Leo XIV: Towards the beginning of his pontificate?

The news that Leo XIV will convene a consistory for January 7-8 has not yet been made official by the Holy See Press Office. Since the National Catholic Register broke the news, however, numerous confirmations have emerged – some from cardinals themselves – and the circular letter sent to all the cardinals has made the rounds.

This consistory will not be for the creation of new cardinals. There are already a dozen more voting-age cardinals than the law strictly allows. The number of voting-age cardinals will not dip below the legal limit of 120 until the end of 2026.

The Jan. 7-8 consistory will be for discussing matters of importance to the whole Church – discussion, the likes of which have not occurred in recent years.

Pope Francis convened one in 2014, when Cardinal Walter Kasper gave his address on the family, which sparked considerable debate. Then, there was another in 2015, featuring various sessions on reforming the Curia. And then, in 2022, to discuss the already promulgated reform of the Curia.

Pope Francis’s last extraordinary consistory – the first in seven years – left everyone somewhat disappointed.  The cardinals were divided into linguistic groups; there was no room for extended interventions in a full session, and many were left with the impression that the collegiality—or synodality—of which the Pope spoke was not truly being applied.

Leo XIV is returning to older ways of doing things.

Benedict XVI always preceded the consistory for the creation of new cardinals with a meeting of the entire College of Cardinals. John Paul II convened the cardinals on several occasions to discuss reforms and joint decisions. Paul VI even liked to meet with the cardinals residing in Rome immediately after each papal trip, upon his return, almost before even setting foot in the apartment in the Apostolic Palace.

It remains to be seen what model Leo XIV will follow, but the convocation of a consistory on January 7th is a telling sign.

First of all, January 7th is the first day after the end of the 2025 Jubilee.

Leo XIV made the deliberate decision to let everything slide during the Jubilee and to close all the dossiers opened by Pope Francis.

The publication of the exhortation Dilexi Te, that of the document of the Doctrine of the Faith on Marian titles, the upcoming publication of a document on monogamy prepared by the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith during Pope Francis’s time, and even the upcoming trip to Turkey and Lebanon are issues left pending by Leo XIV’s predecessor.

Some of Pope Francis’s decisions will remain in place next year. For example, a trip to Africa that is currently being prepared, which Pope Francis dreamed of taking during the Jubilee Year. And yet, the end of the Jubilee will also physically mark the end of Francis’s legacy. Leo XIV has taken his time to consider the matter, and now he will likely lay his cards on the table.

What could happen at the Consistory on January 7-8?

Presumably, the Pope will want to listen. He always does. Apostolic nuncios say that the Pope always wants to hear from them first about the situation in the country where they serve.

But then, the Pope could also define his “governing team.” He could present a draft of what should become his first encyclical. He could address some hot topics: the impact of the trial season, the credibility of the Church, and the necessary reforms to adjust the Curia.

Whatever happens, this will be a fundamental turning point.

From the Pope’s words, from the way he conducts the consistory, we can understand how the Pope’s pontificate will unfold.

We have already seen some of the characteristics. Last week, Leo XIV appointed the Augustinian Edward Danian Daleng as vice-regent of the Prefecture of the Papal Household. This is a position that does not exist in the organizational chart—at most, there could be a regent adjunct—but it demonstrates the Pope’s desire to restore centrality to the institution.

The vice-regent will work alongside the regent, Monsignor Leonardo Sapienza, who has governed the Prefecture in recent years. Pope Francis, in fact, never appointed a successor to Archbishop Gänswein as prefect. Leo XIV may appoint one, and Archbishop Peter Rajic, the current nuncio to Italy, is reportedly being considered for the post.

The appointment of a vice-regent demonstrates the Pope’s continued policy of appointing young people and trusted friends to key positions. They are often Augustinians, but not necessarily—the two secretaries are not Augustinians; however, they are proven, trusted thirty-year-olds, for example.

At high levels, however, the Pope wants to reinstate a precise hierarchy.

The Prefecture of the Papal Household will be a central body. It remains to be seen how the Holy Father will refocus the Secretariat of State, and we can expect some changes at the top after the consistory. Currently, State is lacking two crucial positions that are essential to its smooth operation: the assessor and the undersecretary for relations with states. The assessor is even more critical, as he assists the deputy in managing the Secretariat of State.

But it remains to be seen whether the Pope will decide to make an even more substantial change to the Secretariat of State, appointing new superiors for the assessor and the undersecretary. This will also be evident after the Jubilee.

Meanwhile, Leo XIV is continuing to “fix” institutional gaps.

Following the rescript that once again allows Vatican entities to refrain from investing through the IOR, on November 13th, the Pope established a coordinating body for the Apostleship of the Sea, known as Stella Maris. With the reform of the Curia, the Apostleship of the Sea had been marginalized by the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development, which had assumed its responsibilities but had not created a structure.

Now, the structure is being made, although it will need further steps to be effective. It is part of a broader adjustment to Pope Francis’s unfinished reforms.

Perhaps we are really only very slowly approaching the beginning of a pontificate, or at least of the new papal government. The Pope appears determined to establish a robust institution and organization, without jettisoning more than is absolutely necessary of the things that defined Francis’s papacy.

It will take a great deal of balance for this effort to bear fruit.