THE Catholic community in Surrey has reacted with optimism and excitement to the election of Pope Francis I – the first ever pope from Latin America.
The 76-year-old, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, was not considered a front runner to succeed outgoing Pope Benedict XVI ,who announced his retirement last month.
But on Wednesday last week March 13 the Papal Conclave elected the Argentine after five rounds of voting.
Father Chris Spain, priest at St Joseph's Church in Redhill, believes the new Pope's nationality could give the church a more approachable face.
He said: "It's good to have a Vatican outsider; he will help to unify the church throughout the world, unify the Vatican and enable the church to be seen as a positive force for action and prayer. The fact that he asked the people for their prayers before leading them is a good sign of his humility; it shows the desire for a mutual relationship, rather than an authoritative one.
"When compared to his predecessor, I believe Pope Francis will have better approachability and communication skills with the ordinary man."
Father John Olliver, of All Saints Church in Oxted agreed, hoping the change could widen bring a more universal appeal to the Vatican's appeal.
"Being the first Latin American Pope, he's going to lead the church in a new direction," he said.
"One of poverty and humility, making him a huge inspiration for African Catholics.
"He will act as a shepherd, a good example for those of us who are trying to be shepherds in our own communities."
During his time as Archbishop of Buenos Aires, Francis doubled the number of priests in the surrounding slums. And, during his papacy, many expect him to focus more on the religion's poorer followers than his predecessor did.
Father Ian Vane, priest of the Church of the English Martyrs in Horley,said: "He will have a concern to give voice to the poor.
"Given his simple, public acts of devotion on his first day in office and his prayerfulness, I think the Holy Spirit has really worked here."
Father Michael Masterson, priest at the Catholic church of Our Lady and St Peter, in Leatherhead, hopes that the Argentinian will revitalise the Catholic church, both in developed and developing countries.
He said: "Catholicism is universal and membership has shifted dramatically with some 40 per cent of Catholics now living in South America so it's good that they are being represented.
"The people in South America are much more vibrant and full of energy.
"Europe, on the other hand, is too materialistic. Faith here is compartmentalised when it's meant to spontaneous"
He added: "I hope the new pope will make the church more spiritual, evangelical and not let it be misrepresented by the media."
Father Tony Whale, priest at St Michael's Catholic Church, in Ashtead, said he hoped the new pope will evangelise other countries.
He said: "It's good to break away from the Italian/Europe connection.
"There are more Catholics in Latin America than anywhere else in the world so it's good the papacy has gone to Argentina.
"The last pope, Benedict XVI, consolidated the work of John Paul II, which puts Pope Francis in a position to move the Catholic church forward – especially at a time when the developing world is coming to the fore.
He continued: "It's too early to tell if he's going to make an impact upon Christian-Muslim relations, but I would hope that he does.
"He will have to deal with the reform of the Roman Curia and the question of secularisation – Christianity is not as dominant in Europe as it used to be."
He added: "He will have his own agenda for the poor. I'm not sure of his stance on China and India, the church is shining through there and it would be interesting to see how he deals with that"
