Religion and sports have always been intertwined, especially
when players and coaches use Scripture and prayer in an attempt to gain victory
over their rivals. The problem is that while the devil can quote the Bible, so
can opposing teams. God is an equal-opportunity sports spectator.
In his four amazing years as the University of Florida’s Heisman-winning
quarterback, Tim Tebow significantly tightened the knot between faith and
football. On game days, Tebow painted Bible verses below his eyes in letters
large enough to be seen by the TV audience.
Some critics called Tebow’s face-based evangelism improper,
worried that they could pave the way for athletes from other religious and political
groups to decorate their faces and uniforms with their own favorite texts or
symbols.
In Florida’s loss to Alabama for the SEC championship, Tebow
had John 16:33 on his face: “... In the world you shall have tribulation: but
be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
Unfortunately, No. 2 Alabama also
overcame the No. 1 Gators by a score of 32-13.
As Florida crushed Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl on New Years
Day, Tebow chose a less triumphant selection, Ephesians 2:8-10: “... For it is
by grace you have been saved, through faith — and this not from yourselves, it
is the gift of God ...” Maybe the more modest words did the trick as Florida
battered Cincinnati, 51-24.
Tebow’s super-facial use of Scripture set me thinking how
his example might be applied to other individuals and teams:
- Brett Favre, the Minnesota Vikings quarterback, recently
turned 40, an advanced age in the NFL. As he prepares for (future games), Favre might
want to paste these biblical words on his helmet: “And now, in my old age, don’t
set me aside. Don’t abandon me when my strength is failing.” (Psalm 71:9).
- For fervent New York Mets fans (including me) who are
crushed every year by the team’s failure to win a divisional championship, God’s
words to Joshua should be recited before each of the Mets’ 162 games: “Be
strong and of good courage” (Joshua 1:6).
- The NBA’s New Jersey Nets set a league record this season
by losing their first 18 games in a row. Although the Nets finally broke the
horrific streak, they remain trapped as prisoners in the NBA’s Atlantic
Division cellar. Even the call of Zachariah 9:12 to be “prisoners of hope” may
not be enough for the hapless Nets. Then again,
it can’t hurt.
- For decades the University of Notre Dame football team was
a national icon and a gridiron dynasty. But during the past three seasons, the
once mighty “Fighting Irish” have won only 16 games and lost 20. 2 Samuel 1:27
has the best description of that decline: “How the mighty have fallen.”
Nathaniel Hawthorne’s
The Scarlet Letter describes how the
letter “A” was on the breast of Hester Prynne who was ostracized in colonial Massachusetts
for adultery. While we no longer banish adulterers — indeed, sometimes we
idolize them — I do have a modest proposal.
If and when Tiger Woods returns to the professional golf
tour, he may want to place a specific verse — Exodus 20:14 — on his cap instead
of his initials. The same verse could also serve a useful purpose for former
Sen. John Edwards, Nevada Republican Sen. John Ensign, South Carolina Gov. Mark
Sanford and former New York Gov. Elliot Spitzer.
The words of that verse from Exodus? In the immortal words
of Yankees manager Casey Stengel, “You could look it up.”
(EDITOR’S NOTE — Rabbi Rudin, the American Jewish
Committee’s senior interreligious adviser, is the author of “The Baptizing of
America: The Religious Right’s Plans for the Rest of Us.”)