On Monday, Pope Francison appointed Sister Simona Brambilla, an Italian nun, as the prefect of the department in charge of overseeing all of the Catholic Church’s religious orders, making her the first woman to hold a senior position at the Vatican.
Francis wants to offer women more leadership responsibilities in running the church, and this appointment is a significant step toward that goal. No woman has ever been appointed prefect of a dicastery or congregation of the Holy See Curia, the main body that governs the Catholic Church, although women have been ranked second in various Vatican positions.
Vatican Media made a headline about Brambilla’s appointment, confirming that it was historic. The first female prefect at the Vatican is Sister Simona Brambilla.
Francis concurrently appointed a Salesian cardinal, Angel Fern ndez Artime, as a co-leader or pro-prefect, demonstrating the newness of the office and its theological ramifications.
However, the Vatican daily bulletin announcing the appointment places Brambilla first as prefect and Fernandez second as her co-leader. This is theologically required since the prefect must be able to celebrate Mass and carry out other sacramental duties that are currently exclusive to men.
One of the most significant positions in the Vatican is the Dicastery for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. It is in charge of all religious orders, including the Franciscans, Jesuits, and smaller, more recent groups.
As the No. 2 in the religious order department since last year, Brambilla, 59, is a member of the Consolata Missionaries religious order.
She succeeds the 77-year-old Cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz, who is retiring.
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