Vatican City - "A special greeting to the Church of Rome! Together, we must seek how to be a missionary Church, a Church that builds bridges, fosters dialogue, and is always open to welcoming everyone, like this square, with arms wide open to all who need our charity, our presence, our dialogue, and our love." From the loggia of St. Peter's Basilica on the evening of his election, Leo XIV immediately set a clear direction: his relationship with the Diocese of Rome would not be a mere formality but a genuine episcopal bond, marked by deliberate choices, priorities, and actions. In the days that followed, this declaration quickly translated into concrete acts. On 12 May, just days after his election, the Pope met with his Vicar for the Diocese of Rome, Cardinal Baldassare Reina. He then personally ordained "his" priests - the presbyters of the Diocese of Rome - a gesture of profound ecclesial and symbolic significance, as it brought priestly ordinations back to St. Peter's Basilica under the direct presidency of the Pope, something that had not occurred for years.
In June 2025, he met with the priests of the Diocese of Rome. He chose to celebrate the Dedication of the Lateran Basilica with his particular Church and presided over the pontifical liturgy at St. John Lateran. He also revisited the motu proprio issued by Pope Francis, which had abolished the central sector of the diocese, effectively reversing it and restoring the previous structure. This sequence of actions was consistent and unambiguous: Leo XIV decided to exercise the office of Bishop of Rome through concrete deeds, not slogans. The Pope expressed his intention to live out this fatherhood and closeness with full awareness, even telling Cardinal Vicar Baldassare Reina that he wished to personally carry out the pastoral visit that Reina had begun during Pope Francis's pontificate. This decision highlighted the absurdity of the previous arrangement, where the general vicar conducted the pastoral visit in place of the bishop. During Pope Francis's pontificate, the relationship between the Church of Rome and its bishop had become, quite simply, unbearable. In any other diocese, such a dynamic would have triggered a flood of letters to Rome, requests for intervention, and demands for the bishop's removal. Here, for obvious reasons, this was unfeasible: the Bishop of Rome was the Pope himself. Yet, it all began with a speech from the loggia that the press exaggerated in a cloying and blatantly artificial manner: "The diocesan community of Rome has its Bishop: thank you! And now, let us begin this journey: Bishop and people. This journey of the Church of Rome, which presides in charity over all the Churches. A journey of brotherhood, love, and trust among us." Empty words, followed over the years by reforms and baseless accusations against the Roman clergy, devoid of any real pastoral utility.
Pope Francis's disdain for his diocesan Church reached such a level that he appointed a general vicar from Agrigento: a seminary rector whom Sicilian priests had long criticised as incompetent, ambitious, and self-serving - a careerist. For the leadership of the Roman seminary, he chose a similarly flawed profile: another careerist, equally incompetent, but from the opposite end of Italy, Milan. This rector consistently argued that priests should not study but instead "be out on the streets." The consequences of ordaining priests under Di Tolve without theological competence have been evident in recent years, but the cost is borne by diocesan bishops and the priests themselves, not by those causing damage in other dioceses. Di Tolve gained Pope Francis's favour through the Pope's cousin, as the Pontiff himself recounted during an audience with the parish of Rho, where Di Tolve brought his parishioners to meet the Pope without informing his archbishop. Following a pattern that became common under Pope Francis, the promotion came with a "complete package," as Di Tolve was also made a bishop. For the first time, the Diocese of Rome found itself with a seminary rector elevated to the episcopate, who, in recent years, has independently evaluated seminarians and conferred ministries.
The diocese of Rome: years of turmoil
In December 2022, Silere non possum exposed the scandalous case of Marko Ivan Rupnik, revealing that there were well-documented accusations against him, but no trial was initiated because Pope Francis had vetoed it. While any ordinary priest accused of the same offences would have been laicised without even a trial, Rupnik remained untouched. The investigation also uncovered a critical fact: Rupnik had already incurred excommunication for absolving an accomplice in a sin against the sixth commandment, a sanction personally lifted by the Pope. These revelations caused upheaval within the Episcopal Council of Rome, then led by Cardinal Angelo De Donatis. Among its members was Daniele Libanori, one of Rupnik's harshest critics, while the Vicar of His Holiness was a "disciple" of Rupnik. The inevitable result was escalating tension within the Episcopal Council, leading to open conflict.
