For cars driving on Federal Blvd. in Broomfield last Friday afternoon, they may have noticed a group of men having a softball practice at Holy Trinity Catholic Church. Pretty much just your everyday adult rec-league softball team, except this team, is made up entirely of Catholic priests.
“I love playing sports, I grew up playing sports,” said Fr. Joe McLagan, chaplain from Holy Family High School. “All of us are brother priests and one thing we have in common is we enjoy sports, so we get on the field and have a good time.”
The priests are all from the Archdiocese of Denver, and they are preparing to take on a team of priests from the Colorado Springs and Pueblo dioceses on Friday, July 13 at the Sky Sox minor league baseball stadium in Colorado Springs.
“I think it will be fun, and maybe even more fun for people to watch,” said Fr. Jason Wunsch of St. Gianna Beretta Molla in Denver. “Fun for them to see their priests having a good time playing softball and see that they are human.”
The game is being put on by the Catholic Radio Network and was inspired by a similar game in Kansas City.
“It as all about FUN, FAMILIES & VOCATIONS,” said Doug Moberg, Director of Catholic Radio in Colorado, in an email to the Denver Catholic. “You’re going to laugh, you’re going to smile and you’re going to see a lot of priests try to do things they don’t do every day, which is a lot of fun!”
Tickets are just $10 and proceeds support vocational departments in Colorado, and the hope is maybe the Holy Spirit will move someone to think about the priesthood in a new way.
“I think it is to see that priests are normal, that to have a vocation doesn’t mean that you end up locked away,” said Fr. Joseph Toledo from St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Ft. Collins, and coach for the ArchDen team. “We play sports, we play golf, we play baseball and we are part of the community.”
“I think younger kids watching us priests play might say ‘I like sports, and they like sports, and they are priests, which means I can be myself and also still be a priest,” said Fr. Jason. “They are having a fun life, doing fun things, they have good brotherhood’…I think that could be more attractive to the younger kids.”
EVENT INFO
-Colorado Priests Softball Game
-7 pm – Friday, July 13
-Security Service (Sky Sox) Field
4385 Tutt Boulevard, Colorado Springs, CO
-Tickets: $10 General Admission (Kids under 3 Free)
https://priestsoftballgame.ticketspice.com/priest-softball-game
