Leo XIV Turns Secretariat of State into Ever-More Powerful Hub

Leo XIV has released today two documents a new General Regulation of the Roman Curia and a Personnel Regulation about recruitment. They enter into force on 1 January 2026 for a five-year ad experimentum period.
The Personnel Regulation requires Vatican employees to uphold exemplary religious and moral conduct, also in private life. It sets employment rules: six-day work weeks, fixed hours, 26 days of annual leave, monitoring of sick leave, restrictions on part-time work, and bans on employing relatives within the same office.
The General Regulation represents a complete reconstruction of the curial system—administrative structure, documentation regime, digitalization, the rights of the faithful, and a renewed centrality of the Secretariat of State.
End of Latin
The previous obligation to draft acts “as a rule” in Latin disappears. Italian, English, French, and other modern languages may now be used normally.
This will practically mean the abandonment of Latin.
Faithful’s right to a …More