Sister Simona Brambilla was appointed as the prefect of a Vatican office that oversees religious orders, but she may not be alone at the top.

He is appointing Sister Simona Brambilla, an Italian nun, to become prefect of the Vatican department responsible for all the church's religious orders.

Francis’ liberal pick for Washington, D.C. archbishop is at odds with Trump’s choice for ambassador to the Vatican, Brian Burch, a vocal Francis critic.

Pope Francis on Monday named Sister Simona Brambilla the first female prefect of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

Pope Francis has appointed the Italian nun, Sister Simona Brambilla, to head one of the Vatican's dicasteries, making her the first female prefect in the Catholic Church's history. The Vatican's press office reported on Monday that Brambilla has been selected to lead the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.

The move marks a major step in Pope Francis’ aim to give women more leadership roles in the church, while standing firm on not allowing them to be ordained as priests.View on euronews

Sister Brambilla, who trained as a nurse before entering religious life, was a missionary in Mozambique in the late 1990s.

Pope Francis has appointed Simona Brambilla, an Italian nun, as the first woman prefect in the Vatican City. The 59-year old nun, who takes over from the retiring cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz, is a member of the Consolata Missionaries religious order and served as the number two in the religious orders department since 2024.

Pope Francis on Monday named the first woman to lead a major Vatican department, appointing an Italian sister to take charge of the office that oversees the world's Catholic religious orders.