“Gratitude to Fr. Federico Lombardi” and “best wishes” to Gregory Burke and Paloma García Ovejero. Monsignor Dario Edoardo Viganò, Prefect of the Secretariat for Communications (SPC), has “welcomed” with these feelings the news of the appointment of the new heads of the Holy See Press Office. Indeed, Pope Francis has appointed Mr Burke as new director and Ms Ovejero as deputy director today. “My first thought of gratitude – Mgr. Viganò said – goes to Fr. Lombardi who has done an excellent job as director of the press office in the past ten years. We all know that it has not been easy, but Fr. Lombardi has never given up. On the contrary… As he loves to say: he has been a great servant and supporter of communicators, that they may do their job well. He has always been there, showing his great love for the Church every day”. Now – the prefect went on to say – “two laypersons have been appointed, one man and one woman, two professionals called to a great task. I wish them all the best. There are two striking things about their appointment. First, they are two laypersons. It reminds us of what Pope Francis wrote in his letter to Cardinal Marc Ouellet, President of the Commission for Latin America: ‘Laypeople are a part of the Holy Faithful People of God and therefore are protagonists of the Church and the world; we are called to serve them, not them to serve us’. And the second thing: their provenance. Mr Burke and Ms Ovejero come from two different contexts. And this is extremely important for the internationalization of the press office. It is the breath of the catholicity opening up to its true global dimension”. Furthermore, Mgr. Viganò concluded, “Mr Burke has extensive experience, having served as a communications advisor to the Secretariat of State since July 2012 and as deputy director of the Holy See Press Office for the past few months. Ms Ovejero is the first woman to hold this position. Sure, as the Pope says, she will make a great contribution with her feminine sensitivity”.