Safe at home

This cannot go un-noted here in the Forum, especially with my love of sports and admiration for people who live their faith in their daily lives. Recently, former baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn passed on to eternal life. The Chicago Tribune ran a piece titled “Leader in rough times” (subscription required). Among the accomplishments it cited, the article said this:

Kuhn once said, “I want it to be remembered that I was commissioner during a time of tremendous growth in the popularity of the game and that it was a time in which no one could question the integrity of the game.”

Integerity is the best word this piece uses to link Bowie Kuhn to his legacy. It makes no mention of what was ultimately most important to him and about him. But Catholic.org does.

Former baseball commissioner Bowie Kuhn, who died in a Jacksonville hospital March 15 at age 80 from respiratory failure following a bout with pneumonia, once said he wanted to be remembered simply “as a good Catholic man.”

In a 1999 interview with The Long Island Catholic, newspaper of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, N.Y., Kuhn said his faith was his anchor throughout his life. “My church taught me the importance of right and wrong,” he said, explaining that the church gave him the tools to stay on that path, as well as the sacraments.

“The church is my bulwark,” he added. “Not a moment goes by where I don’t realize that I’m a man of faith, and there are certain obligations that go along with that.”

He became a great witness in his later years, taking every opportunity to fulfill those obligations that come with being a person of both fame, and faith.

One of Kuhn’s favorite post-baseball activities was serving as what he called “an itinerant preacher,” speaking at Catholic men’s conferences throughout the country. He said that once he left office he made it a priority to speak anywhere he was invited to discuss spiritual matters.

“I love it. I come away from it just thrilled,” he said. “They are powerful meetings. The spirituality there is just intense.”

At his first such speaking engagement, Kuhn said in 1999 that he knew his audience wanted to hear about religion and morality, but he did not know quite what to say. Kuhn said he found himself uttering, “I’m madly in love with Jesus Christ,” and the words flowed easily from there.

How inspiring. We need to hear more men in leadership positions, ‘manly men’, speaking strongly about faith and morality. Good news is, we’re about to….soon…when ‘Champions of Faith’ comes out.