The Congregation of Bishops and Regulars (Latin: Congregatio episcoporum et regularium) was a department of the Roman Curia that, beginning in the late 16th century, managed the diocesan bishops and those individuals, both male and female, and establishments associated with religious orders.
Its competence changed over time as the various dicasteries of the Roman Curia competed for jurisdiction, and by the 19th century included new institutions and their rules, the erection of monasteries and convents, granting transfers and leaves from such institutions, and their sale of property.
[2] Pope Gregory XIII established a dicastery to address the issues raised by bishops in 1576 and his successor Pope Sixtus V erected a parallel structure for regulars in 1586.
In 1593 Pope Clement VIII gave the two curial departments a common prefect.
[3] Pope Pius X suppressed the Congregation of Bishops and Regulars on 29 June 1908 by the apostolic constitution Sapienti consilio, which accomplished an overall reorganization of the Curia, modifying its structure and the competencies of its congregations, tribunals, and lesser offices.