Moreover, Silere non possum continued to uncover internal dynamics within the Vicariate of Rome, publishing exclusive documents that highlighted a lack of transparency attributed to Renato Tarantelli and Vicar Baldassare Reina. This second investigation prompted Pope Francis to systematically remove all auxiliary bishops not considered "close to Renato Tarantelli." It was Tarantelli himself who went to Santa Marta, claiming to be the victim of a conspiracy, leading to the dismissal of all members of the Episcopal Council - except for himself, of course. With the auxiliary bishops removed, the Pope argued that the Diocese of Rome was the only one with such a high number of bishops. He announced a shift towards appointing simple presbyters as episcopal vicars. This was implemented: the sectors were entrusted to diocesan priests. Today, only Fr. Concetto Occhipinti for the East sector, Fr. Stefano Sparapani for the North sector, and Fr. Alessandro Zenobbi for coordinating pastoral activities in the West sector remain. For the South sector, Tarantelli was appointed, while Cardinal Vicar Reina was chosen as auxiliary bishop for the West sector.
The diocese breathes again
Leo XIV has chosen to restore normalcy to this critical aspect of governing the Diocese of Rome. The Pope has appointed four presbyters from the diocese as new auxiliary bishops, ending the era of an Episcopal Council reduced to three members: two not even from Rome and a third ordained as a presbyter only a few years ago and as a bishop even more recently - a figure many priests hope will be reassigned to a remote diocese far from the capital. The Pope's choices fell on four well-regarded names within the clergy, deeply rooted in the real life of the Roman Church, with tangible experience and internal knowledge of the diocesan structure. He promoted Stefano Sparapani, already vicar for the North sector, and selected Andrea Carlevale, Alessandro Zenobbi, already episcopal vicar for coordinating pastoral activities in the West sector, and Marco Valenti.
Fr. Concetto Occhipinti remains one of the very few rectors of the Major Roman Seminary who, after completing his term, was not automatically elevated to the episcopate. Even today, that possibility has been ruled out.
Who are the new auxiliary bishops of the diocese of Rome?
Fr. Andrea Carlevale, of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome. Born in Rome in 1971, he was ordained a presbyter on 3 May 1998 in St. Peter's Basilica. He has been the parish priest of St. John the Baptist de Rossi since 1 September 2025.
Fr. Stefano Sparapani, of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome. Born in Rome in 1956, he was ordained a presbyter on 4 October 1991. He is currently Episcopal Vicar for the North Sector since 1 January 2025, spiritual father of the Almo Collegio Capranica since 1 January 2015, parish priest of St. Basil since 1 September 2010, and Prefect of the XI Prefecture since 6 November 2024.
Fr. Marco Valenti, of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome. Born in Cantalupo Sabino (RI) in 1961, he was ordained a presbyter on 26 April 1986 in St. John Lateran. He is a member of the Interdiocesan Institute for Clergy Support for the dioceses of Rome and Ostia since 1 January 2026, parish priest of the Transfiguration of Our Lord Jesus Christ since 1 September 2024, and a member of the Caritas Rome Foundation board since 5 October 2022.
Fr. Alessandro Zenobbi, of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome. Born in Rome in 1969, he was ordained a presbyter on 28 April 1996 in St. Peter's Basilica. He was appointed by Pope Francis as Episcopal Vicar for coordinating pastoral activities in the West sector of the Diocese of Rome on 1 November 2024. He has been the parish priest of St. Lucia since 1 September 2017, Prefect of the XXXII Prefecture since 6 November 2024, and an ex officio member of the Presbyteral Council since 6 November 2024.
Pope Leo XIV has assigned the titular see of Bisenzio to priest Stefano Sparapani; the titular see of Biccari to priest Alessandro Zenobbi; the titular see of Atella to priest Andrea Carlevale; and the titular see of Arpi to priest Marco Valenti.
Now, the Holy Father only needs to confirm the various requests already submitted to two different Dicasteries regarding Michele Di Tolve and Renato Tarantelli, ensuring they can offer their "most precious ministry" in dioceses far from the Urbe.
Fr.L.P.
Silere non possum