The Bishop of Lausanne, Geneva and Fribourg explained this according to the French-speaking Swiss portal "cath.ch".
According to Morerod, he had been assured in Rome that he could even appoint the lay people appointed to head the diocesan regions as "vicars".
However, he had not done so because "the explanation would have been too complicated".
At a press conference, Morerod reported that during an ad limina visit to Rome, he had learnt from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith that a press campaign had been launched in Italian and English-language media against the appointment of lay people.
The dicastery then asked the responsible nunciatures to deny false rumours about Morerod's work.
"It needs time"
In 2020, Morerod began placing lay people at the head of the diocesan regions, which were previously headed by priests (episcopal vicars). This reform was not met with approval everywhere. According to "cath.ch", there is talk in social media debates of a "replacement" of priests and "dangerous desacralisation".
However, the bishop noted that the new lay leaders met with broad approval: "There are no obvious innovations, and it always takes time for people to get used to them."
In Rome, too, women are often appointed to leadership positions.
"So we are not in a completely new situation, but in a general movement within the Church," explained Morerod.
Morerod said that French dioceses had also appointed women to leadership positions. So he is not swimming against the tide of history.
For him, the balance of his reforms after five years is positive.
For example, the bishop is continuing his efforts to promote the laity with the appointment of the new representative of the bishop for the French-speaking region of Fribourg, Aurelia Dénervaud-Pellizzari, and her deputy, the theologian Philippe Becquart.