Leo's successor: This is the new Bishop Prefect Iannone

We have been waiting almost five months for it, but now it has finally arrived: the first major personnel decision by Pope Leo XIV. On Friday, the head of the Church appointed the Italian Curia Bishop Filippo Iannone as the new Prefect of the Episcopal Dicastery. He will assume the new office on 15 October. This appointment is not only significant because the dicastery is one of the key departments of the Curia - Pope Leo XIV is also making Iannone his direct successor. From 2023 until his election as pope, the then Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost himself served as head of this authority.

Looking at this appointment, the parallels between Iannone and Pope Leo XIV are immediately apparent: Both have doctorates in canon law and are religious, both are considered to be rather reserved and analytical, are of a similar age, have a rather slender and small stature and came to the Curia under Pope Francis.

The youngest bishop in Italy

The Carmelite Iannone has already gained practical experience with the duties of a bishop on various occasions: in 2001, the religious from Naples was appointed auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese of Naples. At the age of just 43, he was the youngest bishop in Italy at the time. In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI made him Bishop of Sora-Aquino-Pontecorvo in the Roman countryside. Three years later, the head of the Church appointed Iannone as vice regent of the diocese of Rome. Iannone received the personal title of archbishop in return.

In 2017, the canonist was finally called to the Curia, initially as Assistant Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts. Pope Francis appointed him President of this Council in 2018, which became a dicastery following the Apostolic Constitution"Praedicate Evangelium" (2022), making Iannone Prefect. During his time as prefect, however, Iannone made little public appearance - most likely because he was one of the few prefects to never receive the cardinal's hat.

Iannone's appointment as Bishop Prefect can certainly be interpreted as continuity between Pope Leo XIV and his predecessor Francis. Leo decided to elevate a deserving curial to the office instead of a close confidant. The decision to appoint the previous secretary and undersecretary of the authority for a further five years also points to this interpretation.

The Episcopal Dicastery is one of the most important institutions of the Curia, as it is here that the appointment of future bishops is prepared. The Dicastery is also responsible for the training of new bishops - as well as disciplinary proceedings and the resignation of bishops from office. The authority therefore has an influence on the church policy of the particular churches in Europe, America, Australia and some countries in Asia and Africa.

One of Iannone's future tasks is likely to be to make the process for appointing new diocesan bishops more participatory. In the final document of the Synod on Synodality, the Synodal Assembly called for "the people of God to have a greater voice in the election of bishops"(No. 70). A study group set up by Pope Francis under the leadership of Bishop Emeritus Felix Genn of Münster is currently working on this topic. However, the participation of the people of God in the selection of bishops is not the only topic of this study group. A subgroup entitled"The bishop - judge and father" is looking at the judicial role of the bishop - particularly in dealing with cases of abuse - and how this role can be reconciled with that of the "father". The coordinator of this subgroup is the new Bishop Prefect, Archbishop Filippo Iannone.

In principle, these legal matters are likely to suit the canonist. Iannone is considered to be one of the architects of the tightening of the Motu Proprio "Vos estis lux mundi", which was introduced in 2023 and contains regulations for dealing with cases of abuse in the Church.

The 67-year-old new bishop prefect should therefore have no shortage of tasks. In Germany too: in addition to the bishop's see in Eichstätt, Münster, the diocese with the largest number of members in Germany, is currently also vacant. Incidentally, Iannone has a history with the Church in Germany. Back when he was still President of the Pontifical Council for Legislative Texts, he prepared an expert opinion with canonical concerns about the synodal path. In 2019, the expert opinion was attached to a letter from the then Prefect of Bishops, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, to the then President of the German Bishops' Conference (DBK), Cardinal Reinhard Marx.

Synodality "not synonymous with democracy"

At the time, it was about the statutes of the Church's reform project in Germany. The tenor: Equal rights for laypeople and bishops could not stand up under canon law when it came to voting. "How can a bishops' conference allow itself to be dominated by an assembly, most of whose members are not bishops?" asked Iannone. The drafting of resolutions could therefore be a synodal task, but the decision was "a responsibility of the ministry". Synodality in the Church is "not synonymous with democracy or majority decisions", said the canonist.

Iannone also took part in the later meetings of DBK and Curia representatives. Most recently, he also had to deal with statutes from Germany: A draft statute for the synodal body at federal level also landed on his desk. He reportedly played a constructive role in the negotiations - another parallel with Pope Leo XIV.