‘Great anticipation with a tinge of worry’ in Philly as papal conclave nears

Over cardinals will gather in Rome on Wednesday afternoon in a secret conclave to choose the new Pope That person will replace Pope Francis who died a sparse weeks ago from a stroke and heart failure Historically Francis had a more progressive stance on immigration and chosen LGBTQIA issues than his predecessors The bulk notably he expanded the acceptance of same sex couples and allowed priests to bless them under certain circumstances His passing and the looming selection of his successor are leaving countless Catholic residents of Philly and specific LGBTQIA advocates with a mix of emotions and hopes The death of Pope Francis was a shock disclosed Libby Kercher a member of Dignity Philadelphia a local chapter of a national organization focusing on LGBTQ rights within the Catholic Church I woke up at a m to p m messages on my phone and I was like what happened she commented And it was friends and family letting me know that he passed and at first I was shocked completely because of timing It was Easter Monday and he was out in residents the day before He did mass and he spoke with the vice president of the U S JD Vance It wasn t something that was expected it was really shocking Kercher commented Dignity Philadelphia has given her a space to re-explore her faith journey This allowed her to express her identity while still practicing her faith As I ve been able to get out of my hometown and become more independent in college I was looking to explore my faith a little bit more she disclosed And I discovered Dignity which has been an amazing group and an amazing fund for speaking with other people And they ve really helped me with my journey with faith and coming back to a church that has previously been pretty hostile Despite her positive experience locally she declared the Pope s death leaves a sense of fear and uncertainty within her society She disclosed she hopes the next Pope will focus on moving forward My hope is and I think a lot of people s hope is that the next Pope can pick up where Francis has left us and continue to solidify and push chosen more tangible reforms she declared Because I don t think that everything that Francis intended to get done or that he might have liked to get done was able to get through within the institution of the Catholic Church I hope that whatever Pope follows does not either push us back or leave us at this kind of stagnant place where we are right now Kate Carroll is the president of the board of directors for Dignity Philadelphia She disclosed Francis stances on LGBTQ issues made a large number of Dignity members feel connected to him So multiple individuals have been touched by the death of Pope Francis they explained He was a leader of this huge institution of the Catholic Church globally But he also thanks to his actions and thanks to his appearances it felt like even those of us who hadn t had the opportunity to meet him had somewhat of a personal connection to him While Francis did not fully embrace all LGBTQ rights and issues Carroll stated she worked to move forward The greater part famously soon after his ascension to the role in he was demanded in response to a question If a person is gay and seeks God and has good will who am I to judge Another element of his individual and evolving nature is his willingness to listen his willingness to meet with people and his willingness to welcome in everyone regardless of who they are or where they come from she commented In terms of the transition Carroll stated she has observed her fellow Dignity Philadelphia members having a mix of emotions I think of module everyone has their own personal thoughts feelings hopes concerns but generally I think the feeling amongst members of Dignity Philadelphia is great anticipation with a tinge of worry they revealed She stated there are various worries that come with the transition to a new Pope Carroll explained there are a lot of techniques the next appointed leader can decide to move forward I think there s a real decision to be made there about what the institutional church wants to be and who they want to include she commented Is it gonna be a church for all people Is it gonna be a church for young people Is it going to be a church for people of different backgrounds Is it going to be a tolerant and accepting diverse church Or will our communities separate from that church have to continue There are cardinals expected to vote in the conclave process starting on Wednesday afternoon According to Reuters several cardinals say they re unsure who the next Pope will be and that there aren t concrete frontrunners While a few cardinals are expected to vote to uphold the Pope s welcoming and transparent Church views others are looking for someone who will push more traditional roots The post Great anticipation with a tinge of worry in Philly as papal conclave nears appeared first on Billy Penn at WHYY