Dicastery for Consecrated Life video screengrab / Facebook
CV NEWS FEED // Pope Francis has made history by naming Sister Simona Brambilla, an Italian-born Consolata Missionary, as the first woman to lead a major Vatican office.
Sister Brambilla has been appointed Prefect of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, Vatican News reported. She has served as secretary of the Dicastery since 2023.
Her appointment, announced Jan. 6, reflects the Pope’s ongoing efforts to elevate women to leadership roles within the Church.
The Dicastery is tasked with overseeing all of the Catholic Church’s religious orders and societies of apostolic life. Pope Francis paved the way for Sister Brambilla’s appointment through his 2022 Apostolic Constitution Praedicate Evangelium, allowing laypeople, including women, to lead dicasteries as prefects.
Pope Francis named Cardinal Ángel Fernández Artime as pro-prefect of the Dicastery.
Sister Brambilla served as superior general of the Consolata Missionaries from 2011 to 2023. Her background includes missionary work in Mozambique and a professional nursing career before joining religious life.
