APPLETON, Wis. (WBAY) – Students at Xavier Middle School in Appleton witnessed their first conclave on Thursday.
Many of the kids, who had never known a pope before Pope Francis, said that the experience was unforgettable.
“They made the announcement, and everyone from all grades just came in and watched,” said Noah Teeters.
Students and teachers throughout Xavier Middle School came together to celebrate a new leader of the Catholic Church, as the students met a new pope for the first time in their lives.
The entire student body cheered and celebrated as the decision came down from the Vatican.
“I’ve never seen my classmates so excited about anything ever, so it was really cool to see how everyone was jumping up and down and screaming,” said Rose Gagnon.
Those students also learned about the new pope’s ties not only to the United States, but also to the Midwest.
“He’s from Chicago, and that’s really close to Wisconsin, so it’s really nice to have a pope that understands the culture,” said Josie Noack.
This conclave also offered a unique opportunity for educators at Xavier Middle School to teach their students about the process of selecting a new pope as it happened.
“We kind of reenacted a conclave, and it’s really hard to get a 2/3rds vote, even in a class of 24 students, so they definitely learned that. I’ve had it live-streamed on my TV and my kids kept watching the birds landing by the chimney, so I actually had to turn it off today to get their attention, and that’s when the white smoke happened,” said Mary Benthein, an 8th-grade theology teacher at Xavier Middle School.
Students and teachers alike said they were grateful they could share this moment with each other.
“I think it shows how we’re all one church, and catholic with a small ‘c’ actually means universal, and I think this conclave truly showed how that is true,” said Ryan Judd.
“Kids were screaming, I was screaming, there was yelling up and down the hallway, so it was just a really awesome experience to have them all here and experience history firsthand,” said Benthein.
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