Jared Valluzzi: You used to play basketball at Princeton, what would some of the advice be to some of the players out here tonight?
Bishop John Barres: I think the key thing is that Princeton basketball is well known (the Princeton offense, in particular) because it’s based on radical unselfishness and a beautiful sense of team chemistry built around the fundamentals. So I encourage the players to [put] their Catholic spirituality, their love for the mass, the word of God, and Christ right at the center of their basketball experience. That way, [the athletes can] play in a very calm way, in a very confident way, because it’s not based on their ego, it’s based giving glory to God. It makes all the difference in the way you play.
Jared Valluzzi: How do you think sports and faith go together?
Bishop John Barres: They go very much together, I discovered that along the way. If you put Christ at the center of basketball, the Holy Spirit will form you as a leader. I was a point guard at Princeton on the JV, I think a point guard is a leader on the floor; I really believe the Holy Spirit prepared me to be a Catholic bishop, the point guard of the church on Long Island, by being a point guard in basketball. It’s amazing how God works in our lives.
Jared Valluzzi: How do you think athletes can increase their faith and athletics?
Bishop John Barres: One thing is a radical fidelity to the Sunday Mass. So important that we realize that the Catholic Mass is a miracle in our midst: that bread and wine become the actual body and blood of Christ. When we eat and drink the body and blood of Christ, we eat and drink fire, we eat and drink spirit, we become who we are supposed to be. The Holy Spirit leads us and guides us in every moment of our lives.
Jared Valluzzi: Thank you for your time Bishop.
Bishop John Barres: Thank you Jared. Great job!
Note from the Editor—We wish to thank Bishop John Barres for taking a live, unplanned interview with one of the students at St. Anthony’s. We also wish to thank St. Anthony’s alumnus Fr. Greg Rannazzisi for suggesting the idea to the Friar Scoreboard coverage team. Go Friars! Deus Meus et Omnia!
About the Interviewer:
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Jared Valluzzi Jared is a freshman at St. Anthony’s working for his first year with Friar Scoreboard. He is also a member of the Friar Media club and attended Hofstra University’s Sports Journalism and Broadcasting Institute for Teens. |
