San Jose State students throw 'pope reveal party' and record their reactions to Leo XIV announcement

SAN JOSE, Calif. (KGO) -- Excitement was in the air as college students at San Jose State University recorded their reactions when the new pope was announced to the world.

Students at the Catholic Newman Center, which is located near campus, started Thursday with a Pope reveal party and ended with evening mass.

Brisea Solis and so many other students we spoke with were just happy they witnessed a historic moment.

"Definitely a lot of shock. I know a lot of people at the center were saying it would never be an American pope, and when it came out on TV that he was American, I think we all felt a huge sense of pride for our country," Solis said.

Biero Miranda grew up in Lima, Peru and another small town.

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"Like, the first message I see is from my mom and my aunts saying, like, 'Hey the Pope is Peruvian,'" Miranda said.

Miranda is glad Pope Leo XIV has that lived experience from his home country. He hopes he brings with him wisdom and humility.

"You don't know if you're not going to make it to the end of the week, not even the month. Like, that's a whole different level of poverty that sometimes people cannot understand here, so I'm just very happy that he has that perspective coming from Peru," Miranda said.

Students at the Newman Center are grateful for a space where they can share their college journeys and faith journeys together.

Alex Silva will be graduating in three weeks. He plans to do Catholic missionary work for the next couple of years.

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"This year, the jubilee year, it's a special year, which means it's all about hope. And so, being able to experience this especially with the community of other young adults, it's something that's very rare," Silva said.

"Just a lot of hope that he'll bring a lot of young Catholics back to Catholicism and show them, like, why we're here," Solis said.

Solis said capturing the announcement of the first American pope is a moment they will look back on forever.

"It's a lot of fun to witness -- watch that moment on repeat and see how much joy we got out of it," Solis said.

All students, regardless of religion, are welcome to the Newman Center.