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Msgr Ruiz appointed Secretary of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity
The Argentine priest, who has served as Secretary of the Dicastery for Communication since 2015, was appointed by the Pope on Monday as Secretary of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity, commonly known as the Apostolic Almonry. He will take up the post on 1 September 2026.
By Salvatore Cernuzio
Pope Leo XIV has appointed Father Lucio Ruiz, until now Secretary of the Dicastery for Communication, as Secretary of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity, the body responsible for the Pope’s charitable initiatives and humanitarian projects.
The appointment, announced on 30 June, comes amid a series of recent changes within the Roman Curia. The Dicastery for Communication and the Dicastery for the Service of Charity have both recently received new leaders: Montserrat Alvarado was appointed Prefect of the former on 2 June and will take office in November, while Spanish Augustinian Bishop Luis Marín de San Martín has headed the Apostolic Almonry since March.
Experience in Latin America and Rome
Beginning on 1 September, Father Ruiz will serve alongside Bishop Marín de San Martín. He has been involved in the work of the Dicastery for Communication since its establishment, when it was still known as the Secretariat for Communication. Pope Francis appointed him Secretary on 27 June 2015, following many years of experience in communications and media, particularly in Latin America, where he served as adviser to the Latin American Church’s Information Network and as president of the Our Lady of Guadalupe Training and Development Centre for Latin America.
In Rome, he teaches at the Faculty of Communication of the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross and is a visiting lecturer at the Pontifical Gregorian University. He also contributed to the organisation of the Jubilee of the World of Communication in January 2025 and the Jubilee of Digital Missionaries and Catholic Influencers the following July.
A new mission
Addressing employees of the Dicastery for Communication shortly after the announcement, Father Ruiz said he was “happy to follow the Lord wherever He calls us.” He expressed gratitude for the years spent working together and asked forgiveness for any difficulties encountered, particularly during the early stages of building the Dicastery.
He also spoke of the sense of responsibility and attachment he feels towards “a project that has been built and launched,” adding that such a bond “never passes away.”
New Under-Secretary
The Pope also appointed Massimo Ralli, currently an official of the Dicastery for the Service of Charity, as Under-Secretary of the same Dicastery. He too will assume his new role on 1 September.
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