Pope Francis yesterday appointed Irish-born US clergyman Bishop Kevin Farrell (above) to lead the new Dicastery (department) for Laity, the Family and Life.
Currently serving as Bishop of Dallas, Bishop Farrell thus becomes the most senior US church figure serving in the Holy See.
As part of his ongoing overhaul of the Holy See Curia, Francis has decided to drop the two existing councils for the laity and the family, merging them into one body to be headed by 68-year-old Farrell.
In his new role, Bishop Farrell will have responsibility for the promotion of the Christian life of the laity, both in the Catholic church and in civil society. His department will also have a major say in the preparation for the next World Meeting of Families, due to be held in Dublin in 2018 and probably attended by the pope.
The Dublin-born bishop has long pushed for greater involvement of the laity in church life. He is seen as a man of dialogue within the US Catholic bishops’ conference.
Vatican insiders say that this appointment, made less than a year after last autumn's Synod on the Family and Pope Francis's visit to the US, represents a major vote of confidence in the US church.