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Co-founder and senior advisor to The Lay Centre, Donna Orsuto was appointed by Pope Francis as member of the Dicastery for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments. The Holy See announced the nomination on January 11. Previously, Prof. Orsuto had been serving as consultor to the same Dicastery.

Originally from Ashtabula, Ohio, she has lived in Rome for nearly five decades. She is director of the Department of Moral Theology and Spiritual Theology at Rome’s Pontifical Gregorian University where she has been teaching since 1990. She served as director of The Lay Centre since its foundation, in 1986, until September 2024. She is now senior advisor and a member of its board of directors.

Members of the dicasteries of the Roman Curia are involved in a variety of administrative, pastoral, and doctrinal responsibilities, mostly in advisory role. They usually have a five-year term and help Vatican offices to implement the Pope’s vision for the universal Church by carrying out functions related to their own fields of expertise.

Read more about the appointments announced on January 11, 2025.