October 6, 2024

Singing Priests entertain with classic rock and country music

REGIONAL
By Nick Morganelli

NORTHAMPTON-  Hundreds of excited concert-goers filed in to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish in Northampton Sunday, Sept. 22  to listen to the sounds of the Singing Priests from the Diocese of Springfield.

Local entertainer Dan Kane accompanied on keyboard, while Father Francis Reilly, pastor of St. Jerome Parish in Holyoke and Father Paul Norman, pastor of the Catholic parishes of Adams and Cheshire, played guitar. Eight priests participated in this concert.

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton parishioners Brenda D’Astous along with her husband George, experienced the singing priests for the very first time.

“I heard they were really good and it’s an event that we didn’t want to miss. We shared a good time together and it strengthens our faith and our community,” she said.

The repertoire was not exclusively spiritual, but included Beatles songs such as “Revolution,” and “Yesterday.” The priests dawned cowboy hats that Father Reilly purchased at the Big E for the occasion. The crowd of 300 engaged by clapping and singing along to country favorites including “Country Roads,” “Ghost Riders in the Sky,” and “On the Road Again.”

Father Stanislaus Achu sang two solos, “You Raise Me Up” and “The Prayer.” The concert was nearly 90 minutes in length and included some stories and jokes in between.

Father Christopher Waitekus, pastor of St. Mary Parish in Longmeadow, has been a member of the Singing Priests since the inception and asks everyone to encourage the priest at their parish to join in singing with the group.

“We’re always saying come on, just move your lips, you don’t have to be a virtuoso,” said Father Waitekus. He also commented “it’s great for people to see that we’re regular people and that we like to laugh with each other. We make fun of each other in our brotherhood as priests.”

To watch the television story, go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=99Hl0sQxBjI