This priest isn't hosting a church dance. He's uniting people with his distinctive blend of faith and electronic music.
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Rev. Guilherme Peixoto is a Portuguese Catholic priest, but he turns the tables as "Padre Guilherme." He recently performed a free set for an audience at the Plaza de Mayo in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on Saturday, April 18.
It began with the words: "God bless you, and let's dance."
The Rave Is a Tribute to Pope Francis
The set took place nearly a year after the death of Pope Francis. An image of the Argentine-born Pontiff's face, along with a portrait of the late Pope John Paul II and a picture of doves, was projected onto a screen behind Peixoto. He was dressed in his priestly robes and wearing headphones.
As reported by PEOPLE, the set is Peixoto's tribute to Pope Francis. He said he has always felt a connection with the Holy Father.
"He was the one who touched my heart with this facet of music," he said.
Who Is DJ Padre Guilherme?
Although attendees came to honor Francis, many were unfamiliar with Peixoto. This is surprising given his extensive social media presence. The priest has more than 3 million followers on Instagram and 270,000 monthly listeners on Spotify.
Peixoto was ordained as a priest in 1999. He began performing at universities a year later to raise money for his parish, requesting at the time that no photos be taken due to concerns about backlash.
Peixoto told reporters that his reason for stepping behind the deck is "to let the music touch hearts so deeply that young people return home with a desire to change the world."
The 60-year-old Silvia Garaggiola attended the event. "I think what he does is very original, as long as it's done respectfully," she said.
Tomas Ferreira also agreed, saying that it's "really great that the priest is trying to bring people together through the fusion of electronic music and religion."
He then added, "Religion is modernizing, and that's a good thing."
