Glen Cove Priest 'Excited' New Pope Chosen

When the news broke Wednesday afternoon, Father Elias Carr of St. Rocco's Church Googled the new Pope, Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio.

"His whole profile as the new Pope was on Wikipedia within a minute. It was amazing," Carr said with a laugh.

He said the pick is exciting because the Church once again has a Holy Father, but also for the firsts it represents.

"We have our first Francis, our first Jesuit, our first Latin American," said Carr. "I'm sure there's going to be a great sense of excitement over this Pope from that part of the world, which was evangelized over 500 years ago."

With Glen Cove home to the North Shore's largest Spanish Mass, Carr said he is excited to see what congregants' reactions will be.

St. Patrick's Church has a weekly attendance of more than 800 people, according to Carr. 

For Marcela Vargas, the bulletin editor at St. Patrick's and a native of Peru, the pontiff's choice of the name of St. Francis of Assisi is significant.

"I think he will care for the poor. He will care for them in politics, in the economy, but most of all in religion," Vargas said.

Vargas said she was proud to have the new Pope hail from Latin America, but her personal preference would have been from her current home.

"I would have been happier if it was Cardinal Dolan," she said.

The election of Bergoglio came on the second day of the Conclave, the centuries-old tradition of balloting used by 115 College of Cardinals to elect a successor to the Throne of St Peter. The final ballot was the fifth one, and white smoke appeared over the famed Sistine Chapel at 7:05 p.m. (CET in Rome) or 2:05 p.m. in New York.

That role known as the Vicar of Christ became vacant last month when Pope Benedict XVI stepped down, citing his age and infirmity.

According to Catholic tradition, the newly appointed Bishop of Rome is the 266th successor of St. Peter and leader of the worldwide Catholic Church of 1.2 billion Catholics.

The Diocese of Rockville Centre issued a statement, saying Bishop William Murphy joins" the universal Church in rejoicing in the selection of Francis I as Pope. We give thanks to God for the gift of Pope Francis I, the 266th successor of Saint Peter, the Vicar of Christ on earth.  

"We join the Church in prayer for our new Holy Father as he begins his new ministry," the statement said.

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