Yesterday was Super Sunday.
In fact, it was not the first Super Sunday (now counting: L or 50, as
they are calling it). I went to our
Recreation Center where I saw a bunch of college students…mostly junior and
senior athletes on my campus. As I
looked out over their young faces, I realized they never knew life without
professional football’s Super Sunday. In
their lives there has always been a Super Bowl!
I think they were a little stunned when I told them I
remembered a time in American history when there was no Super Bowl! Of course, that makes me at least 50 years
old! In fact, it is a little difficult
for me to remember those days. But I do
recall (I think) the third Super Bowl (III).
That was the year Joe Namath, quarterback for the New York Jets,
prophetically called the victory over the Baltimore Colts, the heavy
favorite. More than anything, that
probably made the Super Bowl what it was to become.
Yesterday each thirty-second commercial costs $5,000,000! That blows away my mind. $5,000.000 is a great deal of money. But then, you think, that is for one 30
second commercial. One minute equals
even more! And sometimes, there are four
or six commercials in a row. Some people
even watch the game only to see the commercials.
Obviously, an extravaganza like the Super Bowl causes me to
think about the potential overlap of sports and religion…or in some cases,
probably the fact that sports comes very close to being a pseudo religion. I am not the first one to sense this correlation
(or confusion). I have participated in
both enterprises. I played sports. And I have pursued religion.
Let’s look at both arenas.
In the first place, I am intrigued that we talk about “playing”
sports. But I do not recall hearing
anyone talk about “playing” religion.
That could mean many things. It
means for me that sports have a role; they can be fun, etc. But sports have no ultimate value or meaning
(knowing full well some would disagree with me). Most folks I know would claim religion is
more than “play.” Religion is not an
interlude in my day…an interlude between working, eating, and resting. Most importantly for me, religion has an
ultimate quality about it. It is
serious; sometimes, it is deadly serious.
At times, it can and should be fun, but it also goes beyond mere
fun. It has a meaning and purpose both
in this life and, maybe, in the next life as well.
A second thing that occurs to us if we compare sports and
religion is the event itself. As I sat
and watched the Super Bowl, I did not get to participate…except
vicariously. I never tackled nor did I
get tackled! I threw no pass and made no
runs. I committed no errors and was not
interviewed after the game.
But every time I practice religion, I am more than a
spectator. I participate. I pray.
I have the experience…and it is not just vicarious. I am “in the game.” There are rules to follow, just as there are
in sports. But the rules of religion are
more profound. A couple of the rules of
my religion require that I be a loving person.
In fact, one of the rules says that I have to love my enemy! Now that’s a real difference. In football I get to tackle my opponent. I get to beat him. Sometimes I can even humiliate him!
But religion is different.
Instead of going for my opponent’s throat, I offer him or her my
heart. Instead of knocking them down, I
bend down in order to pick up the downtrodden.
In fact, in my religion there is the real possibility that there will be
no losers! I mean, with a loving God
going around being gracious…who knows.
I like sports. I
played sports and enjoyed it. I watch
them and still enjoy them. I watched the
Super Bowl. It is ok with me if it is
Super Sunday! That does not mean Easter
was a joke…it just was not super.
And that’s religion’s secret. In professional football only one Sunday a
year gets to be “super.” In religion
every Sunday is significant. In fact,
every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday is
significant. Super Bowl gave us a winner for the year. Religion gives us a blessing every
day…forever…
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