\u201cAs soon as I step into the stadium, I was very emotional. And not just because of the stadium, but to me it was because of the moment.”<\/p>\n
SACRAMENTO, Calif. \u2014 A South Sacramento pastor is opening up about a secret he kept from his congregation for nearly a month \u2014 officiating a real wedding during the Super Bowl 60 halftime show.<\/p>\n
Pastor Antonio Reyes<\/a>, a campus pastor at Project Church South Sacramento<\/a>, said it was an honor and a once-in-a-lifetime experience to be part of what he described as history in the making.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m still trying to make sense of what just happened,\u201d Reyes said.<\/p>\n Reyes officiated the wedding on the field during Bad Bunny<\/a>\u2019s halftime performance at Levi\u2019s Stadium, as the artist performed \u201cBaile Inolvidable.\u201d The ceremony unfolded in front of about 70,000 football fans.<\/p>\n He said the moment hit him as soon as he arrived at the stadium.<\/p>\n \u201cAs soon as I step into the stadium, I was very emotional. And not just because of the stadium, but to me it was because of the moment. What it represented to our Latino community,\u201d Reyes said. \u201cAnd so as soon as I stepped into the stadium, I felt it, and I wanted to cry. And I was just like keep it together.\u201d<\/p>\n Reyes said he spent the first 18 years of his life growing up in Mexico before moving to the United States at 19. He has been in ministry for more than a decade and said stepping onto such a massive stage carried deep personal meaning.<\/p>\n The opportunity came through a friend who is a singer, Reyes said. Nearly four weeks before the Super Bowl, he received a call asking if he would be willing to officiate a wedding ceremony in Spanish for a couple. At the time, he said, he was told the couple might be celebrities, but did not know the event would take place during the halftime show.<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t until paperwork was being signed that the full scope became clear.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd when she shows up, she starts screaming, she starts screaming and yelling, you know, in the kitchen,\u201d Reyes said. \u201cAnd that\u2019s when we find out that it was for a halftime show.\u201d<\/p>\n Reyes said the experience gave him a new appreciation for the dancers and producers involved in the performance. He spent about a week in rehearsals leading up to the show and said two things stood out most to him \u2014 unity and the intention to make people feel seen.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd that was very clear that his desires was to communicate unity. That this country is made by all of us,\u201d Reyes said. \u201cYou know it doesn\u2019t matter your race, your ethnicity. We all made this country.\u201d<\/p>\n Reyes said his message for people watching is to refuse to live in hopelessness during complicated times marked by despair.<\/p>\n \u201cPersonally, I believe that there\u2019s a bigger story being told by the story of Jesus, and I want people to know that,\u201d Reyes said. \u201cThat we don\u2019t have to be subjects of what is being taught in culture. That our political parties do not have to have a say into how we feel and what we lean into.\u201d<\/p>\n Reyes said he met the couple about three weeks before the Super Bowl and that they have stayed in touch since the ceremony. He said they are from Southern California and will share more about their moment when they are ready.<\/p>\n Watch more:\u00a0Sacramento fans react to Bad Bunny\u2019s historic Super Bowl halftime show<\/a><\/p>\n ABC10: Watch, Download, Read<\/p>\n