Beloved by many as both a great religious leader and a compassionate human being, the late pope’s legacy lives on in the minds and hearts of many Catholics, influencing their expectations of his successor.

“Now we pray that … we will get someone who’s half the man that he was,” says John DeWyze, junior in English. “I do think that he was one of the greatest men of our time and one of the best popes.”

Several Catholic ISU students were unable to think of any personal criticisms of John Paul II — their expectations and hopes for the next papacy are characterized by constant references to his work. Most say they simply want the next pope to follow in the footsteps of the previous one.

Nicole Pfab, senior in dietetics, said she believes the last pope focused on the right amount of areas for improvement or change.

“He did enough good that I don’t know if more changes would have been positive,” she says, explaining that it is necessary that major change in the church be slow and carefully calculated in order to preserve the rich tradition that is so important to the Catholic faith.

Pfab said she wants the next pope to be open to the changes that society needs, though she admits she does not necessarily know what changes would be most beneficial.

“I think the tradition and the Bible do form the foundation of the church and do, of course, need to be maintained,” says Tim Malone, junior in Spanish, adding that other, more minor things can be improved or changed.

Some anti-Catholic sentiments have arisen recently, Malone says, and he hopes the new pope will respond to this with improved education about the Catholic faith.

“I feel that there is an acute need for that in the United States,” he says.

Malone also says he would like to see the next pope continue with and increase efforts in the area of youth involvement, especially with regard to promoting events such as World Youth Day.

“I’d like to see that the church continues to retains its rich spiritual tradition, but also draws from the cultural particularities of other people that we’re trying to reach out to,” says Hillary Holmes, senior in chemical engineering.

Holmes says missionary attempts should be a primary focus of the new papacy, using cultural knowledge as an aid.

Sarah Campbell, sophomore in industrial engineering, says she would like to see the next pope continue with the international focus that John Paul II had and to work especially with developing nations. Campbell hopes the pope will help people in these countries to be empowered by and grow in their faith.

Christy Yuska, senior in marketing, notes some people had disagreements with the last pope because of his criticisms of American society. While she does not necessarily disagree with his comments, she says she hopes the next pope will attempt to improve relations with the American public and encourage people to stay with the church.

Holmes says she would like the next pope to deal with controversial issues that have been brought before the church lately.

Lee Schelonka, sophomore in aerospace engineering, says that he also thinks there should be more discussion and explanation of some controversial issues, such as the sexual abuse scandals, the idea of female priests and the use of contraceptives such as condoms that do not cause abortion.