Other notable appointments of women by Pope Francis include Sister Nathalie Becquart, a French member of the Xaviere Missionary Sisters, as under-secretary of the Synod of Bishops and Sister Alessandra Smerilli, of the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians, as Undersecretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development.

Several other women now holding high-level positions in the Vatican, include Barbara Jatta, the first female director of the Vatican Museums; Nataša Govekar, Director of the Theological-Pastoral Office of the Dicastery for Communication; and Cristiane Murray, deputy director of the Holy See Press Office, all of whom were appointed by the current Pontiff.

During the interview Pope Francis said that in the future he sees the possibility of lay people being appointed to lead certain Vatican departments such as the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life, the Dicastery for Culture and Education, or the Vatican Apostolic Library.

Last month, Cardinal Kevin Farrell, prefect of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life, joked that, with the promulgation of the new Constitution on the Curia, he might be the last cleric to lead that dicastery.