On the second day of the council's Dec. 3-5 meeting, Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, the spokesman, said the cardinals planned to discuss the work of each congregation and, hopefully, each pontifical council. They had begun, he said, with the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments.
Father Lombardi had told reporters Dec. 3, "They have to start somewhere," but declined to provide more information about why the congregation responsible for liturgy was the first to be examined. Spanish media have reported that Cardinal Antonio Canizares Llovera, congregation prefect, will conclude his five-year appointment Dec. 9 and could be named the next archbishop of Madrid.
The Vatican spokesman continued to insist journalists and other observers should not expect changes to the curia to be announced quickly because Pope Francis and the Council of Cardinals were committed to a complete overhaul of Vatican structures "in light of the expectations expressed by the College of Cardinals before the conclave" that elected Pope Francis in March.