(Agencies): Pope Leo XIV’s first Extraordinary Consistory of Cardinals will be held in the Vatican from January 7-8, Vatican News reported on 20 December 2025.
“The meeting will unfold over two days and will be marked by moments of communion and fraternity, as well as times dedicated to reflection, sharing, and prayer,” read a statement from the Holy See Press Office.
The encounter will seek to foster discernment and offer “support and counsel to the Holy Father in the exercise of his lofty and weighty responsibility in the governance of the universal Church.”
The statement said, “The consistory is set within the context of the life and mission of the Church and it intends to strengthen communion between the Bishop of Rome and the Cardinals, who are called to collaborate in a particular way in solicitude for the good of the universal Church.”
According to Zenit, the gathering will be consultative with no creation of new cardinals and no ceremonial agenda. Instead, the days will be structured around prayer, reflection and open exchange, with the explicit aim of supporting the pope in governing the Church. The emphasis on fraternity and shared discernment suggests a leadership style that seeks breadth rather than reliance on a small inner circle.
Italian media report that three broad areas are likely to frame the discussions: the governance of the Church, the future of synodality, and questions surrounding liturgy.
