EXCLUSIVE: New Details Emerge on Pope Leo XIV’s June Consistory of Cardinals
Cardinals to meet June 26–27, according to a new letter from the Dean of the Sacred College
ROME, 13 April 2026 — New details have emerged regarding the extraordinary consistory of cardinals that Pope Leo XIV plans to convene in June.
In a letter dated April 13, which is being sent to the cardinals today, Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, Dean of the Sacred College, informs cardinals that that the meetings will be held on the morning and afternoon of Friday and Saturday, June 26–27, beginning at 9:00 a.m. This is one day earlier than previously anticipated and allows for two full days of sessions without extending into Sunday.
On Sunday, June 28, Pope Leo XIV will preside at the “concelebration” of the Holy Mass with the cardinals, while—as previously announced—on Monday, June 29, the Holy Mass and Blessing of the Sacred Pallium for the new Metropolitan Archbishops will be celebrated to mark the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul.
The schedule leaves open the possibility that Pope Leo XIV could create new cardinals on June 28, although no such plans have yet been announced.
Cardinal Re added that further details will be communicated as they become available.
According to the Code of Canon Law, extraordinary consistories are special gatherings of all cardinals, convened by the pope to discuss “particular needs of the Church” or serious issues requiring broad consultation among the world’s cardinals. Pope Leo XIV convened the first extraordinary consistory of his pontificate on January 7–8, 2026, after cardinals at this year’s Conclave complained of a lack of meetings and collegiality under Pope Francis.
The extraordinary consistory of February 20–21, 2014, convened by Pope Francis, brought together the full College of Cardinals to reflect on the family and to lay theological groundwork for the Synods on the Family held in 2014 and 2015. The meeting became especially notable for a controversial address by Walter Kasper, whose “Kasper Proposal” suggested a possible pastoral path for some divorced and civilly remarried Catholics to receive Holy Communion, prompting significant debate and criticism from other cardinals while also shaping subsequent synodal discussions and influencing the 2016 exhortation Amoris Laetitia. It was also distinctive as the last extraordinary consistory under Francis in which cardinals were allowed to speak freely on any topic, whereas later gatherings in 2015 and 2022 restricted interventions to specific themes.
Here below is the letter from Cardinal Re.
My dream: "Cdls. Sarah and Zen! You're to help the SSPX with their sacramental needs while negotiations continue!" (I've also thought +Schneider and +Strickland would be good for this, but Cardinals can't be as easily overruled by the Bishop of a place.)
Thank you, Diane. I sense the Holy Father will again punt the football on restoring sacredness and beauty to the Holy Mass.
Sad that we suffer in the liturgical chaos of the parish trenches and Rome turns a blind eye.