SDAs/Christians and Sports - time to re-evaluate?

[Gerr]

Quote:

So,I hear you saying that sports has become a distraction from the mundane and sometimes harsh realities of life,akin to a religious experience or even a drug. And this despite it's overall meaninglessness. I've driven that soapbox.

I wonder if sports have not also become a distraction to our spiritual life and our duty to spread the good news?

[Woody]

I think sports are cool.

Like anything done to excess ... it can be harmful.

Go Niners

[SivartM]

Didn't you say Go Colts earlier? :\

[phkrause]

Really the human body is not designed to deal with the stress and rigors of pro sports, any sport. I've heard Doctors and medical experts say this. The truth of this is evident by the number of injuries that happen. The ligaments in the knee was not designed to deal with any of the main three sports, football, basketball, and baseball. And I like sports.

Kountzer I appreciate your thoughts, but am not sure that I agree with you about are bodies not being designed to deal with the rigors and stress of sports.

pk

[phkrause]

Quote:

So,I hear you saying that sports has become a distraction from the mundane and sometimes harsh realities of life,akin to a religious experience or even a drug. And this despite it's overall meaninglessness. I've driven that soapbox.

I wonder if sports have not also become a distraction to our spiritual life and our duty to spread the good news?

I think I can agree with your point Gerry. But we can say that about almost anything.

pk

[phkrause]

Didn't you say Go Colts earlier? :\

I think woody is very wishy washy sivart

pk

[doug yowell]

Quote:

So,I hear you saying that sports has become a distraction from the mundane and sometimes harsh realities of life,akin to a religious experience or even a drug. And this despite it's overall meaninglessness. I've driven that soapbox.

I wonder if sports have not also become a distraction to our spiritual life and our duty to spread the good news?

Do you think it is coincidental that colleges which began as Christian institutions designed for better spreading the gospel are today only recognized by the accomplishments of their athletic programs? TCU,SMU,ect..Which activity do you think draws the most interest on SDA campuses? Are we immune from the inevitible response to the accalades that our society creates when a sports program becomes successful?

[doug yowell]

I think sports are cool.

Like anything done to excess ... it can be harmful.

Go Niners

Wasn't the CT article addressing what has become an excess and not merely the casual enjoyment of sports? Aren't we talking about 2 different things? I didn't read the article so I just assumed that this thread was addressing the excesses. Did I miss it?

[Kountzer]

K--, you wrote: "The 3 angels message, understood correctly, if the most relevant and important message around." WHAT? Are you telling me that someone actually understands 'correctly' the 3 angels message(s) when they have not even been given yet? Are you telling me that 'the hour of His judgment has come'? Please tell me how long is this 'hour'?

And please tell me correctly who this 'beast' is that the third angel is talking about?

When these angels do their shouting, the world will not be like it is today. I would suggest doing more study of what Jesus gave John to write in Revelation rather that studying the words of people who are long dead. After all, there was a good reason why God told Daniel that only the wise who are living during the last generation will understand--but none of the wicked will understand. To understand correctly, as you said, one must be among the wise which are the 144 thousand who are now alive.

I understand the 3 angel's message, and NO, I am not interested in some elongated msg board discussion of the topic, that stretches on ad nauseum.

[Kountzer]

Originally Posted By: Woody

I think sports are cool.

Like anything done to excess ... it can be harmful.

Go Niners

Wasn't the CT article addressing what has become an excess and not merely the casual enjoyment of sports? Aren't we talking about 2 different things? I didn't read the article so I just assumed that this thread was addressing the excesses. Did I miss it?

Nothing wrong with recreational sports. Pro sports, is another matter. Organized NCAA sports is the same thing. I base it on personal observation, & experience.

[karl]

I may be late on this, but there is a book on the topic of Christians and Sports entitled, "Good Game: Christianity and the Culture of Sports." I saw an interview with the author, Shirl Hoffman, on Fox this morning. Hoffman is most critical of football and pugilistic sports as being least compatible with Christianity.

