The Vatican’s meeting concerning the future of the Catholic Church has concluded, addressing several contentious issues, including the service of women in administrative positions within the Church, according to Italy’s ANSA news agency.
The agency reported that the meeting, which regularly convenes 300 bishops along with numerous Catholics, emphasized the “necessity” of ensuring full participation of women in Church leadership positions, calling for further exploration of allowing women to serve within a year.
During this meeting, women were granted the right to vote in discussions for the first time. Previously, they were allowed to attend but were denied voting rights and involvement in decision-making.
The meeting approved a 42-page report covering a range of issues to be discussed in a follow-up session next year.
All sections of the report were approved with the required two-thirds majority, except for two paragraphs related to the possibility of allowing women to serve as deacons in the Church and the elimination of the celibacy requirement for priests, both of which received mixed responses.
Pope Francis appointed Simona Brambilla, the former General Secretary of the Consolata Missionaries, as the new Secretary of the Department overseeing religious around the world, as reported by Vatican News.
Brambilla has been a member of the Vatican’s Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life since 2019.
In her new role as Secretary, she will be second-in-command in the department headed by Cardinal João Braz.
Brambilla, born in Monza, Italy, on March 27, 1965, is 58 years old and will participate, by papal appointment, in the upcoming Synod assembly to be held at the Vatican.
