Longview — At Mass services across East Texas on Wednesday evening, joyful Catholics prayed for the new pope in English and Spanish — clearly delighted by the selection of the first pontiff from the Western Hemisphere.

The masses included a prayer that God “look with favor on Francis, our pope.”

“It’s wonderful” said the Rev. Joseph Bruce Lincon, pastor of St. Anthony’s Catholic Church, praising the choice of Jorge Mario Bergoglio, a cardinal from Argentina as the new leader of the Catholic Church.

The cardinal from Argentina was clearly a choice applauded by Longview Catholics, many of whom have ties to Latin America.

Read more at www.news-journal.com