MERIDEN, CT (05-08-2025) – The Chapel of St. John at the Franciscan Sisters’ motherhouse saw an immediate change as the white smoke emerged from the Sistine Chapel at the Vatican, signifying a new pope had been elected. Brother Leo Maneri, Franciscan Brother of the Eucharist (pictured on ladder), and Land Care Assistant Frank Critelli, with the help of Sister Monica Navalta, FSE were at the ready to change the bunting over the main entrance of the chapel from the black mourning cloth to a yellow and white papal drape. The black cloth, in honor of Pope Francis who died April 21, adorned the door during the period of mourning until a new Pope was elected, a tradition held by churches throughout the world.
The Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist, the Franciscan Brothers of the Eucharist, lay associates and friends walked joyfully through the decorated chapel door to pray for Pope Leo XIV at today’s Mass offered for the Holy Father by Reverend Eric Zuniga, parochial vicar of St. Paul VI Parish in Hamden, Connecticut.