Father James Misko spoke of prayer and hope Monday as Catholics mourned Pope Francis, who died just a day after greeting a crowd on Easter.
“Our hearts are heavy, but filled with hope and filled with gratitude for all that Pope Francis has given to the church and all that we have learned from him,” Misko said at a rosary and mass at St. Mary’s Cathedral in downtown Austin.
The pope's death means a delay in naming a bishop for the Diocese of Austin, which has been without a leader since Bishop Joe S. Vasquez was named Archbishop of Galveston-Houston earlier this year. A diocese is a collection of churches in a region that is run by a bishop.
Misko was appointed diocesan administrator in March. The diocesan administrator has many of the same responsibilities of a bishop, but with limitations around long-term financial decisions, ordaining of priests and deacons, and the appointment of pastors. The role is only until the next pope can appoint a new bishop.
Misko asked that parishioners pray as senior officials within the Catholic Church select a new pope.
“He probably doesn't know he is going to be the pope, but he is somewhere," he said. "On top of that, he is going to select our new bishop. So we should be praying for Pope Francis and for the man who is to be the next pope.”
He said a new pope likely won’t be selected for a few weeks.
Dozens of parishioners gathered across Austin and downtown to honor the pope. Leonard and Barbara DiBella, who were visiting their son for Easter, said they felt called to celebrate.
"We would've come to mass anyway, but it's particularly special with the loss [of] the pope today to pray for him," Leonard DiBella said. "It was a beautiful service and we are so grateful to have joined today."
Pope Francis was one of the most popular popes in decades, speaking out about issues including immigration, same-sex marriage and war. He often took the side of the marginalized and vulnerable.
“His commitment to social justice and a deep care for the poor and those on the peripheries of society will remain among his many legacies,” Misko said in a written statement.
Francis was born Jorge Mario Bergoglio in 1936 in Buenos Aires, the son of Italian immigrants. He was elected pope on March 13, 2013, after Pope Benedict XVI resigned. He was the first non-European head of the Roman Catholic Church in more than 1,000 years.
