Bishop Fernando Rifan to Remain in Office Until 2027
Monsignor Rifan recalled his meetings with Leo XIV in the autumn.
On 15 November 2025, he was received in private audience by Leo XIV, to whom he presented his resignation and the situation of the Apostolic Administration.
Leo XIV asked whether Bishop Rifan also celebrates the Novus Ordo. “I told him that in our churches we celebrate the ancient rite, but that when invited I concelebrate with our diocesan bishop, Bishop Roberto Paz, using the current rite, and likewise when I or our priests, when invited, celebrate Mass in the churches of the dioceses, we celebrate the Mass in the current form.”
Bishop Rifan on Leo XIV’s reaction: “He showed himself satisfied.”
On 17 November, Monsignor Rifan was received at the Dicastery for Bishops. There, he confirmed that his Apostolic Administration also sings hymns commonly used in the churches of Brazil, which was met with “satisfaction.”
The bishop believes that the continuity of the Old Rite Apostolic Administration is a settled matter. “That is not even questioned,” he was told at the Dicastery.
On 19 November, Bishop Rifan was present at the General Audience. Leo XIV told him that his tenure would be extended, in order to better weigh matters and to prepare for an alleged future succession.
On 25 November, Monsignor Rifan again went to the Dicastery for Bishops, where he was informed that his governance would be extended by one year and eight months, until around the feast of Saints Peter and Paul in 2027.
The exact date was given later, on 3 December, in a letter from the Apostolic Nunciature. According to this letter, Leo XIV accepted the resignation but asked Bishop Rifan to remain at the head of the Apostolic Administration for a further eighteen months from the date of his 75th birthday, that is, until April 2027.
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