Grace and the teen with no God

Parishioner John DeAngelo contributed to Parable Magazine’s recent cover story on grace. The article is reprinted below with permission from Parable Magazine, Diocese of Manchester, NH; the full issue is available online (cf. page 20).

It was spring 2014 and baseball season was just starting at Matignon High School, a small Catholic school in Cambridge, Mass.

The night before each game, we told the players that we would pray as a team before the Blessed Sacrament. The night before the first game, one senior stopped me outside the chapel.

‘Coach, can I talk to you?’ he asked. Of course, I said, and asked him what was on his mind.

‘I’m an atheist and I don’t believe in God,’ he replied.

‘That’s okay. God believes in you,’ I said. Paul came into the chapel and sat in the back with his head down. He was quiet and respectful, but he didn’t pray with the team. This continued as the season went on. By game 6, I saw Paul sitting in the back of the chapel with his head up and mouthing the prayers with the rest of his teammates. I didn’t say anything. Then the night before game 10, Paul was waiting for me outside the chapel.

‘Coach, can I talk to you?’ he asked. Of course, I replied.

‘My grandmother is a devout Catholic and the faith means the world to her. Can I lead the team in prayer in the chapel?” he asked.

That night a young man who had told me he was an atheist was now leading his teammates in prayer before Our Good Lord in the Blessed Sacrament.”