Particle.news
Download on the App Store
4 ARTICLES
·
last wk.

Vatican Names Maria Montserrat Alvarado Prefect of Dicastery for Communication

The appointment places a lay, non‑religious woman with extensive Catholic media experience in charge to begin a managed handover from Paolo Ruffini.

Pope Leo XIV delivers the Angelus noon prayer in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, Sunday, May 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Image
Image

Overview

  • Pope Leo XIV has appointed Maria Montserrat Alvarado to lead the Dicastery for Communication, with her term set to begin on November 1, 2026 and Paolo Ruffini remaining through a planned transition.
  • Alvarado currently serves as president and chief operating officer of EWTN News and previously held leadership roles at the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty.
  • She is the first non‑religious woman named prefect of a Holy See dicastery, continuing the Curia’s recent trend of entrusting lay leaders with senior posts.
  • Ruffini described a collaborative handover and EWTN’s chairman offered the network’s support, signaling an orderly transition that will focus on modernizing Vatican media operations.
  • The Dicastery, created in 2015 to centralize Vatican TV, radio, print and digital platforms, will likely see leadership emphasizing professional media management and renewed efforts to refine how the Church communicates globally.