(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Catholic Conference executive director Tom Chapman says his first reaction to the death of Pope Francis was sadness. “Also not too surprised in that he’s had a lot of health challenges recently,” Chapman said, “so my feeling is I’m glad he didn’t have to spend his last days in the hospital, but I’m sorry to see him go.” Chapman says the pope sent a signal of his priorities when he was elected in 2013 by the College of Cardinals and took the name Francis.

“Francis as in Francis of Assisi and so when you hear that name as a Catholic, you think about peace and efforts for peace and you think about the poor and care for vulnerable people and care for creation,” Chapman says “…That’s what we saw from him from the start to the finish.” Chapman does not expect the archbishop of Iowa or the state’s three Catholic bishops to be at the Vatican for the pope’s funeral. The next time the state’s bishops are scheduled to be together is May 1st, at the installation ceremony for John Keehner, the Bishop-elect of the Sioux City Diocese.

“A lot of other bishops will be there from the Midwest and around the country as well,” Chapman says. “We assume that’s going to be going forward as scheduled.” Bishop-elect Keehner’s installation may happen as the College of Cardinals begins meeting in Rome to select a new pope. About 84-thousand Catholics live in the 24 counties that make up the Sioux City Diocese.

Chapman estimates there are about half a million Catholics in Iowa — about 15 percent of the state’s total population.