Area Priests React to Naming of New Pope

Local priests expressed hope of a "new era," as well as "shock" at the naming of Argentinian cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio as the new Pope.

Father Joseph F. Rymdeika, of St. Catherine of Siena Church in Horsham, called the new pontiff, who he said is of "half Argentinian" descent a "wonderful choice," in part because of his humility. 

"He took the public bus," Rymdeika said of the new Pope. "He didn’t have all the privileges."

Last month, when Pope Benedict XVI announced his resignation, Rymdeika noted that there had been "a lot of speculation" about someone from Latin America assuming the post. And, on Wednesday, following Bergoglio's selection, Rymdeika was not disappointed. 

Rymdeika said he was "60 percent sure" the new Pope would be somebody from the southern hemisphere. 

Bergoglio, the son of an Italian railway worker, becomes the first Jesuit and first Latin American pontiff. He has taken the name Francis I. Rymdeika said his selection of the name Francis denotes his humility and says a lot about what's in store for the nation's 1.2 billion Roman Catholics.

"He’s trying to say, in other words, it’s a new era," Rymdeika said. "He’s one who can bring everybody together ... advancing the whole purpose for the curch and of the church."

At St. John Bosco Parish, which is located in Warminster, on the outskirts of Hatboro, Father Gary Kramer, minutes after the Pope announcement Wednesday, said "everybody was shocked when his name was given."

"His name was not really talked about," Kramer said.

Like Rymdeika, Kramer too agreed that Pope Francis is a "very humble man."

"He cooks his own meals," Kramer said. "He just asked the blessing from the people to give the blessing to him."

As far as what his selection means for the Catholic Church, Kramer said only that, "time will tell."

Philadelphia Archbishop Charles J. Chaput called Pope Francis "a man from the new heartland of the global Church."

"He is a wonderful choice; a pastor God sends not just to the Church but to every person of good will who honestly yearns for justice, peace and human dignity in our time," Chaput said in a statement. "May God grant him courage and joy, and sustain him with his divine presence."