The Church and the Super Bowl
Posted by T.J. Cofield on February 7th, 2010
Editor’s note: This is T.J. Cofield’s response to the question “How should the church respond to the Super Bowl?” from our Super Bowl XLIV survey.
This question falls under a larger umbrella of a question, which is, “How should the church respond to our culture?” One of the best Christian responses to this question is still H. Richard Niebuhr’s Christ and Culture. In Christ and Culture, Niebuhr identifies five overarching responses that Christianity has made to the culture surrounding it, running the gamut from outright rejection to qualified embrace. One lesson I always took from Niebuhr’s argument was that sometimes, each response can be the right response. So, let’s consider this:
1) What should we reject?
It is statistically said that Super Bowl Sunday is the holiday where Americans consume the largest amount of food. For Americans, that is no small superlative. Further, corporations are going to spend (well, already HAVE spent) millions of dollars in order to gain 30 seconds to convince you that your life is incomplete without a certain beverage, car, or service.
Excess, excess, excess. That’s the unfortunate side effect of such a large event. Sunday, we will be all too tempted to once again gorge ourselves on food and distraction. If the world of 2010 is teaching us anything, it is that we can’t afford our own fatness anymore. I’m not talking about physical obesity, although that is another grave concern in America. I’m talking about the fatness that comes from stuff – the latest gadgets, the latest clothes, the latest cars, and so on. While we wonder if our moms and dads will provide us with a few spare twenties for spring break, kids in Haiti are wondering where their moms and dads are. While we go hunting for that new plasma TV, kids in Trenton, NJ are hunting for a place to crash for the night. With so much work that God wants us to be doing in the world, we could stand to lose a few material pounds to be in better shape for the job.
Jesus often told people that wanted to follow him more closely that they needed to shed some of their poundage, too. In Luke 18, a rich young ruler comes seeking after Jesus. Christ tells him that he has one more thing to do – sell all that he has and give it to the poor. Again, when Jesus sends out the first disciples to their ministry fields in Luke 9, he even goes so far as to tell them not to take more than one set of clothes with them, or even money or food. So if I, T.J. Cofield, say that all of Jesus Christ is more than enough for all of me, how much is my lifestyle telling me that I’m lying? A sobering thought about some of what we see and consider every Super Bowl Sunday.
2) What should we embrace?
The Super Bowl is the dream of many young boys in America. Dreaming of playing in that game has kept many kids out of gangs and in school. The opportunity to play football has provided many young men the opportunity to seek higher education when there otherwise might not be a way. The NCAA estimates that college football is one of the greatest contributors to funding America’s higher education system.
As for the NFL, these teams can provide hope for the cities that cheer them. Need proof? Look no further than the NFC Champion New Orleans Saints. For a city still staggering in the destruction of Hurricane Katrina, the Saints success has been a ray of hope, a sign that the city can make a comeback. And as far as heroes, the city has been given one in the form of QB Drew Brees. Brees has been involved in the city’s recovery efforts since his arrival in 2006. Along with his wife, Brittany, he founded the Brees Dream Foundation, which has formed a partnership with Operation Kids in New Orleans to help restore educational and recreational spaces in the city.
The word “hope” has become a bit cliched and over-politicized in the past few years, but sports have always been a place where hope is (or at least should be) nurtured and taught. St. Paul tells us in 1 Corinthians 13 that in the end, three things will remain: faith, love, and yes, hope. Hope is what we have in Jesus Christ, and even in the spectacle and violence of football, Christ can work hope in the lives of people of all walks.
Tags: Super Bowl XLIV
Loading ...
Very thoughtful observations. Thanks, TJ.
We can attest first-hand the hope that Drew Brees and his Saints have brought to a beleaguered city. We’re happy to see the city of New Orleans get some news beyond Hurricane Katrina, and we can attest that Drew Brees is truly the “genuine man” – his heart is focused on New Orleans and its children as much as it is focused on football.
And what better secular example of greatness and hope than that?