Hi Everyone~ I apologize for gap between the last post and now. I was extremely busy navigating the perils of college midterms and was consumed by a constant stream of notes and studying.
Being in the middle of the NFL season, I am going to make this blog about the famous Green Bay Packers Coach Vince Lombardi. Regardless of your knowledge of specific NFL facts, the name “Vince Lombardi” almost always comes to mind. He is known for his charisma while coaching and how he “didn’t treat any player differently, he treated them all like dogs.” Here are some quick career statistics and interesting tidbits about Vince Lombardi:
- Coached 2 NFL teams (Green Bay Packers and Washington Redskins for 1 year before his passing)
- .738 career winning %
- 2 Super Bowl Championships (3 NFL Championships before it was called the Super Bowl)
- 96 career wins
Another constant in Vince’s life was his Catholic faith. Growing up, Vince was the oldest of 5 children. As a teenager, he studied for the Priesthood for two years until eventually dropping out. From there, he went on to become a teacher and coach for 8 years at St. Cecilia High School in NJ. As his career took off, Vince never lost that Catholic faith with which he was raised. Even as the highly venerated coach of the Green Bay Packers, Vince ALWAYS found time to make it do daily and Sunday mass at St. Willebrord Church in Green Bay. (I found this particularly interesting because St. Willebrord has been and still is the “Church of choice” for many Packers). Vince would often have the entire team in Sunday morning mass before a big game, which I also found humorous. Overall, I was particularly amazed with how Vince was able to combine his passion for coaching Football with his deep and devout Catholic Faith, all through his life.
The first book I present to you today is a biography on Vince Lombardi titled “When Pride Still Mattered : A Life Of Vince Lombardi“. After doing much research to find this book, I feel like this is a book that truly captures all the different aspects that were crucial to Vince’s life as a player and person. I must admit I have not read this book to give a more personal reflection, but I believe that any football fan should read about one of the game’s all-time greatest coaches. Check it out and Let me know how you like the book.
Another Constant in Vince’s life, besides Football, was attending Mass virtually every day. The second book I am showing off today is called “Behold the Mystery: A Deeper Understanding of the Catholic Mass“. This is a fairly new book, only having been published in March of 2014. I personally find that although many teens (myself included) attend mass weekly, we still have questions about what the Priest is saying, what the Priest is wearing or even why the Priest does what he does in the context of the Mass. This book is a great explanation of the various “mysteries” that surround the Catholic Mass for many young people. Looks to be a great read!
Thanks for reading and Patronize with the vendors in the links if possible!
~God Bless
Catholic Athlete Book Connect 