Patron Saint of Sports and Athletes

mnha.lu

Saint Sebastian miraculously survives the impalement of four arrows to epitomize God’s call to never give up.

This Friday is the class of 23’s timeless senior night, representing CCHS football players, cheerleaders, and dancers.

Each one of these athletes uses their physical and spiritual strength in all that they do, just as Saint Sebastian, patron saint of sports and athletes, did during the 3rd century. In the year 283, he joined the army of the Emperor Carinus. People soon discovered he was a Christian who converted his fellow soldiers, and was sentenced to death by arrows. He was found dying tied to a primeval tree, where a miraculous Christian woman, now known as Saint Irene, who nursed him back to life. He showed himself to the Diocletian who again sentenced him to a beating, where his life officially came to an end.

Saint Sebastian teaches us to never give up on our sport as athletes, that God gives our bodies and minds strength to keep fighting passionately. His determination to remain in God through difficult times, able to withstand arrows, exemplifies the power our faith holds within us.