Holy Hill, Batman!

So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.

- Ephesians 2.19-22

On June 18 of this year professional golfer Bruce Koepka won the 117th United States Open with a cumulative score of sixteen under, four strokes better than his nearest competitor. This left him thirty-eight strokes ahead of last-place finisher Hao-Tong Li who clocked out at twenty-two strokes over par.

But both Koepka and Hao-Tong, and every golfer in between, had access to one resource: Every player who shanked and sliced his way around the eighteen holes of the Erin Hills golf course in Wisconsin, as he addressed the ball from the eighteenth hole tee-box, could catch sight of the twin spires of Holy Hill Church, a Catholic basilica that soars into the skies above the fairway. It actually sits three miles from the country club but occupies the highest ground in that part of the state, so that players can glimpse it from thirteen holes on the course. The fifteen friars who minister there schedule multiple extra masses throughout the three days of the competition and usually notice several pros in the congregation. Attendance at confession also rises after each round. Because the seal of confession is sacred, no one knows exactly what sins the golfers cop to.

Of course, no one actually believes that God will place a finger on the scales of a particular competitor, but I think the visibility and, if I may use the term, “catholicity,” of the basilica offer an interesting metaphor for prayer: Through Jesus Christ by the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, God the Father makes himself present to each of us in the midst of our trials and struggles. If we employ Paul’s metaphor, not only are we welcome to this temple: we are this temple! We, together, the body of the saints living and departed, comprise this place of holy refuge. A few thoughts, then, from the metaphor of Holy Hill:

• The church should be visible from every vantage point of the daily business of life. God does not care about golf; Christ died for golfers.
• The church should be available to every person without distinction regardless of their place on the world’s leader board.
• The church should be approachable to those who bring their struggles and stumbles before the throne. Our God is the God of the sand traps and the rough just as much as the fairways and the greens.

         God calls the church to be the city set on the holy hill whose light cannot be hidden, but which instead beckons to champions, duffers, and everyone in between.

For more information, see For Golfers Who Curse Their Play at the US Open, There's Always Holy Hill