BRAINTREE -- Archbishop Richard G. Henning said he was "surprised" but not "shocked" to see the election of the first American-born pope.

Speaking to reporters outside the Archdiocese of Boston's Pastoral Center on May 8, less than an hour after Pope Leo XIV was introduced to the world on the balcony of St. Peter's Basilica, Archbishop Henning said the election of the new pontiff was a happy occasion.

"I give thanks along with Catholics around the world for this gift to the church and to each and every one of us," he said.

He estimated that between 60 and 80 Archdiocese of Boston employees watched coverage of the conclave at the Pastoral Center in Braintree.

"It's been a dramatic few days with a lot of hopes and a lot of prayers," he said. "Certainly, a dramatic couple of weeks, with the loss of Francis, (and) what comes next. So, it's nice now to have that answer and, in some sense, a bit of a surprise."

Asked if Pope Francis is "a tough pope to follow," the archbishop agreed.

"Even on a parish level, when you're a new pastor, if you're following a beloved pastor, you have a lot to live up to, right?" he said.

But, he said Pope Leo's "remarks made it clear that he honors and reveres Pope Francis and Pope Francis's style of ministry. So that's a beautiful thing."

He called Pope Leo's first address to the world "a beautiful appeal to us all to seek that peace that comes with Christ and to live that peace with one another and compassion." He also pointed out that the new pope's address spoke of synodality, humility, and caring for the poor, all hallmarks of Pope Francis's ministry.

"I think that's a clear statement from him that this is not a 180-degree change, that there will be continuity there," Archbishop Henning said.

The archbishop has never met Pope Leo XIV, so he, like most of the Catholic faithful, will be learning about him as time goes on.

"For Catholics, this is always a big moment," he said. "It's sort of the first introduction. Now we have to get to know him."

Pope Leo XIV, a member of the Augustinian Order, was made a cardinal by Pope Francis in 2023, the same year he was made Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops and President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America. He spent much of his ministry as a missionary in Peru and was bishop of Chiclayo in that country from 2015 to 2023.

The archbishop said that missionary experience was reflected in Pope Leo's decision to deliver part of his introductory remarks in Spanish, which he described as a "nice gesture."

"I think this is a man of the church," the archbishop said. "He certainly has served in the universal church."

He added that now, as pope, he will serve in an even deeper way.

A pope "has all the authority in the world, but can't walk down the street," the archbishop said, "In other words, his life is not his own. Everyone else will tell him what he's going to do today and where he's going and how he's going to dress and where he's going to live."

He said that Catholics hope for a pope who prays, loves the Gospel, loves Jesus, and wants to evangelize.

"Anything else is just the cherry on top," he said. "Those are the basics; those are the fundamentals. I think we have that in our new Holy Father, and I'll be eager to see what other kinds of gifts he'll bring from his own personality and experience."

The archbishop said the people of the Archdiocese of Boston "will, as we did for Pope Francis, pray for the Holy Father. We'll support him, most importantly, by living our Catholic faith. He is the one who holds us together across countries and cultures and languages, but that's our job in the church here in Boston."



Reporting by Gregory L. Tracy contributed to this story.