Religion and the game of football

Posted at 12:28 PM on November 30, 2011 by Bob Collins (6 Comments)
Filed under: Religion, Sports

Tim Tebow, the Denver Broncos quarterback who'll play the Vikings this Sunday, turns a lot of people off with his high-profile prosthelytizing.

"If you're married, and you have a wife, and you really love your wife, is it good enough to only say to your wife 'I love her' the day you get married? Or should you tell her every single day when you wake up and every opportunity? And that's how I feel about my relationship with Jesus Christ is that it is the most important thing in my life," he said last week while rebutting criticism that he's more pastor than passer.

"There's no reason to be repulsed by it," Rabbi Brad Hirschfield said yesterday on his weekly video presentation for the Washington Post. "Unless and until it becomes not just an expression of faith but a demand that others share in that faith -- at that point we should not just be repulsed by it, we should actually stop it."

Even Kurt Warner, another quarterback who regularly mixes religion and football, has suggested Tebow tone it down.

"I know what he's going through, and I know what he wants to accomplish, but I don't want anybody to become calloused toward Tim because they don't understand him, or are not fully aware of who he is. And you're starting to see that a little bit."

You think?

While there are plenty of calls in the media for Tebow to tone it down, the headline writers aren't ready to disconnect Tebow from his religion.

Take the Star Tribune today:

Resurrected defense puts Tebow in position to succeed. Apparently it's a defense that might crucify the Vikings.

On Monday morning, after a prayerful Tebow watched a field goal win it for his team, the Star Tribune got a "two for" in the headline:

The Star Tribune, of course, isn't the only newspaper in the country linking Tebow's religion to his performance. The New York Post headline after the Broncos beat the Jets last week referred to him as "divine."

The Daily News ran this route:

The Denver victory could have been sweet retribution for Tebow for this game-preview cover on the Post:

The local scribes haven't yet played with the obvious headline for the upcoming Vikings-Tebow game. Perhaps they're saving that for Monday morning, after Tebow plays a team whose quarterback is named Christian.

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Comments (6)

The fact that he prays to win games and then wins them is incontrovertible proof that Christianity is the One True Religion. No one can dispute that!

Posted by Uncle Bobby | November 30, 2011 1:04 PM

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I always thought this is true of many players, but he almost is the golden calf.

Posted by Vjacobsen | November 30, 2011 1:06 PM

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// The fact that he prays to win games

Nobody really knows that he prays "to win games." He may well pray for the strength to win games.

The question of whether there is or isn't a God isn't really part of the question, unless as the rabbi said, he's forcing the rest of us to accept his answer to the question.

Posted by Bob Collins | November 30, 2011 1:22 PM

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God could care less about football. He is, however, a big tennis fan.

Posted by Jim Shapiro | November 30, 2011 1:43 PM

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I feel like some spotlight should be shown on an up-and-comer in the college hockey world- Rocco Grimaldi. Originally from California, he moved to Michigan to learn to play better. He is now a Freshman playing for North Dakota and was expected to be named the WCHA Rookie of the year (however he hasn't quite been living up to the on-ice potential).
He has, however, created a lot of waves with his Twitter preaches- such as telling women to cover up for God.

Posted by BenCh | November 30, 2011 2:54 PM

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BenCh - Word has it that Saudi Arabia has applied for an NHL franchise. They're gonna call the team The Mecca Mullahs.

Posted by Jim Shapiro | November 30, 2011 7:21 PM

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