Bishop Solis celebrates Mass of Thanksgiving for the election of Pope Leo XIV

IC photo/Marie Mischel

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Bishop Oscar A. Solis presides at the May 19 Mass of Thanksgiving for the election of Pope Leo XIV.

SALT LAKE CITY — Members of the Salt Lake Interfaith Roundtable joined Catholic laity in the Cathedral of the Madeleine on May 19 as Bishop Oscar A. Solis gave thanks and praise to God for “blessing us with a new bishop of Rome, and the Vicar of Christ on Earth,” Pope Leo XIV, who was elected on May 8.

Rabbi Alan Bachman, a member of the House of Prayer for All Peoples and the Interfaith Roundtable, was among those attending. “It’s great to have a pope that was born in the United States,” he said. “I grew up in a very Catholic community in Rochester, New York. I have a lot of friends, and half my classmates were Catholic, and I went to Gonzaga University. I think it’s great, and we wish him the best, and we’re here to pray for him and for peace for everybody.”

“Exciting” was a word often used by others at the Mass to describe Pope Leo’s election.

“I think somebody with some connection in the United States, but also Latin America is a really exciting, interesting prospect going forward,” said Eric Milliken, who had two children participating in the Mass as Madeleine Choir School students.

“I love our new pope,” said Jill Heath, a St. Mary of the Assumption parishioner. “I was really excited. I was in Medjugorje at a Marian apparition, actually, when it was announced ... that there was white smoke. So I won’t ever forget where I was when it was announced. So feeling very blessed, and the pope is exactly who we need, and we all just need to love him and support him.”

“Right now I am enthralled,” said Carla Odle, who attends St John the Baptist Parish. “I am hopeful. Everything that I’ve seen, heard, read, has been an inspiration to me, so I’m pretty happy.”

Landon Quintana, a St. Vincent de Paul parishioner, said he was “a big fan of Pope Francis” and was “very, very devastated when he passed away, but I’m very excited for Pope Leo XIV.”

Jaime Rodriguez and his wife, who had never before been in the cathedral, attended the Mass to give thanks to God for the election of Pope Leo XIV.

Rodriguez, a parishioner at Saints Peter and Paul in West Valley City, said he hopes “our new pope will keep living the legacy of Pope Francis, caring for all and treating all as children of God.”

Marissa Layvette, a parishioner of St. Andrew in Riverton, said she felt compelled to be at the Mass “to say thank you to God for giving us a pope so quickly. I have been reading a lot about him and I am really happy that he is our pope.”

Concelebrants of the Mass were Father John Evans, vicar general; Father Langes Silva, judicial vicar; Father Kenneth Vialpando, vicar for clergy; Father Martin Diaz, the cathedral rector; Msgr. Colin Bircumshaw, vicar general emeritus; and several other priests of the diocese. Deacon Guillermo Mendez proclaimed the Gospel. Deacon John Kranz was master of ceremonies. The Knights of Columbus provided an honor guard.

The Mass of Thanksgiving originally was scheduled for May 12, but that event was canceled because of a power outage.

Bishop Solis thanked the ministers of other faith communities who attended the Mass, not only for their presence in the cathedral that day but also for the prayers they sent on the death of Pope Francis and then again on the election of Pope Leo XIV.

“What a beautiful manifestation of our unity and solidary as a community,” he said, speaking in English and Spanish during his homily.

“We gather together with the lay people of this diocese in joy and gratitude to celebrate a milestone in our Catholic Church: the election of Cardinal Robert Prevost, the 267th Supreme Pontiff,” Bishop Solis said, and gave a brief biography of the new pope.

Pope Leo XIV “is a humble person who came from the bleachers of a Chicago baseball stadium to the Chair of [Saint] Peter in Rome,” the bishop said, adding that God chose the new pope as a shepherd to lead the almost 1.4 billion Catholics in the world “and help guide us in these challenging times. He echoes the beautiful legacy of Pope Francis to be a beacon of hope and renewal for our universal Church as well as to build bridges among peoples. He emphasizes the importance of building bridges, reaching out to the marginalized, and embodying the mercy of Christ to the poor and the oppressed. He reminds us that the Church is the source of spiritual nourishment, an instrument of peace, but also a catalyst for social justice.”

Bishop Solis also asked all those present at the Mass to pray for Pope Leo XIV, and “to work together tirelessly for the sanctity of life and the dignity of every human person, to be the voice for the voiceless, and to stand in solidarity for those who suffer.”