Nonviolence and Catholic school sport: recommendations for supporting mission as drawn from a historical case study

Abstract

For centuries, Catholic schools have promoted extra-curricular activity as a means to develop well-rounded students. Sports programming has been a vital aspect of this work, but there is little research into how these programmes can support the combined educational-religious missions of the schools. In response, this paper relies on archival and interview research to present a historical case study of Canadian coach-educator Father David Bauer, who spent his lifetime as a Basilian priest educating through sport in the face of its violent tendencies. We discuss how Bauer, as an educator and prominent international figure in ice hockey, identified difficulties arising from violence over several decades. Influenced by his military experience and his religious community’s educational charism, we see how Bauer drew from a Basilian intellectual tradition and other experiences to push back against several types of violence arising in sport: physical, psychological, structural, media-driven, and others. The paper concludes with seven recommendations of nonviolence for Catholic school sports programmes, where leaders can learn from Bauer’s story and enable programmes of human development and bridge-building, and thereby, positively enhance school mission.

Keywords:

• Nonviolence
• leadership
• accompaniment
• sport
• Catholic schools

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Ethical approval for the study was obtained by the University of Alberta Research Ethics Office (Study ID: Pro00079419).

2 Bobby Bauer became an all-star in the NHL and won two Stanley Cup Championships playing for the Boston Bruins. Significantly, he was a three-time winner of the Lady Byng trophy, which is an annual NHL award given to one player for a high standard of play and sportsmanship.

3 The Basilian confrere was Father James Hanrahan, who became the superior general of the religious community in the 1970s. The other co-author was a former National Team member Brian Conacher, who also played for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL.

4 This Basilian intellectual tradition was anchored in the Pontifical Institute for Medieval Studies at the University of St Michael’s College in Toronto. Maritain, Etienne Gilson, and others lectured there and heavily influenced the religious community. The Basilian sporting tradition, the specific historical details of which I have not presented here, are discussed in more detail elsewhere: Hoven, 2022, 1–19.

5 McLuhan joined St Michael’s in 1946 and taught in its faculty for decades (website).

6 Thomistic thinking follows thirteenth-century philosopher St Thomas Aquinas, who created an Aristotelian-Christian synthesis of thought that many like Maritain employed in their consideration of contemporary philosophical and societal problems.

7 Bauer shared lists of books he thought his friends and hockey associates should read. In this case, he had an excerpt from Ellul’s work typed and distributed to others. It was found in Box 4, File 5 in the Bauer fonds at the General Archives of the Basilian Fathers located in Toronto, Canada.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by a STIR Grant from St. Joseph’s College, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada.

Notes on contributors

Matt Hoven

Matt Hoven is Peter and Doris Kule Chair of Religious Education at St. Joseph’s College, University of Alberta at Edmonton, Canada. His works often examine the intersection of education, religion, and sport. He has published articles in the Journal of Catholic Education, Journal of Religious Education, Practical Theology, Sport in Society, and International Journal of the History of Sport. His most recent book is co-authored, On the Eighth Day: A Catholic Theology of Sport (Cascade, 2022) and his forthcoming book is titled, The Canadian Hockey Alternative: Father Bauer's Plans to Change Canadian Hockey. Matt collaborates locally with Catholic schools and lives in Edmonton with his wife Crystal and their children.