And here is another way for the Bishops to follow the advice of Pope Francis and bring the church “outside.” In this case, Bishop Kevin W. Vann of Orange County, California grabbed the sharp lapels of a checkered coat and got down before rocking the boat, making a brief cameo appearance as Nicely Nicely Johnson in a Catholic high school production of Guys and Dolls:
His brief stint in the school’s performance of the hit Broadway musical “Guys and Dolls” last month reminded him, he said, of when he portrayed the story’s Nicely Nicely Johnson in a community theater version of the musical when he was a pastor in the Midwest. “Thanks to all of them, after a couple of more serious months of ministry and decisions, I found that I still could sing, laugh, and yes, even still dance a few steps, even at now nearly 65 years old! I had played the role of Nicely Nicely Johnson in an abridged version of that musical when I was a pastor back in Decatur, Illinois,” Bishop Vann told the diocesan newspaper, the Orange County Catholic. “So my time with the Santa Margarita production of that musical helped me to connect with that important time in my life and ministry!”
You can get a glimpse of Bishop Johnson, er, Vann at a video linked in this report. He shows up at around 1:40, with a stogie and wearing a red carnation in his lapel.
And today we celebrate...