George Lucas is the fifth archbishop for Catholics in the Archdiocese of Omaha. His installation Wednesday captivated those he serves in and well beyond Nebraska.

Bishops and priests from across the nation attended the Mass.

"The Lord is now giving me as a father, a brother and a friend to the priests of the Archdiocese of Omaha and the Lord is giving you to me, to be my strong support and my closest collaborators in his priestly ministry," said Archbishop Lucas, who was appointed last month by Pope Benedict to replace the retiring Elden Curtiss.

This was the first installation of an archbishop in our area to be shown live to the masses, not just through television, but also through the Web. The ceremony was carried live on WOWT.com and on EWTN, the global Catholic network. It’s a modern twist that's allowed millions of Catholics worldwide to be part of the celebration.

Only a thousand people could be inside St. Cecilia Cathedral for the event itself. Two tickets were given to each parish.

Dave and Rita Persing of Elkhorn’s St. Patrick’s Church said they were “blessed” to get tickets after a drawing of names from a hat. "I had my name drawn and another lady...," said Dave.

“But she gave her ticket to me,” his wife interjected. “Wasn’t that nice?”

Three sisters drove two-and-a-half hours from the Tilden-Neligh area to be there. "It's an historic event,” said Mary Hecht. “And just being part of the Catholic community, it's a huge opportunity to come see what it's all about."

“It just means a lot to me, just all the prestige and the pomp and circumstance going with this and just what it means to the Catholic community," said Jolene Schapman.

It meant a lot to the Little Sisters of the Poor, who made the trek from Kansas City. They feel a close connection to Omaha, particularly to St. Cecilia. A parishioner there, Dr. Edward Gatz, recovered from esophageal cancer. Pope Benedict deemed it a miracle, which paved the way for the sisters’ foundress, Jeanne Jugan, to become a saint. She will be canonized this October.

Sister Therese said of the installation, “It's very important, certainly for the archdiocese, certainly for church in America, in the world and we're glad we can be here to support the new archbishop."

The 60-year-old archbishop is already getting plenty of support from the 23 counties, 148 parishes and missions and more than 221,000 Catholics he now serves. “I think he's just going to be a welcome change," said Dave Persing. "It's going to be a different personality."

“He seems like a really good person for this new job," added Lori Schrader of Neligh. "I think we'll like him."

Coming from a 10-year term as a bishop in Springfield, Illinois, Archbishop Lucas has a reputation for being down-to-earth and positive. That was echoed as he spoke to the crowd inside the church for his installation.

"Since Jesus is alive, no good thing is impossible for us."

Parishioners hope many good things lie ahead as their diocese enters a new era. In his homily, the new archbishop offered words of encouragement to his flock.

"None of us would be here in this cathedral today if we were not convinced Jesus is calling us to be his witnesses and we see that none of us has to do it alone. We are given to each other so that we might strengthen each other in the midst of a culture that is often inhospitable to faith."

For those who would like to welcome the new archbishop, there will be several masses over the next four weeks. A reception will follow each Mass.