In an article on the extraordinary consistory of cardinals in January, Vatican journalist Diane Montagna explored the unexplained shift from the expected traditional format—in which each cardinal can speak freely to the whole group at some length—to the “conversation in the Spirit” format, in which cardinals sat at 20 separate tables.
“What is not widely known is that Pope Leo XIV’s first extraordinary consistory was initially planned to follow the classical format,” Montagna reported. “But it was later reconfigured under somewhat mysterious circumstances, with no official explanation as to why the format changed, who was involved in the decision, or who ultimately organized the meeting.”