Comment from Understand the Times:
Luis Palau's endorsement of the new pope will typify a long list of undiscerning so-called evangelicals that are eager to join hands with Rome. After the papal conclave of 2005 in which Pope Benedict XVI was elected, international evangelist Luis Palau joked to Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio that he wished the cardinal would have won so that Palau could honestly say, "The pope is my friend!" But as of Wednesday this week, when white smoke was finally sighted in the Vatican, such a statement turned suddenly accurate.

RELEVANT: Many people will be watching to see how Pope Francis navigates the relationship between Catholics and evangelicals. Do you have any thoughts on this?

Palau: He's out to make an incredible turn-around, to be a bridge-builder. He's worked on it from the very beginning of his position as Cardinal of all Argentina. He worked on it when he became the Archbishop of Buenos Aires, the capital, which has 13 million people. And he has publicly worked with evangelical Christians.

For instance, there were some laws in the Argentine Congress for Senate going for votes, and he led the way in some of those bills contrary to the politicians on education. And he called up the evangelical leaders and said, "Look, I can lead the way on this one if you back me up." Then when there was another social issue of major proportions, again in the Argentine Congress and Senate, the evangelicals said, "Well, you lead the way, Bishop, and we'll back you." And he said, "No, no. On this one, you lead the way and I'll back you." And he did.

RELEVANT: So he's been very intentional about building relationships with other evangelical leaders?

He's met with many evangelical Christian leaders from the early days of his leadership. He's made a point of it. Not boasting of it, but simply and quietly. I just got a note this morning from the Anglican Bishop of Argentina, who's a strong leader, very evangelical. And he said the same thing I do: that they get together for breakfast, that they pray and talk about the state of the world, of the church and secularism.

His bridge-building is about fighting together for moral causes based in Scripture. We know there are differences between Christianity and the Roman Catholic theology, but those can be handled when there are gentle attitudes between us.

"One of the things I found very moving about the    call of the new Pope this week, has been my sense of deep gratitude for his social conscience," Doctor Mark Labberton, the new president of a leading Protestant school, Fullerton Theological Seminary, told EWTN News March 15.

Thomas Schirrmacher, an official with the World Evangelical Alliance wrote in the Christian Post that under Pope Francis evangelicals "can hope for the continuation of truly fair and honest theological discussions of both our differences and commonalities."

On March 14, Karekin II, head of the Armenian Apostolic Church and Oriental Orthodox Church, congratulated Pope Francis, noting that "we fondly remember our meetings and prayers together with Your Holiness in Argentina, during which we came to know you as a good shepherd, and a courageous, wise, and just Church Leader." Karekin II wrote that he prays for continued growth in cooperation between his Church and the Catholic Church.

"I offer my heartfelt congratulations to Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio of Buenos Aires, Argentina, who has taken the name Pope Francis on his assumption of the papacy, and to all Catholics across the world on this momentous occasion," said United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who is from South Korea. Moon explained that he looks "forward to continuing cooperation between the United Nations and the Holy See." He also expressed a desire to pursue common goals, "from the promotion of peace, social justice and human rights, to the eradication of poverty and hunger," with the new Pope.

The Secretary General also affirmed "that His Holiness will continue to build on the legacy of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, in the promotion of inter-faith dialogue, which is at the heart of the Alliance of Civilizations initiative."

The president of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz, wished Pope Francis "courage and strength." He added that a "new impetus is necessary to revive the fundamental values which are at the basis of Christianity," because these values "are needed more than ever in a world which risks being engulfed in a spiral of materialism and inequality."

He met with Muslim leaders, the head of Rome's Jewish community Rabbi Riccardo di Segni and heads of other Christian denominations including Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople in Turkey.

"From my side I wish to ensure you my firm will to continue the path of ecunemical dialogue, which the (Second Vatican) Council initiated," said Pope Francis at the Clementine Hall of his new home, the Apostolic Palace. "The Catholic Church knows the importance of promoting friendship and mutual respect between men and women of diverse religious traditions," he told the religious leaders and repeated the sentence twice.

Fuller Theological Seminary, a leading center for the formation of evangelical Protestant pastors, will continue to promote positive relations with the Catholic Church, according to its new president.

"Our reach is global...and at Fuller we want to be a catalyst for healthy global ecumenism," Dr. Mark Labberton told CNA March 15.

Labberton is currently a professor of preaching at the Pasadena, Calif.-based seminary, and will take over as president of the school on July 1. He succeeds Richard Mouw, who has served as Fuller's president since 1993.

He said that though there are tensions in Latin America between Pentecostalism and the Roman Catholic Church, he wants to promote good relations between the groups. "One of Rich Mouw's emphases has been evangelical-Catholic dialogue and conversation, and I'm certainly hopeful that can continue." Labberton expressed a "great respect for the Roman Catholic Church" and said he is moved by its "expression, with all its tensions and challenges," and by its "overarching unity."

"The global response and attention given to the Pope's selection this week is itself obviously a palpable expression of that, and the fact is that there's no movement within Protestantism that could galvanize the global church in such a singular way."