text: In September 2015, the Vatican announced that the World Meeting of Families (WMOF) would be held in Phoenix Park in Dublin, Ireland, in 2018. In August 2016, Francis appointed Farrell as head of the Dicastery for the Laity, Family and Life. As a result, Farrell took charge of the 2018 WMOF. Farrell said that Francis' visit to Ireland would be "inspirational" and "counter negativity" towards the Irish church. On August 18, 2018, former Irish President Mary McAleese, a critic of the WMOF, said that meeting organizers had not invited her or her family to any of the WMOF events, saying:
  On August 16, 2018, Cardinal Sean O'Malley,  scheduled to lead a "pioneering session on child safeguarding", withdrew from the WMOF. On August 18, Cardinal Donald Wuerl, due to address the conference, also pulled out. Although organizers claimed to have sold over 500,000 tickets to WMOF, the Office of Public Works in Ireland confirmed that the attendance was only 152,000.
  Views
  Women and LGBTQ people
  In February 2018, Farrell banned McAleese, a supporter of women's ordination and same-sex marriage, from speaking at a Vatican conference on Women in the Catholic Church. McAleese sought an explanation for her exclusion from Francis through a canon law process, but received no response.
  On March 18, 2021, Farrell defended a ban by Francis on the blessing of same-sex unions by priests. Farrell stated that a priestly blessing was a sacramental action related to marriage, which could only be between a man and a woman.
  Gun control
  Farrell is a supporter of gun control initiatives and opposes "deference to the gun lobby" by the United States Congress.