Process of selecting a new Pope

HARTFORD, Conn. (WTNH) -- Cardinals at the Vatican held their first vote to elect a new pope but there's no winner just yet. The Archbishop of the Hartford Diocese spoke exclusively about the election process and what this means for Catholics around the world.

The Archbishop says it is an immense challenge and honor to lead Catholics and the world in general towards a goal of global harmony.

It is a pivotal moment in the Catholic Church as billions of the faithful await what many believe is an ethereal choice for leadership. 

"There's goodness in every single person, and the challenge is to really excite that," said Reverend Mansell.

A choice the Most Reverend Archbishop Henry Mansell has joyfully experienced before.

"I think they want to see a Holy Father of who is clearly an apostle of love and an apostle of God," said Reverend Mansell.

An apostle who can continue to move the church forward in the turbulent 21st Century. In the past decade, the church and its leadership has been besieged with bad press. Dr. Benjamin Peters is a professor of theology at the University of Saint Joseph.

"This isn't just a group of people in some secret way electing one of their buddies, but this is something the spirit is moving these men and hopefully will elect someone who's gifts and talents are needed in this moment in history in the Catholic Church," said Dr. Peters.

The job is clearly daunting, honoring and abiding by centuries of Catholic tradition while at the same time sending a message of being progressive.

"There is a real yearning for something that is not there in the modern world," said Dr. Peters.

"Whatever the religious background, to excite the goodness that brings people together, and makes us a cohesive human race," said Reverend Mansell.