Americans have a new religious hero, Sr. Jean Dolores-Schmidt, a 98-year old nun who has served as the chaplain to the Loyola-Chicago men’s basketball team for 25 years.
The team made it into the national collegiate championship tournament, known as “March Madness,” and scored two upset victories in the first weekend of tournament play. Many of the players attributed the surprise wins to the influence of Sr. Jean.
Congrats to @LoyolaChicago and Sister Jean for a last-second upset - I had faith in my pick!
— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) March 15, 2018
Sr. Jean sits in her wheelchair beside the court for every game and prays with them team members before the start of play. “In the middle of her prayer, there’s a scouting report mixed in,” said Clayton Custer in an interview. “She tells us who their best players are and what to watch out for. Sometimes she’ll pray for the referee to make the right calls.”
Speaking to reporters, Sr. Jean said of her pre-game prayer, “I told them that we were going to win, that we could do it and that God would be on our side.” The team plays the University of Nevada in Atlanta on Thursday night. “It just means so much,” the nun said. “I didn’t expect to see this happen in my lifetime.”
Sr Jean is interviewed following her team's surprise win last week ©YouTube
PICTURE: Sr Jean ©YouTube
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