Following the announcement Wednesday that the former Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio of Argentina had been selected as the new pope, the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints released the following statement expressing support:

"On behalf of the leadership and members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we extend our warmest wishes to His Holiness Pope Francis and pray he will feel the peace of the Lord as he serves as pontiff of the Catholic Church.

"We have been honored and pleased as our two faiths have worked together on issues of faith, morality and service to the poor and needy. We value the relationships that have been formed in these joint efforts and are grateful for the good that has been accomplished.

We look forward to pursuing together, as the Apostle Paul wrote, all things that are true, honest, just, pure, lovely and of good report."