Numerous appointments are scheduled: a panel discussion moderated by Quim Doménech, a sports journalist, with several professional athletes talking about their experience of living out their faith in high-level sports. Also, on Thursday afternoon, Paralympic athlete Enhamed Enhamed will speak about sports as a factor of integration and self-improvement. The day will then be enriched by a presentation by Fr. Litus Ballbé, head of the Spanish Bishops' Conference for the Pastoral Care of Sports - a great connoisseur of the day's central theme because he was also a high-level athlete in grass field hockey, a participant in the 2012 London Olympics; he will address the theme of sport as a tool for the new evangelization.
Also, the Catholic University of Murcia, the "Brafa" Sports Center, Jesuits and Salesians will participate in another roundtable discussion, moderated by Javier Trigo, contact person for sports in Navarre and author of the book "Dios es Deportista" (God is a Sportsman), on the various existing initiatives.
Other discussions and seminars will address the issues of personal and institutional commitment in sports with the participation of health and sports professionals and representatives of the Foundations of the clubs Real Madrid and Sevilla FC; they will also explore and illustrate what is happening across Europe with the participation of prominent figures from the Italian Sports Center and the Pastoral Care for Sports of Teramo, Abruzzo.
The Mass presided over by Cardinal Juan José Omella, Archbishop of Barcelona and President of the Spanish Bishops' Conference, shall conclude the First Sport and Faith Day.
As Fr. Litus Ballbe said during the Day's presentation, "We want this day to be the starting point for using sport as a tool for evangelization. We know that sports can help us get closer to God and grow in values, which is why the Church has committed to this new pastoral ministry. It is possible to find God through sports."
"It is a proposal born from the meeting of different people and institutions involved in sports in the Church in Spain," added Javier Trigo. "We had the opportunity to meet during the 'Sport for All' Congress held last October in the Vatican. Many common interests were put on the table, we saw the possibility of proposing it and we jumped in."
The Salesians are personally involved in organizing the Day because of their history and charism. "The courtyard, which by extension also includes the playgrounds, is a constitutive element of our educational identity. Our integral educational project cannot be understood without openness to society. All these elements have made us realize that this Day is a very interesting opportunity to reflect on the pastoral care of sports, together with other agents and institutions," concluded Fr. Ángel Miranda, Director of the Salesian House in Pamplona.
