Australian bishop to lead Vatican legal department

Pope Leo has named Bishop Anthony Randazzo as the prefect of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts.

Pope Leo XIV appointed the Australian Bishop of Broken Bay Wednesday as head of the Vatican department charged with authoritatively interpreting canon law.

Archbishop Anthony Randazzo. Credit: Screenshot from @bbcatholic YouTube channel.

The pope named Bishop Anthony Randazzo as the prefect of the Dicastery for Legislative Texts March 25, the feast of the Annunciation. Randazzo succeeds the Italian Archbishop Filippo Iannone, who was appointed as the prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops in September 2025.

The Dicastery for Legislative Texts deals with sensitive questions about the correct understanding of Church law, and has the power to authoritatively interpret canon law in response to questions from dioceses and religious orders around the world.

The dicastery is also responsible for proposing ways to overcome legal gaps and consults with other Vatican dicasteries to ensure that any new documents are in harmony with canon law. It also reviews and approves decrees issued by bishops’ conferences and Eastern Catholic bishops.

Randazzo is the first Australian to lead a Vatican department since 2017, when Cardinal George Pell took leave from his post as prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy to fight abuse charges in his homeland, ultimately clearing his name in 2020. Pell’s term as prefect expired in 2019 and he died in Rome in 2023.

Randazzo, who was promoted to the rank of archbishop with his new appointment, is 59, making him one of the youngest heads of a Vatican department. He could potentially serve under Pope Leo for the next 15 years.

The Australian prelate gained previous Vatican experience when he worked in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith for five years, from 2004 to 2009.

In addition to leading the Broken Bay diocese from 2019, Randazzo has overseen the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross since 2023. His transfer to Rome means Pope Leo will likely appoint a new apostolic administrator of the Australian body for groups of former Anglicans or a new ordinary, who could be a bishop.

Australian bishops’ conference president Archbishop Timothy Costelloe highlighted Randazzo’s “formation and long experience in canon law,” describing it as “a profound gift to the Church.”

“His expertise and guidance in the area of canon law has been invaluable in the work of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference,” he commented.

“He understands canon law as a tool to be exercised in the service of the Gospel and the pastoral good of the Church.”

Anthony Randazzo was born in Sydney, New South Wales, on Oct. 7, 1966, to Colin Randazzo and Caterina Di Losa. His mother was originally from the southern Italian island of Lipari. Randazzo was the third of their four children and the only boy.

His parents worked as fruit sellers in the Bankstown suburb of Sydney before moving to the Gold Coast, in the state of Queensland, in 1967. He studied at the Pius XII Provincial Seminary and the University of Queensland before his ordination as a priest of the Brisbane archdiocese on Nov. 29, 1991. He earned canon law qualifications at Rome’s Pontifical Gregorian University.

Following his service as an official of the Vatican’s doctrinal office, Randazzo worked as rector of Holy Spirit Seminary, Queensland.

In 2016, he was named an auxiliary bishop of the Sydney archdiocese. He chose Fiat Voluntas Tua (“Thy Will be Done”) as his motto and was entrusted with the role of episcopal vicar for formation.

As bishop of Broken Bay from 2019, he was responsible for the spiritual welfare of more than 200,000 Catholics in New South Wales.

Randazzo served as a member of the canonical committee of Australia’s landmark Plenary Council, which ended in 2022. The 10 decrees approved by participants were submitted to the Vatican for review. Their approval still appears to be pending in Rome almost four years later.

In a 2020 interview with Catholic Youth Broken Bay, Randazzo said that his favorite color is blue, Philippians is his preferred biblical book, St. Paul his best-loved saint, and that the best piece of advice he has ever received was from an old priest on his deathbed, who told him: “Pray while you can.”

Randazzo was briefly stranded in Dubai at the beginning of March this year, when the Iran war prompted the closure of the local airport as he was travelling from Australia to Rome.

As a result, he was unable to attend in person a meeting of the leaders of personal ordinariates with officials at the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith. He also missed a March 2 meeting between ordinariate leaders and Leo XIV. But he was able to meet with the pope separately March 6, after catching a flight from the Middle East.

Commenting on his appointment, Randazzo said: “I’m profoundly grateful to Pope Leo for the confidence and trust he has placed in me.”

“During my time as bishop of the Diocese of Broken Bay, the clergy and faithful have been a true joy in my episcopal ministry. I remain forever grateful to God, who entrusted me with the care of His flock.”

“I will remain in Broken Bay for the next three months as apostolic administrator before moving to Rome to begin my new role.”

“Please pray for me as I undertake this new challenge and please be assured of my prayers for you.”