Xavier Novell’s wife is Sílvia Caballol, a Spanish psychologist and author. The former bishop of Solsona married her in a civil ceremony in 2021. The couple later announced a Catholic church marriage in 2024, following permission granted through Pope Francis.
Who Is Sílvia Caballol?
Caballol is known for her background in psychology and her work as a novelist. Her writing became the focus of intense coverage when her relationship with Novell became public.
Some headlines concentrated on the adult themes of her novels. That description explains part of the media reaction, but it does not provide a complete account of her life or the marriage.
She has also spoken publicly about family and her religious perspective. Her statements have offered a more direct account than commentary built only around the subjects of her books.
The relationship attracted particular attention because Novell had been a serving Catholic bishop. Their marriage therefore became both a personal story and a matter involving his status within the Church.
Novell’s Resignation
Novell resigned as bishop of Solsona in August 2021. News of his relationship with Caballol followed during the same period.
His departure from diocesan leadership was separate from the later civil wedding. The events occurred in sequence, rather than being one single announcement.
The distinction matters because resignation from a leadership position does not automatically resolve every question about a cleric’s religious obligations.
That was why Church statements continued after the marriage. The public story included his former office, his personal decision to marry and the canonical consequences that followed.
The Civil Wedding
The couple contracted a civil marriage in November 2021. Reports placed the ceremony on November 22.
A civil wedding establishes a marriage under the relevant civil arrangements. In Novell’s case, it did not at that point mean the Church had recognised a Catholic wedding.
Coverage from ACI Prensa and other outlets described the event shortly after it occurred. The marriage came only a few months after his resignation from Solsona.
Readers sometimes encounter both 2021 and 2024 in summaries of the couple’s wedding. These dates refer to different stages: first the civil ceremony, then the later religious marriage.
The Church Response
Following the civil ceremony, Church authorities explained that Novell was prohibited from exercising priestly and episcopal functions.
The restriction concerned ministry and pastoral authority. It should not be described loosely as though the marriage simply transferred him into another Church leadership position.
Statements at the time referred to the consequences of a cleric attempting marriage. The later developments involved a separate process to address the couple’s canonical position.
For a straightforward family profile, the essential point is that Novell’s married life followed his departure from active diocesan leadership. His previous title should not suggest he continues serving as the bishop responsible for Solsona.
Their Twin Daughters
Caballol gave birth to twin daughters fathered by Novell in April 2022. The children were born after the couple’s civil marriage.
Reporting also identifies children from Caballol’s previous relationship. Accounts of the household should therefore distinguish her older children from the twins she shares with Novell.
The daughters’ arrival was a significant family milestone, but detailed information about their private lives is not necessary to explain the marriage.
The established timeline is enough: resignation in 2021, a civil wedding later that year and the birth of twins the following spring. These events help make sense of the subsequent religious ceremony.
Coverage of the religious wedding described Caballol as a mother of five, including three older children from her previous marriage. The twins are the two children she shares with Novell.
The 2024 Ceremony
In April 2024, Caballol publicly disclosed that they had married in the Church. She attributed the possibility to Pope Francis granting Novell laicisation and the necessary permission.
Her announcement described a lengthy process that allowed them to regularise their situation. It was presented as the fulfilment of their wish to marry religiously.
The announcement also explained why they were sharing the news rather than keeping the ceremony private. Caballol wanted to acknowledge a development that mattered to their family and faith.
La Vanguardia and Catholic news outlets reported the ceremony, making 2024 the latest clearly documented major wedding development in the sources reviewed.
Understanding the Timeline
The church wedding did not identify a new wife. Sílvia Caballol was the partner in both the 2021 civil ceremony and the 2024 religious marriage.
Similarly, the later ceremony should not be described as the point when the couple first became parents. Their twins had already been born two years earlier.
No verified newer marriage change was established in the reporting reviewed for this profile. The 2024 announcement remains relevant background, but should not be relabelled as an event that happened in 2026.
The clear answer is that Caballol is Novell’s wife, a psychologist and writer whose relationship with him developed through a civil marriage, parenthood and a later Catholic wedding.
