“Praedicate Evangelium ” – “announce the Gospel” – is the name of the Apostolic Constitution signed by Pope Francis and published on March 19, 2022. This text, which reforms the organization of the Roman Curia, the central administration of the Church, will replace the previous constitution, Pastor Bonus, published by John Paul II in 1988.
It will come into effect on June 5, the day of Pentecost.
Development of the document has been underway for a number of years, and it has been a main focus of Pope Francis' Council of Cardinals, referred to in the beginning as the C9 in reference to the number of cardinal advisors on the panel.
Vatican News reported:
The new Constitution calls for a path of reform that has already been almost entirely implemented over the past nine years, through the mergers and adjustments that have taken place and have led to the creation of new dicasteries.
Among the most significant developments is the unification into the Dicastery for Evangelization of the former Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples and the Pontifical Council for the New Evangelization. The two heads of these offices both become pro-prefects, because the prefecture of this new department is reserved to the Pope. In fact, the Constitution reads: "The Dicastery for Evangelization is presided over directly by the Roman Pontiff."
The document establishes the Dicastery for the Service of Charity, represented by the Office of Papal Charities.
The document will be officially presented on Monday.
