Religion and sports, friend or foe?

Hey kids... me again...

So on my way to work this afternoon (work hours are a bit weird for me on Fridays), I saw a church in Saline on Michigan Avenue with a very intriguing quote. Typically their advertising board is saved for scripture quotes or blessings or prayers for church members. This time it doesn't.

Instead it says something like... Lions 0-16, Jesus undefeated. So who really deserves your devotion on Sundays?

I mean that isn't what it says exactly. What they have is very witty and awesome. But it did get me to thinking.... do sports and religion clash?

In the long drawn out history of sports, there have always been certain aspects of sports that disagree with the fundamentals of religion. For one, the Romans became very open-minded to different practices and faiths right around the same time the Colosseum was the hottest thing since winged sandals.

And even today, sports like football and hockey have a major violent component that can't be avoided. That isn't to say there aren't religious athletes in sports, because a lot of them actually are. Why else do most NFL victory dances in the end zone include a Catholic cross of the chest or a finger to the sky, as if to say, "Thanks, God. Thanks for giving me this touchdown." In all honesty, I don't think God is the one pulling for your game. I'm pretty sure He doesn't have a favorite NFL team (although if He did it would probably be the Patriots, let's be honest).

Sometimes it's easy to get caught up in sports and develop a certain level of devotion-like behavior. They're a way for human beings to fulfill their psychological need to belong. It's one of the five rungs of human needs... right up there with sustenance, safety, and love. People like to be a part of something, and sports is one of the most common ways to do that in a collective community sense. Which is why, week after week, the whole of Milan, Chelsea, Saline, etc. show up to the high school football games, even if they don't have a player on the field. They go because the whole town goes. And the middle schoolers go to make out under the bleachers. It's just science.

But it's interesting to me that religion and sports could be frenemies in several ways, just due to the dedication sport requires and the attention it can take away from other focuses. I've never really thought about the fact that Sunday worship and NFL football conflict... probably because I don't go to church every Sunday and I don't watch NFL football. (It isn't a sport thing, it's a league thing. I never got into professional sports. I'm college sports all the way.) But for a lot of people, I can see this really being an issue... possibly even a source of dispute amongst families.

What they have in common is the development of trust and relationships with teammates. Athletes know about hard work, working for something greater than yourself, and putting others first. So that lines up okay. It's the hitting and rivalries with opponents that aren't always necessarily the kindliest of actions.

I think in a lot of ways today, sports and religion are forced to get along because they have no other choice. They're like mother-in-laws. They both think they know best how to take care of so and so, and they'll indirectly affect as much as they can to get their way. If the world we live in today places a major importance on sports (which it does), then religion adapts. That's the one thing about religions that are universal from faith to faith. Humans evolve, and religion evolves with us. If religion didn't evolve, I'd still be living at home and waiting for a pretty bounty to be placed on my "dowry."

As society and its rules change, so do the faiths we put our hearts and minds into. And instead, faith finds its way into the various common aspects we come to enjoy. There's room for everyone, sports included. Plus, I'm pretty sure the Lions winning would deserve a major nod upstairs.