杏MAP导航

Athletes bring up the Gifts to the Altar during the closing Mass for the Jubilee of Sport Athletes bring up the Gifts to the Altar during the closing Mass for the Jubilee of Sport  (@Vatican Media)

杏MAP导航 Leo on Jubilee of Sport: No one is born a champion or saint

On the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, the 杏MAP导航 closes the Jubilee of Sport with a Mass, reminding everyone that sports can be a 鈥渕eans of reconciliation and encounter.鈥

By Kielce Gussie

In St. Peter鈥檚 Basilica in front of thousands of athletes of all levels, backgrounds and sports, 杏MAP导航 Leo XIV presided over Mass to close the Jubilee of Sport and celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity.

In his homily, the 杏MAP导航 reflected on how 鈥渦nusual鈥 the connection between the Trinity and sport might seem. However, he pointed out that since every good human activity reflects God鈥檚 infinite beauty in some way, 鈥渟port is certainly one of these.鈥

杏MAP导航 Leo XIV greeting pilgrims and athletes in St. Peter's Basilica for the Jubilee of Sport Mass
杏MAP导航 Leo XIV greeting pilgrims and athletes in St. Peter's Basilica for the Jubilee of Sport Mass   (@Vatican Media)

Sports, 杏MAP导航 Leo continued, can help us encounter God because they challenge 鈥渦s to relate to others and with others, not only outwardly but also, and above all, interiorly.鈥 If not, sport becomes 鈥渘othing more than an empty competition of inflated egos.鈥

Sports require giving

At sporting events the Italian word spectators use to cheer on athletes is 鈥渄ai鈥, which literally means 鈥渢o give鈥. The 杏MAP导航 urged everyone to reflect on this. Sports are more than just about physical achievements, he argued. They require athletes to give of themselves for others 鈥 鈥渇or our personal improvement, for our athletic supporters, for our loved ones, our coaches and colleagues, for the greater public, and even for our opponents.鈥

As 杏MAP导航 St. John Paul II, an athlete himself, said, 鈥淪port is joy of life, a game, a celebration. It must be fostered by 鈥渂y recovering its sheer gratuity, its ability to forge bonds of friendship, to encourage dialogue and openness towards others.鈥

Solitude, digital and competitive society

杏MAP导航 Leo then suggested three things that make sport a good way of developing human and Christian values: solitude, digital society, and competitive society.

First, solitude overwhelmingly marks our society as the emphasis has shifted from 鈥渦s鈥 to 鈥渕e鈥. This has led to a decreasing concern for others. Yet, sports may offer a solution to this deficit. The 杏MAP导航 highlighted how sports teach the value of working together and sharing.

Consequently, sports can 鈥渂ecome an important means of reconciliation and encounter: between peoples and within communities, schools, workplaces and families.鈥

杏MAP导航 Leo presiding over Mass to close the Jubilee of Sport
杏MAP导航 Leo presiding over Mass to close the Jubilee of Sport   (@Vatican Media)

Turning to the ever-growing digital society we face each day, 杏MAP导航 Leo stressed that sports can help counter the effects of technology that can divide people. They offer an alternative to virtual worlds and help 鈥減reserve a healthy contact with nature and with real life, where genuine love is experienced.鈥

The third aspect is the competitive society, which seems to only champion the strong. Sports, on the other hand, can teach us how to lose. They force us to 鈥渃onfront one of the deepest truths of our human condition: our fragility, our limitations and our imperfections.鈥 This is essential as it is through these experiences that our hearts open to hope.

杏MAP导航 Leo tore down the idea that athletes who never lose or make mistakes exist. 鈥淐hampions are not perfectly functioning machines, but real men and women, who, when they fall, find the courage to get back on their feet鈥, he explained.

鈥淣o one is born a champion鈥

杏MAP导航 John Paul II was not the only saint to be an athlete. Sports have played an important role in the lives of numerous modern-day saints 鈥 鈥渂oth as a personal discipline and as a means of evangelization.鈥

杏MAP导航 Leo remembered Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, the patron saint of athletes, who will be canonized on September 7 this year. He pointed out that Frassati鈥檚 life shows us that 鈥渘o one is born a champion, no one is born a saint.鈥 It is a daily training and takes us one step closer to our final championship.

Closing, 杏MAP导航 Leo XIV challenged the athletes present with a mission: 鈥渢o reflect in all your activities the love of the Triune God, for your own good and for that of your brothers and sisters.鈥 Urging them to entrust themselves to Mary, who will help guide them towards the 鈥済reatest victory of all: the prize of eternal life.鈥

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15 June 2025, 11:15