With the papal conclave under way in the Vatican to select a new pope, many at Holy Name Cathedral prayed Wednesday for the cardinal electors to make the right choice.

A total of 133 cardinals were locked inside the Sistine Chapel for the conclave Wednesday morning, tasked with picking their new leader. Black smoke poured out of the chapel's chimney late Wednesday, signaling that no one was elected as the new pope after the day's only vote.

A mass at Holy Name Cathedral on Wednesday was dedicated to the conclave.

"Thank you for leading us in prayer — in this very important prayer — for the conclave, and for the cardinals who are gathered to elect a new pope," Fr. Louis Cameli told the congregants.

Kim Duda has been a reader at Holy Name for the past three years. She attended the mass on Wednesday, and hopes the next pope is progressive — like Pope Francis.

"I'll tell you the truth," Duda said. "I really did love Pope Francis because he was a people's pope, and he understood the people and he accepted the people for what they were."

Fr. Cameli said he would like to see a pope who will lead a traditional, but also progressive church.

"There has to be a kind of traditional sense of faith and our life together, and so forth," he said. "At the same time, it has to be progressive; adapt."

Back in the 13th century, it took almost three years to choose the Pope's successor — in the longest conclave in the Catholic Church's history. The election of a successor to Pope Clement IV in 1268 dragged on for so long — about 1,000 days — that locals in the town of Viterbo, where it was held, locked the cardinals in the room where they had gathered until they reached a decision.

That was where the name still used for the process of selecting a new pope — "conclave," which translates to "under lock and key" — came from.

This time around, it is expected that the conclave will be much shorter. Duda said she, like many others, will be tuned in.

"It's a big event for whoever's going to come next," she said.

There are 1.4 billion Catholics in the world. The Archdiocese of Chicago serves nearly 2 million Catholics in Cook and Lake counties.

Many said Wednesday that they expect a new pope within a few days.