Sunday, August 21, 2016

Usain Bolt: A Catholic Athlete Who Wears The Miraculous Medal

Since 2008, Usain Bolt has won many gold medals at the Olympic Games for the 100 Meter and 200 Meter races. There is no doubt that he is the fastest man in the world. However, many may not know about Bolt’s deep Catholic faith.

Aside from the gold medals that have been placed around his neck, he wears the "Miraculous Medal." It is a Catholic devotional medal given to Saint Catherine Laboure in a vision in 1830. The Miraculous Medal features an inscription invoking the prayerful intercession of the Lord’s Mother with these French words: “O, Marie, conçue sans péché, priez pour nous qui avons recours à vous” (“O, Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee”). The words appear over an image of Mary standing upon a half globe, hands raised up to her waist, fingers giving off rays of light. On the reverse side of the medal are twelve stars encircling a large “M” from which arises a cross. Below are two hearts with flames arising from them. Thorns encircle one heart and a sword pierces the other. In the vision, Our Lady promised that “those who wear it will receive great graces, especially if they wear it around the neck.”

As a devout Catholic, Bolt is known for making the sign of the cross before racing. Additionally, his faith and his celebrity inspired the Vatican to invite him to speak at a conference on global religious liberty.

When Bolt beat his teammate Yohan Blake in the Olympic 200 Meter final in London 2012, he made history by becoming the first man ever to defend the 200 Meter Olympic title. After the race, Bolt posted this on his Twitter account:


From Him, Through Him, For Him (Romans 11:36),

Paul J. Staso
_______________________________________

Visit my YouTube channel -- https://www.youtube.com/user/pacetrek

Click on any of the links below to see some of my adventure photos:
Posted by at
Labels: , , , , , , , , , ,