New York, New York–José Feliciano, Stephanie Mills, the Harlem Gospel Choir and Harry Connick, Jr. were among the entertainers warming up the mass crowd for the Pope.

“People ask if I am a practicing Catholic,” said Connick, “Well you can’t practice better than this, I am playing for the Pope today.” Kim Burrell and Lucian Barbarin and the Harry Connick Orchestra were also part of that set. It was medley of jazz gospel set in honor of the Papal Mass.

A liturgical dance followed featuring dancers as angels holding mobiles of seagulls while singing angelic tones. This immediately preceeded preparations for the mass.

For this Catholic, it was heartening to see such effort in celebration of the visit of the Pope. In a time where, the entertainment industry is often portrayed as exclusively anti-Catholic, such a display of great talent reveals that this just is not true.

Among the tunes Feliciano sang was Lee Greenwood’s God Bless the USA. Stephanie Mills and the Harlem gospel choir followed with traditional style, classic Gospel tunes.

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