Well, as my loyal readers know, we most definitely watched the Super Bowl last night, but it was not in high definition as our "nice" tv is still at the repair shop. (We've heard no word...I have a feeling that's not good news in this case.) We did however, bring the old 27" tv downstairs so that we didn't have to squint all night. The game was great and the win was wonderful. The evening was a success. Andrew is having a particularly good sports year as two of his teams have now won the top titles in their respective sports, the St. Louis Cardinals and now the Indianapolis Colts.
We obviously enjoyed watching the game, but it was the post-game interviews that struck me. I have enjoyed being a fan of the Colts because they are a classy organization amongst a sometimes pretty "thuggish" NFL. Players like Peyton Manning and Marvin Harrison are hall of fame-worthy players, yet are clean cut, well-spoken, intelligent and humble men who are team players when so many others around them are in the game for glory and fame. The owner of the Colts, Jim Irsay and Head Coach Tony Dungy are also classy men who aren't afraid to express their faith in Christ in front of millions. And they did just that.
In the post-game interview, CBS sports reporter Jim Nantz asked Coach Dungy a question regarding the social significance of his win as the first African-American head coach to win a Super Bowl. Below is the question and response:
"Jim Nantz of CBS Sports: This is one of those moments, Tony, where there is also social significance in this victory, and to have your hands on the Vince Lombardi Trophy. Tell me what this means to you right now.
Tony Dungy: I'll tell you what. I'm proud to be representing African-American coaches, to be the first African-American to win this. It means an awful lot to our country. But again, more than anything, I've said it before, Lovie Smith and I, not only the first two African-Americans, but Christian coaches showing that you can win doing it the Lord's way. And we're more proud of that."
What a great testimony that is. But not everyone wants the world to hear it. According to a WorldNetDaily article:
"The Associated Press reported Dungy's comments about God in stories it moved on its wire service, but the Bloomberg News Service only published the portion regarding African-Americans, and edited out the mention of Christian coaches."
So much for free speech.
4 comments:
I'm gonna get a lot of indignant responses for this ("how DARE you attack the Lord in such vile fashion!!111!!") but what they hell.
1. Christianity played no part in the Super Bowl apart from the fact that the coaches were Christian.
2. Why would they be "afraid to express their faith in Jesus" when most of the people watching also share this faith?
3. Jesus had no affect whatsoever on the outcome of the game. Both teams prayed to god to win, and only one team won.
4. The coach did not have his free speech violated. He said what he had to say and the media reported on what they believed was newsworthy. It's just not that interesting that the coaches happen to be religious.
5. Why the hell is it called "Super Bowl" anyway?
Sorry for the rudenss of this comment, I just think it's quite funny how people can still, in the 21st century, connect two completely unrelated things like religion and sport.
Jaacob,
I don't have time enough to respond right now...got a busy day of appointments ahead, but I'll get back to you on your points.
I'll start by saying that perhaps the title of the post wasn't perfect, but I wasn't feeling all that clever.
Check back...I'm not ignoring you!
Okay, here's the much-anticipated response to Jacob:
First, I have a request. Jacob, you're welcome to stop by and comment, but please leave the profanity behind. While "hell" isn't the worst profanity out there, I prefer none at all.
Now to respond to your points.
1. You're right to a certain extent. I don't necessarily think that God really cared who won the Super Bowl. It's probably not His top priority. However, both head coaches made a point of expressing their faith in Christ, and so in that way, Christianity, and the role that it played in how both coaches approached their jobs and their lives did play a role in this particular Super Bowl. That's all I meant, but I can see how you might have interpreted the title differently.
2. I don't think either coach was "afraid" to express his faith. However, all too often, Christians keep their faith in God to themselves, rather than risk offending someone else. Political correctness sometimes keeps Christians from speaking out, and it was refreshing to hear these two high-profile gentlemen unashamedly express their faith. In this case, "afraid" didn't literally mean fearful.
3. I agree with you on this point. I don't think God really cared who won the Super Bowl, nor did I even intend to give that impression.
4. I disagree with you here. Maybe his free speech wasn't violated, but there was an intentional attempt to disregard any reference to Christianity. It happens all the time in the American media, more and more frequently, and most often when the person being quoted is Christian. Do you think that if Coach Dungy was Muslim that the press would have left off the thanks to Allah? Somehow I doubt it. This comment really was intended to point out the bias of the American media against Christianity in particular.
5. I didn't name the Super Bowl, so I can't answer that one. Maybe someone else can provide the history of the name.
So in summary, you say that it's surprising that people can connect two seemingly unconnected things like sports and religion. Well, they were connected in this case, just not in the way you were interpreting it. Perhaps my writing wasn't all that clear. I don't think God was influencing the Super Bowl, just the lives of the coaches and in a sport that celebrates show-boating, sometimes criminal players, it was refreshing to hear some uplifting, positive messages from the team leaders. Is that better?
I will pledge to limit use of the word 'hell' when religious fundamentalists see the irony of getting offended by its use when their own Bible is rife with such terms.
As for your points, I'll concede points 1, 2 and 3 as we are basically on the same wavelength with regards to god's involvement in the outcome of the game.
As for point 4, I'm still of the view that the reason Christianity wasn't directly mentioned in the particular articles you referenced was because it just wasn't newsworthy.
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