Angelus News | September 6, 2024 | Vol. 9 No. 18

Paul Church near Mid-City Los Angeles
has allowed him a new opportunity
this season: becoming the chaplain for
the LA Rams.
“The main role is celebration of the
Mass,” Kim said. “But as I get to know
them more, there might be more
opportunities for me to do more things
with them. Talk over various issues
they’re dealing with, if they need some
kind of spiritual guidance. Or perhaps
there might be players who might be
planning to get married, I’ll be open to
help them with marriage prep.”
Kim believes his age and being a
relatively new priest will help him with
players.
“Players might find me more relatable
because I’m around their age group,”
Kim said. “Sometimes that happens at
a parish level with the young adults or
youth, they tend to relate more to the
younger [priests]. So I’m thinking probably
the same will be for the players.”
For Father Preston Passos, pastor at St.
Mary Magdalen Church in Camarillo,
this is like a rookie season, having celebrated
his first Mass this summer for
the Cowboys with Head Coach Mike
McCarthy at their training camp in
Oxnard. Passos said he would definitely
do it again for NFL teams if asked,
especially if it involved his favorite, the
Pittsburgh Steelers.
“When they asked me, I was excited
about it,” Passos said. “I had no anticipation
of doing that ever.
“If there’s any other Masses, especially
with the Steelers in town, they would
call me.”
The force behind the ministry is a
group called Catholic Athletes for
It all comes
back to
Vin Scully
Catholic Athletes for Christ (CAC) organizes Masses
for every Major League Baseball franchise, including
the Los Angeles Dodgers. Nearly everyone who has
served or attended Mass at Dodger Stadium revels in the
moments of seeing — and most importantly — hearing
Vin Scully proclaim the word of God as a lector.
“You are nervous because it’s Vin Scully,” Father Richard
Sunwoo said. “If you’ve grown up listening to the Dodgers,
it’s just, ‘Oh, there’s a walking legend right there’ and he’s
telling you he’s going to do the first reading.”
For Sunwoo, it was an experience like no other.
“When the opportunity arose for me to help with Masses,
I was super excited,” he said. “You’re led down that tunnel
and you’ve got this pass on your neck. I looked like a
first-grader going to class for the first time, your eyes are big
and wide. You’re just passing by the Hall of Fame trophies,
the bats, you’re seeing the jerseys on the wall. Then you’re
called to celebrate Mass and it’s a surreal experience when
Vin walks through the door and you just don’t know what
to say.”
Ray McKenna, the founder and president of Catholic
Athletes for Christ, credited Scully with helping his organization
immensely, capped by the legendary broadcaster
recording a two-disc CD of him reciting the rosary. The
recording, which is still available to purchase, is used to
raise funds for CAC.
“He sent a thank you note and a contribution to our mission,
to our ministry, saying, ‘I want to tell you how important
it is for me to have the Mass at the stadium and how
much I enjoy being part of this. And I really just want to
The late Vin Scully during an interview for the baseball documentary “Soul of a Champion:
The Gil Hodges Story,” produced by Spirit Juice Studios in association with Catholic
Athletes for Christ | CNS/COURTESY SPIRIT JUICE STUDIOS
express my thanks.’ That was such an incredible moment.”
Even visiting players attending Mass at Dodger Stadium
were blown away, McKenna said.
“They came back and I don’t really have words to describe
how elated they were going to a Mass where Vin Scully was
a lector,” he said. “One of them said, ‘It was amazing, Ray.
It was like listening to God read the Old Testament.’ ”
— Mike Cisneros
12 • ANGELUS • September 6, 2024