Football as a Religion
Summary
Due to the approaching Super Bowl this weekend, it seemed most fitting to tackle this article. Being an avid football fan, I was always curious why fans would hold up signs proclaiming John 3:16 in their team’s colors. First used in the late 1970s by a man in a rainbow afro wig, the Christian Biblical reference was printed on the man’s tee shirt. He’d attend sporting events and other very public occasions and manage to get in front of the television cameras, spreading his (or rather, His) message. This man eventually took a hotel maid hostage, held her in a hotel room for nine hours with the windows covered in his Biblical message until SWAT was able to rescue her. The man was ultimately sent to prison but his message had taken hold among football fans.
The origins of John 3:16 in the New Testament of the Christian Bible are considered a very succinctly abridged version of what a Christian believes: God’s love for mankind was so intense that he sacrificed his only son Jesus to avert mankind’s perpetual punishment for sinning and whoever believes in Jesus will have eternal life. This gets right to the heart of what Christians believe and it was through the actions of a religious zealot that the verse came to be so widely known.
Analysis
This is also why I assumed if the Biblical reference shown on posters in team colors and held by fans was meant to inspire fellow fans. To be perfectly honest up until I read the exact definition of this verse, I thought it was maybe a Biblical reference meant to bolster the spirits of a losing football team. Being an avid football fan, this made perfect sense because religion and football went hand in hand long before Tebow-ing was made a verb. Some receivers take a knee in the end zone after every touchdown completed. A few players simply look up and point to the sky. Like evangelical Christians in the Florida Panhandle, we allow other folks to give recognitions as they see fit. For me religion and football were intrinsically linked long before I learned what John 3:16 meant. Football is viewed by many to be just as relevant and unifying as any other dogma that is faith-based. It is just as significant to some supporters because it gives a direction, a sense of community and a purpose like a God-based religion. Christianity has the liturgical cycle; football followers have preseason (rebirth like Easter), regular season, playoffs (similar to Advent) and the Super Bowl (like Christmas Day). Catholics have the Pope, football fans have the NFL commissioner; we do not always agree with what he says but we have to believe it is for the greater good.
After reading the definition I thought that specific Biblical verse could be applied to the quarterback, seen in most circles as the Chosen One, to whom others flock for guidance in the huddle. Of course God would bequeath us with a savior who has a good long game and can stay in the pocket, o ye of little faith!
In some households, football is the religion practiced every Sunday. In my own home the altar is a large entertainment center, emanating the soft glow of HD quality pictures and surround sound louder than the Georgia Mass Choir. We gave thanks and praise for the Detroit Lions and cried out in exaltation when the team made it to the playoffs. Praise Jesus and pass the Cheetos! This religion is full of saints (of the New Orleans variety), sinners (of the Pac-Man Jones variety), apostles spoken of in reverent tones (Kurt Warner), and Satan in the form of Tom Brady. Football even has traitors; the most obvious that comes to mind being Brett Favre who was actually referred to as Judas on former devotees’ jerseys.
Followers of football are no different than most Christian-based religions. We pray and beg, usually for extra yardage, we ask for forgiveness for whatever trespasses we committed against the ref who continuously calls fouls against us. We marvel at the miracle that is Larry Fitzgerald flying through the air and we have eternal hope that divine intervention will be with the kicker to tie the game and send it into overtime. And when all else fails, our Chosen One can still go for the Hail Mary. Amen.
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