Hoffman suggests that while evangelical Christian groups are forging connections with sports (because sports is a high-profile platform), they really don't understand the nature of sports.

In recent years the United States has seen an influx of Christian athletes and coaches into big-time sports, as well as a heightened importance placed on sports in church programs and enormous platforms for intercollegiate sports at Christian schools and colleges. However, as Hoffman points out, a Christian vision of sport remains merely superficial replete with prayers before free throws and praises after touchdowns. Games played in Christian college gymnasiums too often end up as mockeries of the faith statements given prominence in their mission statements.

After all, it's still about winning.

[doug yowell]

I may be late on this, but there is a book on the topic of Christians and Sports entitled, "Good Game: Christianity and the Culture of Sports." I saw an interview with the author, Shirl Hoffman, on Fox this morning. Hoffman is most critical of football and pugilistic sports as being least compatible with Christianity.

Hoffman suggests that while evangelical Christian groups are forging connections with sports (because sports is a high-profile platform), they really don't understand the nature of sports.

In recent years the United States has seen an influx of Christian athletes and coaches into big-time sports, as well as a heightened importance placed on sports in church programs and enormous platforms for intercollegiate sports at Christian schools and colleges. However, as Hoffman points out, a Christian vision of sport remains merely superficial replete with prayers before free throws and praises after touchdowns. Games played in Christian college gymnasiums too often end up as mockeries of the faith statements given prominence in their mission statements.

After all, it's still about winning.

On the other hand, legendary NFL running back, Duane Thomas,on the eve of the Super Bowl, once observed; "If it's so Super, why do they play it every year?"

[oldsailor29]

The scriptures do pronounce some rules of conduct in sporting events, so I would take that as approval of sporting events.

[Gerr]

Just tagging on.

Here are some things I found that may be of interest to all.

In a study done by Dr. Miracle, an anthropologist and a social scientist, he and his colleagues studied a nationally representative sample of 1600 high school seniors. They analyzed the effect of participation in varsity sports. While the character traits were affected, the effect was thought to be small. However, the direction of the effect was all negative except for one. Here is what they found varsity sports did to the students:

1. Increased aggression.

2. Increased irritability

3. Reduced honesty

4. Decreased self-control

5. Decreased independence

6. Slight increase in self-esteem.

The slight increase in self-esteem could be argued as positive or negative depending on how it is used. If used for dominance, in which athletes generally score high, then this is a minus, since this may predispose one to violence.

Reference: Rees CR, Howell FM, Miracle AW Jr. Do High school sports build character? A quasi-experiment on a national sample. Social Science Journal 1990:27(3):303-315, cited in Nedley's "Proof Postive", p.311.

[Gerr]

In the same referenced book above, here is the result of study on Canadian boys playing hockey. The more they played youth hockey, the more they:

1. Feel cheating is important.

2. Think violent behavior is lgegitimate and expected.

3. Are likely to mimic illegal tactics used by the pros on TV.

Miracle AW Jr, Rees CR. Evidence of the Myth. In: Lessons of the Locker Room: The myth of school sports. 1994. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, p.88.

[phkrause]

Just tagging on.

Here are some things I found that may be of interest to all.

In a study done by Dr. Miracle, an anthropologist and a social scientist, he and his colleagues studied a nationally representative sample of 1600 high school seniors. They analyzed the effect of participation in varsity sports. While the character traits were affected, the effect was thought to be small. However, the direction of the effect was all negative except for one. Here is what they found varsity sports did to the students:

1. Increased aggression.

2. Increased irritability

3. Reduced honesty

4. Decreased self-control

5. Decreased independence

6. Slight increase in self-esteem.

The slight increase in self-esteem could be argued as positive or negative depending on how it is used. If used for dominance, in which athletes generally score high, then this is a minus, since this may predispose one to violence.

Reference: Rees CR, Howell FM, Miracle AW Jr. Do High school sports build character? A quasi-experiment on a national sample. Social Science Journal 1990:27(3):303-315, cited in Nedley's "Proof Postive", p.311.

