Pope names Italian sister as first woman to lead major Vatican office

Pope Francis leads the Angelus prayer from his window at the Vatican, January 6, 2025. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - 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.

Sister Simona Brambilla, 59, will lead the Vatican's Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. She replaces Cardinal Joao Braz de Aviz, a Brazilian prelate who had led the office since 2011.