The word from New York?

John L. Allen Jr., the highly regarded Vatican correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, is moving to the Big Apple in July.

John, who announced the move today in his widely circulated weekly e-mail, The Word from Rome, plans to write more about the Catholic church in the U.S. and worldwide, and will retain the title of Rome correspondent, travelling to the Vatican as needed. He is moving, he says, for a better vantage point on the global church, and to more easily accept the many speaking invitations he receives.

John is an astonishingly prolific author and articulate commentator whose combination of knowledge and insight about a secretive institution -- the Vatican -- has made him much in demand on the speaking circuit and in the media. He is also a master of timing; his most recent book, "Opus Dei,'' takes a look at the controversial Catholic organization on the eve of the release of the film version of "The Da Vinci Code;" his book "Conclave" proved essential reading for those interested in what happened after the death of John Paul II; and the Vatican official he chose to write a biography about, Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, wound up getting elected pope.