A member of the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter, Sumich has had a dual role as a club player in New Zealand and the coach of Croatia's national rugby team.

"Rugby instils a strong sense of self-discipline and collective responsibility, both of which are invaluable in spiritual growth," Sumich told The Pillar.

"As society moves away from agrarian lifestyles, men need an outlet for their physical energy. Rugby, an amateur sport known for its selflessness, offers an excellent platform for character development," he added.

Sumich, a New Zealander with Croatian heritage, sees no conflict between his faith and the sport.

"In Auckland, where I reside, the high school rugby competition is fiercely competitive. Out of 16 teams, eight are from Catholic boys' schools," he said.

Across New Zealand, 24 towns have Catholic rugby clubs known as "Marist clubs," founded by alumni of Marist Brothers schools.

Praying to win

While seeing no conflict between his faith and sport, Sumich cautions against praying for a team's victory, emphasising that the sport should complement, not compete with, one's faith.

"You don't pray to God for something worldly, ever, and God isn't listening to prayers like that," he said.

"You've always got to keep the right balance as to what prayer is.

"It is primarily us thanking God, loving God, and honouring God, and one of the last things we do is we petition God for those things that are good for our own salvation, God's will being done, and the salvation of the world."

The intersection of Christianity and rugby is not unique to Sumich.

When questioned about reconciling his faith with the sport's aggressive nature, Christian and former All Black great Michael Jones, who controversially did not play rugby on Sundays, quipped, "It is better to give than to receive."

Catholic chapel in Bordeaux, France

The connection between rugby and Faith is not just a New Zealand thing.

In a quaint corner of Larrivière-Saint-Savin, France, the intertwining of rugby and spirituality is epitomised by La Chapelle Notre Dame Du Rugby.

An hour's drive from the Bay of Biscay, this medieval chapel is adorned with stained-glass windows depicting rugby scenes.

Inside the church are stained glass windows of a scrum, another of Mary holding Jesus in his arms, while Jesus prepares to throw the rugby ball into the lineout.

There's also another of Mary cradling an injured player in her arms.

Not leaving it with stained glass imagery, old rugby boots dangle by their laces next to the altar and along the walls there is proof that a Who's Who of the world of rugby through the decades have come here.

There are photos and newspaper articles of players displayed alongside jerseys worn by the stars of the past, such as Serge Blanco or Fabien Pelous with simple messages of support for the volunteers who look after the chapel.

Community with a cause

The chapel's significance to the rugby community dates back to a tragic 1964 incident when three young players from the local Dax club lost their lives in a car accident.

The community was devastated, but local priest Michel Devert saw an opportunity for healing.

He rallied the community around the idea of reviving the dilapidated chapel as a memorial for the young players and a spiritual hub for the global rugby community.

Today, the La Chapelle Notre Dame Du Rugby stands beautifully restored, thanks partly to a dedicated group known as the Friends of Notre Dame.

This committee has been instrumental in raising funds and soliciting rugby memorabilia from players worldwide.

The walls of the chapel are now adorned with a myriad of mementoes, turning it into a living museum of rugby history and a symbol of the sport's unique ability to foster community, discipline and character.

Sources

• The Pillar
• BBC

Scaffolding is needed for major repairs and maintenance, such as replacing a roof, or painting a tall building. Sometimes, this scaffolding is then plastic-wrapped, to provide privacy, safety, and a weather-proof working environment.

Once work is completed the scaffolding is dismantled. Ladders, cherry pickers, or long poles are then used to effect minor repairs and on-going maintenance.

We are a building - Shekhinah, a temple of God. Well-designed. The intrinsic design and health of my temple will enable it to weather many storms. But it still needs regular upkeep … and sometimes a major overhaul.

How do I maintain the spiritual life of this temple?

There is an infinite variety of 'scaffolding' available to us on our spiritual journey. Sacraments. Prayer. Worship. Community. Retreat. Spiritual teaching and reading. Spiritual direction and companionship. The framework provided by different spiritualities, such as Marist, Benedictine, Franciscan, Ignatian. Silence.

