Pope Francis has named the first woman to head a major Vatican office. He is appointing Sister Simona Brambilla, an Italian nun, to become prefect of the Vatican department responsible for all the church's religious orders.

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.

Outspokenly progressive, Cardinal McElroy is now poised to take over the ecclesiastical territory of the nation’s capital just as Donald Trump is sworn in for a second term as president of the United States.

Pope Francis has appointed Sister Simona Brambilla as the first woman to lead a major Vatican office, marking a significant step towards gender inclusivity within the Catholic Church. Brambilla will head the Dicastery for the Institutes of Consecrated Life and Societies of Apostolic Life,