On 3 July, Pope Leo XIV appointed Fr. Russell McDougall, C.S.C., a consultor of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity. The dicastery is charged with“the promotion, within the Catholic Church, of an authentic ecumenical spirit” as well as contributing “to Christian unity by strengthening relationships with other Churches and Ecclesial Communities.”

Fr. Russ recently began work in Washington, D.C., as the Executive Director of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs. Before taking the job with the USCCB, he had served as Superior of the Holy Cross community at King’s College, where, as a campus minister and member of the faculty, he worked to expand the institution’s ecumenical and interfaith efforts. Prior to that, he was Rector of the University of Notre Dame’s Tantur Ecumenical Institute in Jerusalem.

“Fr. McDougall’s unflinching commitment to inter-faith and ecumenical dialogue has been one of his hallmarks as a student and guest preacher in Italy, as the Rector of the Tantur Ecumenical Institute in Jerusalem, and now as the Executive Director of the Secretariat of Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs at the U.S. Catholic Bishops Conference,” said Br. Paul Bednarczyk, C.S.C., Superior General of the Congregation of Holy Cross.

“I am beyond pleased that the Holy Father has recognized his experience in and broad knowledge of ecumenism by appointing him as a consultant to the Dicastery for Promoting Christan Unity,” continued Br. Bednarczyk. “This is an honor for both him and the Congregation of Holy Cross. I am confident that he will serve the Church well with his wisdom.”