New Pope Chosen: Murrieta Parishioners Explain Significance

As is customary, a special series of bells rang out at St. Martha Catholic Church in Murrieta as the new pope was announced Wednesday.

Just before newly-elected Pope Francis appeared on the central balcony of St. Peter's Basilica thousands of miles away in Vatican City, Vatican, Patch stopped by the local parish to get their thoughts on the significance of the papal selection.

Pope Francis, formerly Argentinian Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, is the 266th Pontiff and will lead the world's 1.2 billion Catholics.

"He is the most important part of our church and we're very excited about it," said Mary Jane Norris, a member of St. Martha Catholic Church in Murrieta.

"It is our faith. We were brought up that way and we believe very strongly in having a leader that holds the church together," Norris said, about the importance of the news.

Though Norris and her husband, Larry, who retired to Murrieta and live in The Colony, have never been to the Vatican near Rome, they said it has been a lifelong dream of theirs.

About the retirement of Benedict XVI, which prompted the election of a new pope, Norris said it was understandable.

"It was very sad but certainly understanding, you could very well see he was very frail. The church needs someone very strong. He will still be of great benefit to the church even though he's not the pope."

Though a priest sex abuse scandal has rocked the church for several years, Norris, who is among 7,000 who attend weekend masses at the Murrieta church, said: "The terrible things that have gone on with our church have nothing to do with our religion, those are bad people."

Rev. Jack D. Barker, who has led the Murrieta parish for nearly a decade, said the selection of a new pope "was a very happy moment."

"But he is going to have his hands full," Barker said. "This is the 21st century and we—not only Catholics but everybody—there are issues we have to deal with in our world. And there is a little cleaning up to do. We have to get past, for instance, the sex abuse scandal. People have been hurt...there's some pain there."

Barker explained the significance of the pope to the religion.

"The pope for a modern-day Catholic is the person who is in the office of Peter, who was among the apostles—head amongst equals. So it is a source of unity and a source of the assurance that our faith is that which Jesus taught," Barker said. "It's that sense of continuity of history. Which is very, very important for Catholics."

Additionally, Barker said, "If you think of it in the sense of family, it's the papa, the head of the family. Not in an arbitrary way but as any good, earthly loving father would do, take care of the family."