CNA Staff, Apr 25, 2025 / 11:45 am
Pope Francis has made significant strides in enhancing the role of women within the Vatican throughout his papacy. Beginning in 2013, the workforce at the Vatican rose from approximately 850 female employees to nearly 1,200 by 2023, as reported by Vatican News.
By 2023, over 25% of employees in the Roman Curia—responsible for assisting the Pope in governance—were women. Despite these advancements, Pope Francis upheld the traditional Catholic doctrine that the priesthood is exclusive to men. He articulated that the Church should embody both the masculine “Petrine principle” and the feminine, spousal “Marian principle.” He emphasized women’s strong potential for leadership within the Church, stating they are often more effective managers, remarking that “they have been running things since the Garden of Eden.”
During a 2022 interview, the Pope elaborated on the dignity of women as a reflection of the Church’s feminine essence. “A Church with only the Petrine principle would be a Church that one would think is reduced to its ministerial dimension, nothing else,” he noted, asserting that the Church represents the entirety of the people of God.
In March 2022, the apostolic constitution Praedicate Evangelium established that any devoted member of the Church could be eligible to lead a Vatican dicastery. In a historic move for the Church in 2023, women were permitted to be voting members of a synod for the first time. This change followed Pope Francis’ decision to appoint Sister Simona Brambilla as the first woman to head a dicastery—the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life.
Leadership Appointments of Women in the Vatican
Sister Simona Brambilla: Trailblazer at the Dicastery
Sister Simona Brambilla made history in January by becoming the first woman to lead a Vatican dicastery. As prefect of the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life, she supervises around 700,000 religious men and women globally. A member of the Consolata Missionaries religious order, Brambilla has substantial missionary experience, having worked in Mozambique and served as a professional nurse and educator at the Pontifical Gregorian University.
Sister Raffaella Petrini: First Female Governor of Vatican City
In early 2025, the Pope appointed Raffaella Petrini, a Franciscan religious sister, as president of the Pontifical Commission for Vatican City State and governor of Vatican City State, marking her as the first woman to hold this title. Previously serving as secretary of both institutions since November 2021, she was responsible for administrative functions and oversight of various departments in Vatican City.
Sister Alessandra Smerilli: Key Figure in Social Development
Alessandra Smerilli, an Italian economist and religious sister, was appointed in August 2021 to a significant role in the Vatican’s social development office, where she serves as secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development. The dicastery promotes Catholic social teaching globally, addressing key social justice issues.
Sister Nathalie Becquart: Influential Leader in the Synod of Bishops
Nathalie Becquart made her mark as the first woman to hold the position of undersecretary of the Synod of Bishops after her appointment in February 2021. Becquart also became the first female voting member in a Catholic synod, actively participating in the Synod on Synodality in 2023 and 2024. She has a background in entrepreneurship and the French bishops’ National Service for the Evangelization of Youth and Vocations.
The engagement of women in leadership roles in the Vatican, as demonstrated by these appointments, marks a transformative phase for the Catholic Church as it continues to explore and affirm the significant contributions of women in its governance and ministry.
