Father Robert F. Buongirno of Saint John the Evangelist Church in Uncasville said he was moved when Pope Francis asked the crowd at St. Peter’s Square for their blessing and then bowed to receive it.
“That goes with what I have heard about him; as a Jesuit, with humility and simplicity,” Buongirno said. He is the parish administrator for the Divine Mercy Community of Saint John the Evangelist Church, in Uncasville, Our Lady of the Lakes Church in Oakdale and Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church in Quaker Hill.
Argentine Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, a Jesuit, was elected Pope in Vatican City today.
When asked about the direction of the church now with a conservative Latin American cardinal as Holy Father to the world’s 1.2 billion Catholics, Buongirno didn’t hesitate.
“I think we don’t the exact course yet, but I’m sure it’s going to be an exciting time. He just may pick up where John Paul II left off with the new evangelism. He may lead priests (to use) shoe leather to evangelize,” he said.
As it happens, there is a mass tonight, Wednesday March 13 at 7 p.m. at Saint John on 22 Maple Ave., part of a three-day parish mission. He said he’s sure this will be the big topic of conversation following the mass. And, Buongirno said, he was looking forward to saying Pope Francis I out loud for the first time during the mass.
“It’s always exciting to have a new Pope,” he said.
