A Little Hoops!

Calling All Sponsors

John Paul the Great Catholic University is on the verge of fielding it's VERY FIRST sports team and needs a sponsor help make this a reality. WE NEED YOUR HELP!!!!

The Sport is Basketball
The total cost is $779 which includes:

League registration fee
ref fees
jerseys

You can sponsor any part of the fees or the whole kit and caboodle! Just click on the seal below to go to the JP Catholic Website and scroll down to the "Make Your Gift" button on the right hand sidebar. Once you make your gift, simply send an email to the wonderful Lidy Connolly at lconnolly@jpcatholic.com to let her know that your gift is for the JP Catholic Basketball team.

All sponsors giving $25 or more will receive a framed photograph signed by all members of the team. And perhaps more importantly, you will have our undying gratitude!!!

Patrick Lyon's Blog

PATCHVILLE

Check it out when you have some time.

Following in the Fresh Tracks of JP II

I don't think Pope John Paul II ever attempted snowboarding (though I wouldn't be surprised) but he loved skiing. A group of JP Catholic students and faculty ventured to Wolf Creek Resort near Durango Colorado to enjoy the pristine beauty of the Rocky Mountains while hurling themselves down hill at rediculous speeds! Praise God, all returned unharmed:)

What if Michael Jordan Was a Devout Catholic?

Here's a morsel for thought. How would the world be different if Michael Jordan (or Tiger Woods or any sports mega-star) was a devout Catholic? It is impossible to say with any precision, but I am willing to go as far as suggesting it would not be worse off.

Like it or not, in our entertainment and media driven culture, sports stars command the attention of an adoring public. They have a platform. People, particularly kids, want to be like them, "to be like Mike" as the jingle goes. It would be a grand sight indeed to find young people filling up the pews during Eucharistic Adoration to be like Mike.

Which reminds me, don't forget to check out CatholicAthletesforChrist.com . There you will find some athletes who are offering themselves and their celebrity to Jesus to use as He wishes. Which, of course, is a very good thing.

New Links in the New Links Area

Be sure to stop by AJ Kueneman's and Tim Evans' blogs.

New Section For Links -->

Check out the new link section in the sidebar: JPCatholic Student and Faculty Websites.

Jesus Was a College Basketball Player

Of course our Lord Jesus Christ didn't play college basketball, but the actor who played Jesus in The Passion of the Christ certainly did. Long before he became an actor, Jim Caviezel's first passion was basketball and he even played a couple of seasons for Bellevue Community College.

"I didn't want to be an actor. I wanted to be a basketball player. God gives you a talent and you have to follow through on it."

Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you look at it), a foot injury cut Jim's basketball career short and he focused on acting.

For the record, should this blog post ever make it's way to Mr. Caviezel, there is a standing invitation from JP Catholic University for him to come shoot some hoops whenever he is in San Diego.

Let it Snow!

Some of the JP Catholic gang are skiing at Wolf Creek Resort near Durango, CO. It looks like the skiing is excellent:

Current Snowfall
Summit Base Depth : 87 inches
Last 24 Hours : 4 inches
Last 48 Hours : 9 inches
Last 72 Hours : 9 inches

I am quite jealous.

Well Said Coach Dungy

Indianapolis Coach Tony Dungy after the Colts Super Bowl win yesterday:

"The Lord doesn't always take you in a straight line," Dungy said. "He doesn't always take a direct path. I think he tests you sometimes to see if you're going to keep the faith and hang in there and I think we did. We did as an organization and it's just such a great feeling to get, to win this game.

"It's not the biggest thing in the world, but … it feels great."

I'm still looking for the exact quote but he also said something to the effect that while it is nice to be the first black coach to win the Super Bowl, the best part of he and Bear's Coach Lovie Smith's (who is also black) participation was that it showed that two Christian guys who do things the right way can be successful.

Way to go Coach!

Catholics in Pro Football

For Catholic pro-football players, faith more than a pre-game prayer
By Gina Mazza Hillier, Michael C. Gabriele and Dave Hrbacek
9/15/2006

Catholic News Service
PITTSBURGH, Pa. (CNS) – Pittsburgh Steelers strong safety Troy Polamalu is not an NFL superstar who happens to be a man of faith. Rather, in his heart, he is simply "a Christian with a passion for Jesus."

Football, Polamalu said, "gives me confirmation of how I can carry out my faith. It's my way to glorify God."

I always find it uplifting to read about how others live their faith. Even in a 'violent' sport like football it is possible to be propelled by one's love for Jesus rather than a desire to hurt your opponents.

"Football, in general, has it backwards," he [Polamalu] said. "They think this inner anger, this hatred, is what drives football and becomes the physical aspect of the game. But love overcomes all things. My love to glorify God through my playing will far outweigh anybody's hate for me."

Cathletes?

Be sure to check out www.catholicathletesforchrist.com.

I spoke with a representative from their organization today. Hopefully we'll be able to help each other in the future. Their mission is to

"serve Catholic athletes and share the Gospel of Christ in and through athletics."

Sounds good to me. I'm in.

Some New Links

Check out the Links in the right hand side bar area.

Newly added:

Vavi San Diego Sport and Social Club
This site covers multiple sports and activities in the San Diego area. The Volleyball league held at nearby Alliant University should be of particular interest to JP Catholic students

Sporstvite.com
A networking site for finding teams and games in your area

I Knew It!

You can't keep a man like John Paul II from his sports!

Hardly a Vatican prisoner: Late pope made secret outings, says aide

By John Thavis
Catholic News Service

ROME (CNS) -- Pope John Paul II made more than 100 clandestine trips to ski or hike in the Italian mountains and was rarely recognized by others on the slopes, his former secretary said.

Get the rest of the story

Let the Games Begin!

Now that everyone is back from Christmas break and rarin' to go, we are going to make a big push to enter a few JP Catholic teams in local sports leagues. I will be meeting with the students tomorrow at about 12:15 to give them some of the options.

Check the sidebar for links to the leagues. I will put them up as I find them.