Sports and Spiritual Formation

I have spent this afternoon and evening watching the U.S. diving and gymnastics trials for the Olympics coming up in August. These young people have spent their entire lives working and preparing for this moment. They have gone over every move thousands of times. They have focused and trained and they and their parents have sacrificed to get them where they are. For a few moments the world’s eyes will be on them, admiring their artistry, their grace under pressure, and their determination.

Sports and competition have been part of the human experience since the first two children decided to see who could run the fastest. God made human bodies capable of doing amazing things, and he created some people with truly astounding athletic gifts. Even those of us who were blessed with less athletic ability can enjoy sports. Each of us can help our bodies be strong and healthy and enjoy friendly competition. For most of us, participating in sports is not so much about winning or losing as it is about taking part, trying to improve, and making use of the bodies God gave us.

Sports can also help us in our spiritual life. The discipline it takes to sacrifice and train and practice and focus is similar to the discipline it takes to sacrifice and pray daily and focus on living the Christian life. Even St. Paul compared his spiritual journey to an athletic experience: “I have fought the good fight to the end; I have run the race to the finish; I have kept the faith.” 2 Timothy 4:7. More recently, Danny Abramowicz, former player for the New Orleans Saint and longtime NFL coach, compared strengthening one’s spiritual life to strengthening one’s physical condition in “Spiritual Workout of a Former Saint” (Our Sunday Visitor, 2004). He advocates getting the Holy Spirit as one’s personal trainer, scouting out the enemies of the spiritual life, stretching out in prayer, running away from temptation, receiving spiritual nutrition, and resting in the spirit.
Those who have the responsibility for coaching young athletes, especially through Catholic organizations, have a unique opportunity to connect sports with spiritual formation. The National Center for Catholic Youth Sports (www.nccys.org) encourages Catholic coaches to have a strong foundation in their faith and to use sports as a means of catechesis and spiritual development. NCCYS states that the following should be the goal of any Catholic sports program: “To empower young people to live as disciples of Jesus Christ in our world today, to draw young people to responsible participation in the life, mission and work of the Catholic faith community, and to foster the total personal and spiritual growth of each young person.” Parents as well have the duty of instructing and modeling good sportsmanship and the integration of sport and faith.
The Olympics provide a unique opportunity to reflect upon the role of sports in our lives. They offer the chance to appreciate the beauty of sport as well as the incredible stories of the athletes who have the honor of competing. They can also inspire us to get off the couch and increase our own athletic efforts. The most important race of our lives, however, is not the one that takes place on a track and field course, but rather the journey we take towards God. St. Paul instructed the Corinthians to “run to win” (1 Cor 24). May the lessons learned from sports help propel us to that greatest victory, union with God in heaven.