Omaha seminarian Andrew Roza protects the goal during a recent game in the Clericus Cup, a soccer tournament for seminarians, taking place in Rome.
Omaha seminarian excels
in Rome soccer tournament Special competition builds fraternity between colleges By LISA MAXSON Catholic Voice
Omaha seminarian Andrew Roza, a goalie for the North American Martyrs soccer team in Rome, made a brilliant save during the opening soccer match of the first Clericus Cup, the soccer tournament exclusively for priests and seminarians.
Roza, who will be ordained a priest for the Archdiocese of Omaha in June, is on the team for the Pontifical North American College, the U.S. seminary in Rome. His team is one of 16 playing for the championship series. The series opened Feb. 24 and goes through June. His team will play almost every Saturday until the end of April, at which time playoffs will begin.
Roza has been a member of the seminary's soccer team since he arrived in Rome in the fall of 2003. Despite being asthmatic, Roza has been able to play goalkeeper on the team, a position that doesn't require much running.
"I really enjoy playing keeper. I've always had something of a natural capability there, so getting back in goal feels good," he wrote in an e-mail to the Catholic Voice.
Before the Cup, North American College had an informal team that practiced three times a week for several weeks, but now during the tourney, they practice twice a week with games on Saturdays. During the year, the team practices once a week for about three months with about five to six games against various colleges of religious orders.
"It's always a privilege to have the opportunity to play against seminarians and priests from all over the world, but it certainly is different having it occur in this kind of setting," Roza said.
What makes the Clericus Cup different from other tournaments, Roza said, is that it's under the auspices of the Italian Bishops Conference and the Vatican, with the specific encouragement of Cardinal Bertone, the Cardinal Secretary of State. As such, teams have been able to get sponsors who have provided uniforms and warm up suits, he said. The event is sponsored by the Catholic Italian Sports Center.
Having so much press coverage makes this tournament different, too, he said.
"At our first game it seemed as though there were photographers everywhere," he said. "Normally our soccer games help to build fraternity between ourselves and the other colleges, but in this tournament, it also is clear that there is a witness being given to the world about the church and its future."
Roza said he's glad people are talking about the Clericus Cup because it provides publicity for the church that isn't so serious.
"The secular news tends to mention the church when it is announcing a moral teaching or when there is scandal. If that's all the regular person is hearing about the church, then they probably have a hard time imagining representatives of the church actually having a good time, or doing something considered 'normal'," he said. "People need to see the 'normal' side of their priests sometimes, and this is a really healthy way to do that."
Roza said he also thinks the tournament is a fantastic way for people to see the universality of the church. In this tourney, 50 countries are represented, and in a recent game there were players from five continents on the field.
"I'm not sure that would happen anywhere but in the city of Rome in an event sponsored by the Catholic Church," he said.
