|
INTENTION : |
For the values of sports.
Let us pray that sports be an instrument of peace, encounter, and dialogue among cultures and nations, and that they promote values such as respect, solidarity, and personal growth.
|
FOCUS
Sports is beneficial for many reasons, from the neurological to the spiritual, from the physical to the emotional. There are many diverse ways in which humans connect through sports (cf 2016 August intention - That sports may be an opportunity for friendly encounters between peoples and may contribute to peace in the world). Sports can be a powerful tool for inclusion, overcoming cultural, economic, and geographical barriers. In a society that tends towards individualism and confrontation, playing sports is not exempt from challenges. Pope Francis once said: "I dream of sports as the practice of human dignity, turned into a vehicle of fraternity." Pope Leo now invites us again to pray for sports to be an instrument of peace, promoting values that we greatly need in our world, such as respect, teamwork, and personal growth.
ATTITUDE OF THE HEART
Promote the values of sports.
Play as a team. Sports teaches us that life is not played alone. We need others in order to grow, to learn, and to overcome our limits. In the family, in the Church, in society: only when we play as a team do we build peace, communion, and fraternity. (cf Step 3, The Way of the Heart - Humanising our environments and our activities).
OTHER DAILY ATTITUDES TO LIVE THIS PRAYER INTENTION
1. Encourage fair play in daily life:
Live sincerity, respect, and humility, on and off the field.
2. Recognise and support sports as a social tool:
Value initiatives that use sports to integrate, educate, and accompany.
3. Practise discipline with a sports spirit:
Apply the same mindset to your daily prayer, your work, your vocation.
4. Build peace and dialogue in everyday life:
Draw near to those who think differently. Listen before arguing. Play as a team with your community.
5. Promote the values of sports among young people:
Accompany them not just to compete, but to grow as persons.
MONTHLY PRAYER
Lord of life,
we thank you for the gift of sports,
for those who glorify God
through the exercise of their bodies,
for the friendships born on the field
and the joy of playing as a team.
You teach us that in life,
as in the game, no one is saved alone.
We need others to grow,
to learn respect,
to overcome our limits,
and to celebrate together
the victories we achieve.
We ask that sports may always be
a school of fraternity,
not of empty rivalry, a space of encounter,
not exclusion, a path of peace, not violence.
May those who play,
train or cheer discover in sports a universal language
that brings cultures together, unites peoples,
and sows respect, solidarity and personal growth.
Lord Jesus,
may every sports become
a parable of life lived with You,
working with joy and effort,
living with humility in defeat
and with gratitude in the victory
You offer in Your Resurrection.
May Your Spirit never be lacking in us,
making us one team, united with You
to build communion and fraternity in history.
Amen.
|
|
