(LifeSiteNews) — Pope Leo XIV will hold the first extraordinary consistory of cardinals of his pontificate in January, per a Friday report.

From January 7-8, 2026, all cardinals will convene in Rome for an extraordinary consistory, a special meeting to discuss key issues facing the Church, according to a National Catholic Register (NCR) report that, as of this writing, has not yet been confirmed by the Holy See.

“Holy Father Leo XIV has in mind to convene an Extraordinary Consistory for the days of January 7 and 8, 2026,” a brief reportedly sent to the cardinals said. “In due course, the Dean of the College of Cardinals will send to Your Eminence the relevant letter with further details.”

BREAKING: Pope Leo plans to hold extraordinary consistory of cardinals in January. pic.twitter.com/EHgssYIqew

— Sign of the Cross (@CatholicSOTC) November 7, 2025

Leo’s predecessor, Pope Francis, held only two consistories over his entire 12-year pontificate. The first in 2014 was convened to discuss the family ahead of the Synod on the Family, which would be held later that year. During that consistory, Cardinal Walter Kasper delivered his infamous address in which he suggested that there should be a pathway for divorced and “remarried” Catholics to receive the sacraments in certain cases.

READ: Silence in the face of error: Pope Leo meets with Fr. James Martin

Several conservative cardinals, such as Cardinal Gerhard Müller, then-prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, quickly denounced Kasper’s address, emphasizing that Communion for the divorced and “remarried” is impossible and would undermine the institution of marriage.

“The dogma of the Church is not just any theory made by some theologians, but it is the doctrine of the Church, nothing less than the word of Jesus Christ, which is very clear. I can not change the doctrine of the Church,” the German prelate said.

Nonetheless, Kasper’s address is said to have laid the groundwork for Francis’ 2016 apostolic exhortation Amoris Laetitia, in which the late pontiff implied that divorced and civilly “remarried” Catholics may be able to receive Holy Communion in certain cases.

READ: Open letter urges Pope Leo XIV to correct ‘scandalous incoherence’ in Amoris Laetitia

Francis did not hold another extraordinary consistory until 2022, which only focused on reforms to the Roman Curia and the governance of the Church.

Pope Benedict XVI did not hold a single extraordinary consistory during his eight-year pontificate, while Pope John Paul II convened six consistories during his nearly three-decade pontificate.