In a decree published by the Vatican press office on Wednesday, Pope Leo XIV reinstated the pastoral area of the Roman city centre that was dissolved by Francis around a year ago.
This includes, above all, the historic city centre with its unique concentration of churches, monasteries and other ecclesiastical institutions.
For reasons of church politics and symbolism, Francis had dissolved the centre area, where most of the Roman clergy are based, and assigned it to the four outlying districts of the city.
Leo sees it differently
In the letter, which only contains a few sentences, the Pope explains that the reasons given by his predecessor for his territorial reform remain valid.
However, it had become clear during the current Holy Year that the urban centre of Rome was a homogeneous unit.
He therefore ordered that the city centre should once again be a separate district of the diocese. This brings the number of pastoral areas back up to five: one in the centre and four outlying districts.
The dismantling of the centre of the diocese of Rome ordered by Pope Francis on 4 October 2024 with the Motu Proprio "La vera bellezza" (True Beauty) was met with fierce criticism from the clergy at the time and was only implemented reluctantly and half-heartedly.
At the time, Francis had explained that he wanted to link the Roman centre, which was in danger of becoming a living museum, more closely with the outskirts of the city. This is where most people live in the metropolis of three million; however, there are relatively few pastors and churches to be found there.
The new letter from Leo XIV is entitled "Immota manet" (unchanged). It is dated 11 November 2025 and also has the status of a motu proprio - a motu proprio is a decree issued by the Pope based on his personal initiative. This distinguishes it from other forms of papal legislation that are issued following a request.
The name is derived from the Latin phrase "motu proprio datae" ("issued on his own initiative").
These words always appear at the beginning of the document and express the Pope's special sympathy.