A Priest, a Bartender, and a Confession Walk into a Podcast…

Pull up a stool and pour yourself something holy (or hoppy), because this week on Cocktails with Friends, host Bob Cutler serves up an episode that’s equal parts theology, therapy, and top-shelf storytelling. His guest? None other than Father Bill Labbe—a man of the cloth, a friend of the Cutler clan, and someone whose mom ranked him somewhere below “favorite priest.”

This episode, lovingly titled “Forgive Me Father, For I’ve Shaken a Manhattan,” dives into the unexpected friendship between a Jewish coach-turned-bartender and a Catholic priest who once considered Krispy Kreme a more spiritual experience than Sunday Mass. From accidentally scheduling practice during church to swapping sin stories in the confessional, Bob and Father Bill prove that the best conversations happen between people who shouldn’t have much in common—but somehow absolutely do.

We learn that confession isn’t about divine get-out-of-jail-free cards.  It’s about laying down your guilt so it doesn’t keep renting space in your head. There’s wisdom, warmth, and one slightly terrifying story about a woman who claimed she slept with Prince Charles (and possibly had a weapon in her purse). Yes, that kind of confessional.

Bob jokes that Father Bill might be the next Pope, and if so, he’s promised Bob a cushy Vatican gig with a heavenly meal plan. And honestly? We’d tune into “Cocktails from the Conclave” in a heartbeat.

If you need a reminder that real friendship is built on laughs, late-night texts, and a shared love of good people and better pizza, this episode is your benediction.  Find it wherever you sip your podcasts.   

Till next time, keep your martinis stirred and your conversations sincere. Cheers!