Coach Lou Calls Catholics Home

Have you seen Lou Holtz’s commercial on Catholic faith?

If you watched any of the bowl games on New Year’s Day, you probably did. If you didn’t, click on this link so you can be familiar.

So what did you think? Coach Lou gives a solid message doesn’t he? When I first heard the ad on TV, the phrase that hooked me was, “for victory in life we’ve got to keep focused on the goal, and the goal is heaven.”

That’s a phrase you don’t normally hear during a football game. What you usually hear on football game commercials involve some alcoholic beverage, an overpriced vehicle, a comical remark that is unrelated to the product the commercial promotes (i.e. “tape a cheetah to her back”) or something else we shouldn’t promote on this site.

I liked the commercial. Yes, Coach Lou is hard to understand, and those of us who are familiar with his football commentary on ESPN have developed a sense of not taking him too seriously, especially considering his biasness toward Notre Dame.

There’s much I could say about the Catholic faith that I don’t find agreeable. However, there is much featured in this commercial I do find amenable.

“Sacrifice, discipline and prayer are essential,” said Holtz. “We gain strength through God’s word. And when we fumble due to sin – and it’s gonna happen – confession puts us back on the field.”

I left out Lou’s statement, “We receive grace through the sacrament.” The Southern Baptist in me wouldn’t be in agreement with this. Grace isn’t received through eating a wafer or drinking a cup. However, I am a firm believer (as well as a recipient) of God’s grace.

Also, it has been brought to my attention that terminology would be sketchy on how to view confession. But I do agree with Lou that sin does happen, and we ALL sin (Rom. 3:23).

Here’s what I really want to say about the commercial. I hope it is shown more often. More than that, I hope Evangelical Christian groups draw from its influence and make their own commercials.

I realize this commercial may have been spurred by the many Mormon commercials we have seen over the past years, and that’s fine. I would much rather see Lou in the locker room than the deception featured in those ads.

At a time when the Christian faith is being challenged by American culture, specifically in the political realm and the television and film industry, it would be a great encouragement from current leaders of our faith to send out a popular message to the masses during key television viewing periods, whether it’s the Super Bowl, March Madness or even Thursday nights “Must See TV.”

If the purpose of the Coach Lou ad is to encourage Catholics to “come home,” Evangelicals should be challenged to make a similar appeal.