Some of this scaffolding is designed for major events … initiation, marriage, ordination, death. It shapes us, moulds us, gifts us with grace … but then we take it down and allow that grace to become visible in our temple.

Sometimes we erect scaffolding and wrap it in plastic, to effect a major change. Entering a time of retreat or discernment, when we become especially attentive to the voice of the divine, is a time when we are particularly vulnerable. We need the protection and privacy that exclusion of the outside world offers. But then we strip away the scaffolding and the protective wrap, and slowly the metamorphosis that has taken place deep within, will become evident in our attitudes, our words, our actions.

There are many tools available to us to effect minor repairs and on-going maintenance. Communal worship and liturgy nourishes and sustains us. Reconciliation and conflict resolution repairs cracks and dents in our relationships with others and with God. A personal prayer discipline, unique to each of us as we seek to relate to the God-within and the God-without. Service to others … being the eyes and ears and feet and heart of God to others. Reflection on sacred scripture. Small group interactions.

Our institutional churches are also temples - literally and metaphorically. Well designed. Intrinsically good. But the scaffolding has been up for many years - and I wonder why it has not been taken down. Scaffolding in the guise of Vatican 2 enabled major renovations within the Catholic Church - a major transformation. But not only is this scaffolding being dismantled, many of the renovations have also been removed. A little counter-productive.

I wonder if ancient, ineffectual scaffolding is shoring up a crumbling edifice. Perhaps it is time for this scaffolding to be removed, and demolition experts invited in to remove all that is rotten. This is not a time for plastic-wrapping: everything must be done in plain view, open to inspection and inspiration.

Scaffolding is always a sign of hope; of new beginnings; of creativity and hard work; of attentiveness to what has been done, what needs to be done, and what needs to be protected. Scaffolding is always unique. It is shaped to the building and to the work that must be undertaken. Scaffolding can be used again and again but each time it will be different and will enable different work to be done. While scaffolding is designed to facilitate construction work and repairs, its primary purpose is ALWAYS the health and safety of those who use it.

Can we say that the scaffolding we use in our spiritual life is healthy - for us and for those who encounter us?

Can we say that the scaffolding our churches use is healthy - and considers first those who dwell within and those who are passers-by?

• Liz Pearce, a mother of three adult children, loves story, writing, and dollmaking www.heartfeltdolls.weebly.com

But while he shies away from the name for fear that the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC) will be misinterpreted as a "cult of personality," the center's staff is working diligently to transform its programming so the legacy of Rohr's work and tradition that has inspired him will endure.

"We are challenging people to go deep with Richard's work," says Matt Sholler, associate director of the Living School, the center's newest and largest endeavor. "Our hope is that they will find new applications for his ideas and create new acts of compassion in the world."

The Living School is the flagship program of The Rohr Institute, which was created "so that we could have a place where we can have greater conversations about the perennial tradition," says Alicia Johnson, executive director of the Center for Action and Contemplation.

Philosophers and theologians have spoken of a perennial philosophy for centuries. The idea, in a nutshell, is that all of the world's religious knowledge is based on shared universal truths.

For Rohr, the perennial tradition "encompasses the recurring themes in all of the world's religions and philosophies," all of which say:

• There is a Divine Reality underneath and inherent in the world of things;
• there is in the human soul a natural capacity, similarity and longing for this Divine Reality; and
• the final goal of existence is union with this Divine Reality.

Although the Living School will be a school of thought, practice and experience will be equally essential components of the course of study.

"We start with experiential, not the didactic," Sholler says. "There will be a healthy amount of academic-minded curriculum, but what will make the school distinctive is how we incorporate lived experience. How we build our experiential practices into the curriculum is the most challenging and creative opportunity for us in developing the school." Continue reading

Sources

• National Catholic Reporter
• Image: Spiritual Journey
• This is part three of a three-part series. Find all of the segments here