Pope Francis appointed this Monday (6) the first woman to lead an important Vatican department. He chose a sister from Italy to head the cabinet that oversees the world’s Catholic religious orders.
Sister Simona Brambilla, 59, will head the Vatican Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. She replaces Cardinal João Braz de Aviz, a Brazilian prelate who had led the cabinet since 2011.
Francis has elevated women to leadership roles at the Vatican throughout his 11-year papacy, naming them to “second-in-command” roles in various cabinets.
But he had not yet named a woman to lead one of the offices of the Holy See, the sovereign entity that globally oversees the Catholic Church.
Brambilla was named “prefect” of the Vatican cabinet. Francisco also appointed Spanish Cardinal Angel Fernández Artime as “pro-mayor” of the department.
The Vatican press office said Brambilla would lead the department, but did not provide details at first about how the two nominees would divide the tasks.
Among other appointments, Francis had already appointed women to the number two positions in the Vatican’s development office, the family life office and the press office.
He also appointed Barbara Jatta as the first woman to lead the Vatican Museums, in 2016.
