(LifeSiteNews) — Retired NBA player Gordon Hayward entered the Catholic Church as a convert to the faith, receiving his first sacraments last week in Rome.
On October 1, Archbishop Timothy Broglio welcomed the former NBA player into the Catholic Church at the Basilica of Saint Sebastian Outside the Walls in Rome, according to a press release from the Archdiocese for the Military Services.
“Nunc Coepi,” Hayward posted on Instagram, which translates to “Now it begins.”
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Hayward, 34, retired from professional basketball in August after a 14-year career with the Utah Jazz, Boston Celtics, Charlotte Hornets, and Oklahoma City Thunder.
Now he begins a new path of life as a Catholic.
During the Holy Mass, Hayward, a father of four, made a Profession of Faith and received the Sacraments of Confirmation and his First Holy Communion. Hayward was accompanied to Rome by his wife, Robyn, and his two oldest daughters.
Hayward came into the Catholic Church after preparing through the Order of Christian Initiation for Adults (OCIA) under the instruction of Father Marcel Taillon, who serves Archbishop Broglio as director of vocations for the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA.
The location of his entrance into the Catholic Church held special meaning as Hayward chose to place himself under the patronage of St. Sebastian, choosing the Roman army officer martyred under the Roman Empire as his Confirmation saint. The choice was fitting, especially considering St. Sebastian is the patron of athletes and soldiers.
Having his initiation into the Catholic Church at the Basilica of Saint Sebastian meant that Hayward could visit the remains of the saint in a sarcophagus in a side chapel of the Basilica.
Hayward’s conversion to Catholicism was celebrated by his wife, a practicing Catholic who has been bringing their children up in the faith.
“Gordon joined the Catholic Church this week and why not convert in Rome?” she posted on Instagram. “It was so incredible, the Arch Bishop of the US military confirmed him into the Church. What a true blessing! So many great seminarians and priests helped with the service and made it possible!”
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