Even though all this is very interesting. These are all HS kids that have not developed a sound base in God. Having said that, I'd like to see this same research done on our youths in academy and see how they place. Also this would be good to do to professional athletes after they've grown up a bit since there days in HS.

pk

[Gerr]

The CT article I referred to in the opening post had this to say:

"On one level, Christians' attraction to sports is easily understood. lSports are fun and exciting; when played well and in healthy contexts, they can be constructive leisure pursuits that enrich our lives. But organized sports, played at almost every level, too often bring out the worst in us. With astonishing frequency the reputation of higher education is sullied by players', choaches', and alumni's crimes and indiscretions. Recruiting scandals, under-the-table payoffs, and academic cheating - all perpetrated in the name of athletic excellence - have become such regular features on the sports pages that we have come to accept them as the cost of Saturday afternoon entertainment."

It then proceeds to cite the case of a U. of Memphis star basketball player who had someone take the SAT for him. The coach's claim of ignorance on the matter although he had been charged with similar infractions in his previous coaching stints in other places. Doping scandals in the Tour de France. The rampant fighting in Pro Hockey, and other violent and illegal acts.

Of course, everybody has heard of steroid abuse in just about every sport by now.

[GreatLakesGramma]

Just tagging on.

Here are some things I found that may be of interest to all.

In a study done by Dr. Miracle, an anthropologist and a social scientist, he and his colleagues studied a nationally representative sample of 1600 high school seniors. They analyzed the effect of participation in varsity sports. While the character traits were affected, the effect was thought to be small. However, the direction of the effect was all negative except for one. Here is what they found varsity sports did to the students:

1. Increased aggression.

2. Increased irritability

3. Reduced honesty

4. Decreased self-control

5. Decreased independence

6. Slight increase in self-esteem.

The slight increase in self-esteem could be argued as positive or negative depending on how it is used. If used for dominance, in which athletes generally score high, then this is a minus, since this may predispose one to violence.

Reference: Rees CR, Howell FM, Miracle AW Jr. Do High school sports build character? A quasi-experiment on a national sample. Social Science Journal 1990:27(3):303-315, cited in Nedley's "Proof Postive", p.311.

Did they compare these traits in the same students before participating in sports and after, or students who were in sports with those who were not. If it was just a comparison between student athletes with student non-athletes, how would they know the difference isn't actually that the students who already had those traits are more likely to participate in team sports than those who don't?

[Gerr]

Good questions. It was a comparison of athletes and non-athletes.

[GreatLakesGramma]

That's the problem with a lot of research these days. They state a conclusion that isn't really supported by the actual data. Unless they compared before and after for the same individuals, the study actually says nothing about the effect of sports on students. The only thing it would really tell us is that athletes have different character traits than non-athletes - like we would need a study to know that! (And all the young people say "well, duh!")

[pindoc]

NFL really stands for Not For Long.

Hey, if you lust after any sport so that you're drooling, you probably have a problem. Take care of yourself; however, don't assume everyone else has the same problem.

- the log in your eye or mine, we all take turns!

Sports exist everywhere in the animal kingdom, including humans. Most sports originate in games that copied and simulated real life. They provided practice and enhanced skills needed for real life. So I believe this is another area in which we cannot generalize for everyone based on our own craving or boredom.

Of course, if I had kids, I certainly wouldn't let them to, e.g., a football match w/o a qualified chaperon any sooner than I'd send them off to a concert alone, even for tame music.

Btw, I bet SO many negative effects of sports on kids is b/c (1) parents get much nastier at kid's games than do kids and from (2) kids being involved in sports that are past their developmental abilities, i.e., strength and endurance and bone development.

Remember the specific tribute to God by the winning coach at last year's Superbowl? He certainly wasn't there to simply exalt himself. He knew the glory for his success went to God. That was really neat.

[Woody]

Many football players get together and pray before their game.