This July, the Diocese of Providence, Rhode Island announced that no longer would the haunting tune of “Danny Boy” which so many have used to say goodbye to their loved ones, be permitted at funerals because it is a secular song, and therefore not suitable for Mass of the Christian Burial. Church officials felt it would lead to requests for other secular songs.
Response to the decision rang loud and much further than any church-bells in the diocese.When the Irish Heritage Museum Advisory Committee contacted dioceses nation-wide, they found that the Providence ban was’t meeting much support and that other dioceses were quick to state that “Danny Boy” is still welcomed and sung in their churches. “Danny Boy” supporters sent letters and e-mails by the bundle. Others scrambled for their wills to put it in writing that the 90-year-old song would be a part of their funeral, but for Rhode Islanders is seems they “must bide.” ♦