Church's expansion team
Catholic Athletes for Christ has hit the U.S. sports scene to bring the Good News to a place where many need to be evangelized

Our Sunday Visitor   May 6, 2007

By James Penrice

When Vinny Rottino arrived in the Major Leagues last season, he found a coach and a team to help him break out of his worst slump. And it had nothing to do with baseball.

The Milwaukee Brewers catcher had faced some unexpected pitfalls in the minor leagues: challenges to his Catholic faith. When a team chaplain and a teammate both urged him to abandon Catholicism, raising criticisms he could not address, Rottino needed help. On the baseball field, he could throw out opponents attempting to steal; in this higher venue, he wasn't so sure.

Rottino then happened upon an EWTN interview featuring Jeff Suppan, a pitching star then with the St. Louis Cardinals. Vinny was inspired to learn of another ballplayer so enthused about the Church.

In short order, he met the right-hander, who has since joined the Brewers. Suppan gave Rottino a Catholic study Bible, and the pitcher began teaching the catcher how to block those wild pitches and protect home.

It is that kind of relationship Ray McKenna had in mind when he founded Catholic Athletes for Christ. The Washington, D.C., attorney and sports chaplain saw a gaping need for Catholic presence in sports ministry, which is predominantly served by Protestant and nondenominational programs.

McKenna saw Catholic athletes being underserved by chaplains who at best do not understand a Catholic's needs or at worst can be hostile to them.

Assembling a team of bishops, priests, athletes, coaches and laypeople with a passion for the Church and sports, CAC is bringing the Church and her sacraments to the world of athletics. And they are mobilizing in force.

The group was formally launched in 2006 with a formidable roster of "Cathletes." Already on board in advisory or speaking positions are six bishops, several priests and roughly two-dozen professional and collegiate athletes and coaches. And the group launched a website that offers a wealth of sports-oriented spiritual resources.

Yet, despite a necessary emphasis on getting the word to the masses about the "good news" of sports, CAC is focused on meeting athletes where they live with what they need most: a personal experience of Church.

While competing in diving at Stanford University, Gaelyn Felix began to realize that her sport had become her god. When her career ended, an identity crisis followed, because diving had become "who she was."

With the grace of God, she dove deeper into her spiritual life once her career was over. Felix said she now sees that sports are given to us by God to glorify him, not ourselves. This awareness came with the support of CAC. She now actively encourages other athletes to integrate God into their pursuits.

Alyson Habetz agrees. The University of Alabama assistant softball coach and CAC board member advises that "playing a sport is what you do, it is not who you are. Your identity and self-worth are not found in whether you win or lose, it is found in knowing that you are a child of God." She said she relishes the chance to share that message with others.

A major challenge facing many athletes is something most Catholic parishioners take for granted: attending Sunday Mass. Catholic athletes who don't get Sundays off find it difficult to fulfill their obligation.

To remedy this, CAC is building a national network of priests to bring Mass and the Sacrament of Reconciliation to athletes where they are. Last September, Kansas City Bishop Robert Finn celebrated Mass at the Royals' Kauffman Stadium. CAC Advisory Chairman and Royals captain Mike Sweeney arranged it, and said afterward, "I think by Bishop Finn coming here and celebrating Mass got us excited, as ballplayers, about our faith."

Like a sports team returning home after a road trip, CAC members have touched base with the Vatican in significant fashion.

In 2005, they sent a delegation, including Suppan, to the Vatican's first ever symposium on sports.

The following year, Sweeney led a group to visit the Vatican Office of Church and Sport, established by Pope John Paul II in 2004 to evangelize athletes. While in Rome, Sweeney also conducted a "Theology on Tap" discussion session at a pub for a group of young adults.

These are but a few examples of the many outreaches Catholic Athletes for Christ has offered. And they are just getting started.

Perhaps figure skater Gabriella Howard best sums up the philosophy of CAC in her advice to athletes: "Offer up to God all that you do. Know that he gave you the gift that you have and cherish it. He gave it to you to share with other people, so that you could be his hands and feet to reach out to others."

With that said, let the games begin.

God's athletes

Some members of Catholic Athletes for Christ include:

Mike Piazza is a 12-time All-Star catcher and holds the record for most home runs ever hit by a catcher. Piazza has played for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Florida Marlins, New York Mets, San Diego Padres and recently signed with the Oakland Athletics. He says he loves the Mass and shares a desire to spread the Good News through athletics.

Lou Carnesecca won 536 NCAA basketball games in his 26-year tenure as St. John's University's head coach. He was inducted into the NCAA Basketball Hall of Fame in 1992. He is a daily communicant and retains a vibrant love and devotion to the Catholic Church.

Rebecca Dussault competed for the 2006 U.S. Olympic team in cross-country skiing in Turin, Italy. Among her ambitions are to live a life of heroic virtue to become a saint. She loves to evangelize and has a special devotion to Blessed Pier Georgio Frassati.

Jack McKeon is a retired major-league baseball manager who led the Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, San Diego Padres, Cincinnati Reds and Florida Marlins. The two-time National League Manager of the Year has a special devotion to St. Therese of Lisieux and the Blessed Mother.

Chris Horn is a wide receiver for the Carolina Panthers. He has also played for the Kansas City Chiefs and New Orleans Saints. He and his family pray the Rosary daily and have a devotion to St. Bridget.

Eddie Gaven is a professional Major League Soccer player with the Columbus Crew. Gaven started his career at 16 when he signed with the New York Metro Stars. Gaven has a strong devotion to the Blessed Mother and prays the Rosary regularly.

Kate Ziegler is a world-class swimmer who won two gold medals at the 2005 World Aquatic Championship Games and became only the second woman in history to break the 16-minute mark in the 1500-meter freestyle event. She says she loves her Catholic faith and is the youngest advisory board member of Catholic Athletes for Christ. Ziegler hopes to represent the United States in the 2008 Summer Olympics in China.

What the Church says about sports

"The Church looks at sport with great sympathy, since it considers the human body as the masterpiece of creation. God the Creator gave new life to the body, thus making it the instrument of an immortal soul. ... When sport is practiced in a healthy way, it exalts the dignity of the human body without risking idolatry. The Church sees sport as a mighty element of moral and social education." (Pope John Paul II, address to the International Olympic Committee, May 27, 1982)

"Sport, rightly understood, is an occupation of the whole man, and while perfecting the body as an instrument of the mind, it also makes the mind itself a more refined instrument for the search and communication of truth and helps man to achieve that end to which all others must be subservient, the service and praise of his Creator." (Pope Pius XII, "Sport and the Spirit")

"Sport is one of the human activities which is also waiting to be enlightened by God through Christ, so that the values it expresses may be purified and elevated at both the individual and the collective levels." (Pope Benedict XVI, Message to the 20th Winter Olympics).

James Penrice writes from Michigan

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