Pope Francis has named Salesian Sister Alessandra Smerilli as secretary ad interim of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral
Human Development. Photo: CNS. Pope Francis names religious sister to no. 2 position in Vatican’s social development office
Pope Francis last Thursday named Italian economist and Catholic religious sister Alessandra Smerilli as secretary of the Vatican’s social development office on an interim basis.
Sr Smerilli was appointed ad interim secretary of the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development following the departure of secretary Msgr Bruno Marie Duffé and deputy secretary Fr Augusto Zampini, who have returned to their home dioceses, the Vatican announced August 26.
The 46-year-old Salesian sister is an economist and professor. She has been an undersecretary at the human development dicastery since March 24 and was one of the principal organisers of the 2020 Economy of Francesco event.
Since 2019, Sr Smerilli has also served as a councillor of the Vatican City State and a consultant to the secretariat of the Synod of Bishops. In spring 2020, she was asked to coordinate the economic taskforce of the Vatican Covid-19 Commission.
Sr Smerilli is one of two women to hold a second-ranking position in an important Vatican office, after the nomination of Sr Nathalie Becquart to the Synod of Bishops in February.
Pope Francis appoints Vatican Master of Ceremonies Msgr Guido Marini to Italian diocese
Pope Francis on Sunday appointed the Vatican’s papal master of ceremonies, Msgr Guido Marini, bishop of a northern Italian diocese.
Bishop-elect Marini, who has been in charge of papal liturgies since his appointment by Benedict XVI in 2007, was August 29 named Bishop of Tortona, a diocese of around 280,000 people.
Msgr Marini, 56, grew up near Tortona in the city of Genoa, where he served as chief liturgist for four years. The bishop-elect has degrees in canon and civil law. Prior to his appointment to the Vatican he was chancellor of the Archdiocese of Genoa and a spiritual director in the seminary.
There are eight papal masters of ceremonies, of which Msgr Marini was the head. They are responsible for organizing and overseeing all liturgical celebrations of the Pope. Since 2007, with few exceptions, Msgr Marini could be seen at the side of Pope Benedict XVI and then Pope Francis during papal Masses and other liturgies both at the Vatican and abroad.
Pope Francis sends €196,000 for Haiti earthquake victims
Pope Francis will send over €196,000 in aid for victims of the Haiti earthquake which struck August 14.
The amount is “an initial contribution” to help the people of Haiti “in this emergency phase”, according to the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Promotion of Integral Human Development.
In an August 24 press release, the dicastery said the money will be distributed to the Catholic dioceses most in need, with collaboration from the Vatican’s embassy in Haiti, the apostolic nunciature.
The funds “will be used to assist the earthquake victims and is intended to be an immediate expression of the feeling of spiritual closeness and paternal encouragement towards the people and territories affected, demonstrated by the Holy Father,” it said.
A 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck the island of Haiti on the night of August 14. The death toll from the devastating quake had risen to over 2,200 people by August 22, according to Haiti’s Civil Protection Agency.
More than 340 people are still missing and 12,268 are injured. The protection agency said nearly 53,000 homes were destroyed in what is the largest natural disaster to hit Haiti since the 2010 earthquake.