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“I’m very excited to have a pope from the United States. He sounds like he’s just perfect,” said Margaret Fouts, a member of St. Ann Catholic Church in Santee.

Fouts hopes the pope helps keep Catholics together and encourages people to return to the church.

“I think he’s going to help the world,” she said.

American Cardinal Robert Prevost was elected pope on Thursday. He’s taken the name Leo XIV.

Sandy Rolland, also of St. Ann, was impressed.

“I wish him well. He loves the Virgin Mary and he said the Hail Mary so everybody could say it around the world,” she said. “It means a lot. It brought me to tears.”

She’s glad he’s an American, “because this is history. There’s never been an American pope before.”

Rolland says a pope like Leo XIV is needed now.

“I just wish for peace in the whole world,” she said.

Paul Dashnaw of St. Ann is also glad the cardinals selected someone from the U.S.

“I’m excited. I’m ecstatic,” he said.

“I just hope he’s very conservative,” Dashnaw said. “I want to keep everything the way it is.”

He doesn’t see the need for many changes in the church.

Jackie Skubal is also glad the new pope is an American and thinks it’s important that he also speaks Spanish. She’s a member of Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Orangeburg.

Skubal is also glad Pope Leo XIV comes from the Order of St. Augustine because “it means he follows in that way. That’s a good thing. It’s a good order.”

“I’m very happy he’s selected. I just hope he guides the church in the right direction,” she said.

Holy Trinity member Martin Roache said, “I have a really good feeling about him.”

“I think we should be proud to have the first American pope,” he said. And Roache’s wife reminded him the new pope is from Chicago, like her.

“I think we all need to be prayerful that he can make a difference in the world,” Roache said. With ongoing war and uncertainty, “I’m hopeful and prayerful he will balance out the scales on the good side.”

Deni Quay of Holy Trinity said, “I’m glad we have a new pope.”

“I’m pleased and proud an American has become pope,” she said. “I’m grateful we have a pope and very proud he’s an American.”

Holy Trinity member Warren Dent says it isn’t important to him that the pope is originally from America.

“It’s important to me that he delivers 100 percent on what Jesus Christ wants for the church,” Dent said.

“I pray he finds the best way to spread the Catholic Church’s beliefs and God’s word without playing pattycake with people who oppose the actual beliefs of the church,” he said.