The Synod of the Armenian Catholic Church met in Rome on September 20, to elect a new Patriarch. After Patriarch Bedros XX Ghabroyan died in May, the Synod met in Lebanon, but after two weeks could not reach agreement. The canon law of the Eastern Catholic churches stipulates that in such cases the Pope should be consulted, and Pope Francis summoned the Synod members to gather in Rome, for sessions at the Pontifical Armenian College, under the direction of Cardinal Leonardo Sandri, the prefect of the Congregation for the Eastern Churches.