Local seminarians react to selection of new Pope
Some local Catholic seminarians are weighing in on the selection of the new Pope. They tell YNN's Kevin Jolly a new leader from outside Europe maybe what the church needs to more forward.
To view our videos, you need to
enable JavaScript. Learn how.
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.
Then come back here and refresh the page.
EAST AURORA, N.Y. — Here at Christ the King Seminary in East Aurora, the selection of the new Pope is probably the biggest event in the Catholic Church.
“I would compare it to probably the Kentucky Derby; that we really don't know who's going to become Pope, but everyone has their favorites and everyone's hoping that they are going to win," said Robert Owczarczak, seminarian.
"It's so much more to me like a presidential election but much more so because it's guided by the Holy Spirit," said Deacon John Stanton.
Wednesday, white smoke rose above the Sistine Chapel, signifying the selection of a Cardinal Bergoglio of Argentina as the new Pope.
These Seminarians say they're not surprised the new Pope is a non-European. The latest numbers show about 70 percent of the world's Roman Catholics are in developing countries.
"Where is the church? The church is just not in Europe and it's not just America but really giving credit to where the people of God are and a lot of them are currently right now getting into their Catholic faith and expanding and evangelizing in the Southern Hemisphere," said Cole Webster.
"That's obviously the direction the church needs to go and we hope that that enthusiasm that is so contagious in the Southern Hemisphere right now would infect our European our Western Culture because we certainly need the revitalization, that evangelization," said Bryan Zielenieski.
With all the challenges facing the Catholic Church, these future priests believe selection of Cardinal Bergoglio may be exactly what the church needs to move forward.
"It's important for the next Pope to remember to focus on the here and now and leading the church in the present and leading it into the future. If we keep looking back into the past of the papacy of John Paul II, or we look at what Benedict XVI, has done then we're not moving forward," said Michael Lamarca.