Woman’s Appointment to Major Vatican Office ‘Revolutionary,’ UD faculty member says

Mia Barrett | Contributing Writer

An Italian nun who Pope Francis appointed as the first woman to head a major Vatican office is three months into her new role, and only time will tell what the appointment will mean for the Catholic Church and the leadership roles for women, a University of Dayton religious studies faculty member said.

“I think it is important that this isn’t just a one-off,” the faculty member, professor Dennis Doyle, told Flyer News. “This is the only one he’s put as the head of a dicastery but he’s appointed a woman to be a governor of Vatican City and he’s appointed for other dicasteries, the experts, the lay people, many of them are women now.”

The Pope made history on Jan. 6 when he appointed Sister Simona Brambilla, who was born March 27, 1965, as the first woman to head a major Vatican office, the Dicastery for Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. 

Brambilla is no stranger to working important roles such as the one she was just appointed to. Not only is she a professional nurse, but she also served as the superior general of the Concolata Missionary Sisters from 2011 to May 2023. She has a doctorate in psychology and taught as a professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University. Recently, Pope Francis also gave Brambilla the role of being a member of the 16th Ordinary Council of the General Secretariat of the Synod.

The Catholic Church had only named a woman No. 2 or lower in Vatican offices before the appointment of Brambilla. This major change in the leadership roles of the Church has evoked many feelings from some UD students.

“I think this is so exciting for women as a whole in the Catholic Church. It’s not only a huge step towards gender equality in the Church where women haven’t been recognized as much, but also it’s inspiring to me as a woman myself,” third-year student Kate Heidenry said.

While many people are optimistic about these changes in the Church, there are still some who question what this means for the Church and its way of working. 

“Honestly I was just shocked,” sophomore Peyton Wuennenberg said. “The Catholic Church has just always seemed to run by tradition, and having a female as the head of a major Vatican office just seems atypical.”

Professor Doyle, when asked whether he believed women could ever possibly take on other larger roles in the Church, said, “[Pope Francis] doesn’t feel he can ordain women, he thinks that this distinction between men and women is important. And he thinks there is a lot of biblical and traditional roots for this. And so somebody has to be a priest that’s going to be a man… but in terms of who actually has offices that have power, he thinks women can have those. That is revolutionary.”

It is important to note that while this is a big change for the Catholic Church and Brambilla has a significant role, she has been appointed a Cardinal as her co-leader, a move that has created some controversy itself. 

“I am excited to see what a woman will do in this role… Even though a male is now a co-chair with her, I think it is OK as he is likely just trying to be there to support her as she takes on this role,” said Margo Schoen, a freshman.

This is an exciting time for women in the Church as more opportunities are seeming to be available that once had not been. For now, as one of the only women in such a high role of power in the Church, Sister Simona Brambilla is seen as an example and hope for more inclusivity within the Church’s power roles.

“I think this is a huge step for women and Sister Simona Brambilla can be looked up to from other women in the church. I know why the Church sees the importance of keeping gender roles the same when it comes to priesthood and things like that but I think it would be really cool to have a female priest. I guess that’s just something we would have to wait and see if it happens,” said Kate Gleason, a sophomore.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Mia Barrett produced this article as a member of the Flyer News Practicum, which is offered through the Department of Communication. Students in the Practicum with an interest in the media arts gain valuable experience in the practice of journalism through stories they are assigned to produce. Flyer News publishes a lot of the work produced by Practicum students, who earn academic credit and valuable writing samples to show potential employers.