You're a man - so you love sport - right? You can't help it, it's genetic, bred into you
from birth. The only choice you have is which sports will dominate your life, and
from athletics to yachting and everything in between - there's something for every
man to indulge his passion. And that's what sport seems to tap into - our passions
- sport, food, sex, not necessarily in that order!
Sure, some women are getting in on the act too, but if they're not too into sport,
they could well be filing 'man gone missing' reports as this summer unfolds. What
with Euro 2012 football, Twenty/20 Cricket World Cup, Wimbledon, and the mother
of all sport, the Olympic Games in our own backyard - expect some tense battles,
and I don't mean in the Olympic arena! With all the hype, all the history, all the
money involved, can you imagine anyone putting a stop to the Olympics?
OK, we can imagine some women might want to ban the games, if only to see a
little more of their men folk, but what kind of man would ban the Olympics? Actually,
one man did. He was a Christian Emperor and his name was Theodosius. The ban
took place in 393 AD after the games had been in existence for nearly 1200 years.
So what was Theodosius' problem?
It wasn't just the Olympics, he had a problem with; he ordered all books and art - in
fact, everything depicting anything remotely pagan - to be destroyed. You see, Theodosius
was the ruler of a newly Christianised Roman empire and found the pagan
religious elements of the games just too offensive and banned the Olympics.
So, was he just a Christian spoil-sport? To understand his point of view, we've got
to go back in time a little. As you know, the Olympics are very old, older than Christianity
itself and things were done a little differently in Ancient Greece. For a start,
the Olympics were not exclusively about sport.
The Greeks used athletic competitions to honour their gods and the games were
just one part of a massive religious festival. Olympia was one of the oldest religious
centres in the ancient Greek world. At its heart lay the magnificent Temple of Zeus,
one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. In the temple at Olympia was a huge
43 foot statue of Zeus, the chief Greek God and the athletes were required to swear
allegiance to him. All athletes took part in a religious purifica tion ceremony where a
hundred oxen were slaughtered as a sacrificial offering to Zeus. Imagine the emotions
that would be stirred up at the sight of all those dead animals, if pagan sacrifices
were still a part of today's opening ceremony! Not for the faint-hearted.
And it wasn't just the animals that were slaughtered, the original Olympics were incredibly
violent, with a ferocious, no-holds-barred event called Pankration. This was
a vicious mix of street-fighting, boxing and wrestling in which punches to the groin,
dislocations and choke-holds were all allowed. One exponent, Damoxenos, jabbed
his opponents with his fingers so violently that he would pierce men's ribcages and
yank out their intestines.
How did the women cope with all this violence? Actually, the Olympics were strictly
for the boys as the games were performed ‘full-monty’ if you know what I mean! Apparently
the married women, were not permitted to view all that naked flesh and if
they flouted the rule, risked being pitched headfirst off the nearby cliffs. Unmarried
women, however, were allowed to watch. In fact some fathers brought their daughters
to the games to find a suitable mate. And it was said that prostitutes could make
more money in the then five days of the games than during the whole of rest of the
year.
So, do you see Theodosius' dilemma? At the time he became Emperor, the games
were incredibly popular but with all the pagan elements, including sex and violence,
he was afraid of the negative influence the games were having over the new Christians
in his empire. But was he right? Are the Olympics and Christianity incompatible?
Is God saying: A new commandment I write unto you; Thou shalt not participate
in the Games, thou shalt not attend them or even watch them, thou, nor thy son,
nor thy daughter, nor the stranger that is within thy gates!
The truth is, you can’t read the Bible without coming to the conclusion that sport
has something important to teach us. Have you read 1 Corinthians 9 lately? It is
steeped in Olympic imagery and concepts. “Do you not know that in a race all the
runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.
Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a
crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last for ever. Cor 9: 24-
25.
Perhaps the person who best straddles the world of Olympics and Christianity is
Eric Liddell, whose dramatic story of the 1924 Paris Olympics is told in the Oscarwinning
film, Chariots of Fire. Liddell was a pre-race favourite for the 100 metres,
but when he learns that the qualifying heat is scheduled on the Sabbath, he is devastated.
That would mean breaking his Christian commitment, and he refuses to
run, remaining true to his religious principles and possibly turning his back on
Olympic glory. As a result, he was subjected to enormous pressure from the Olympic
committee to change his mind. Many people suggested that Liddell run the race
and dedicate it to God. Others were angry and called him a traitor for refusing to
run for his country but he wouldn’t compromise. Instead, Liddell elects to run in the
400 metres, a distance in which he has had some success, but certainly not his
forte.
On the day of the race, knowing this is not his favoured distance, he is unconvinced
of his chances, but just as Liddell is going to the starting blocks, a piece of paper is
slipped into his hand. It is a quotation from 1 Samuel 2:30, "Those who honour me,
I will honour." He runs the race with that piece of paper in his hand. And against all
expectations, he not only wins, but breaks the world record.
Chariots of Fire shows the Olympics as the pinnacle of Liddell’s career. However,
as much as he loved running, the real purpose of his life was to be a missionary to
China, the land of his birth. Though he came back from the Olympics a hero with
fame and glory, none of this changed his focus and commitment. That commitment
would eventually claim his life when he died in an internment camp when the Japanese
invaded China in 1945.
We've come a long way for Liddell’s simple faith and the ease with which he walked
away from Olympic glory to pursue his call to the mission fields of China. The
Olympic games are very different today. The notion of the noble amateur who competes
only for the love of sport is long forgotten. The creed still says that “The important
thing in the Olympic Games is not winning, but taking part,” but today
winning is all that really matters. After all, there’s a lot at stake. Not just Olympic
titles. Not just global recognition. Not just the winner’s prize. For the ‘right’ winner
of the ‘right’ event, the moment of victory that brings Olympic gold, will also unlock
a treasure chest of fame, wealth and opportunities that can last a lifetime.
And in a world where the difference between winning and losing can be a thousandth
of a second, some athletes have a small army of supporters, coaches, nutritionists,
physiotherapists, psychologists, agents, sponsors, mentors as well as
devoted family and friends, all doing their best to help strike gold. But come the day,
when the whistle goes, the bell rings, the gun fires, the athlete is all alone. Or maybe
not.
Eric Liddell, clearly thought he had help. He said: "The secret of my success over
the 400 metres is that I run the first 200 metres as fast as I can. Then, for the second
200 meters, with God's help, I run faster." Despite all their physical, technical and
psychological preparation, it seems that today’s athletes are also looking for divine
help.
You can’t have failed to notice that a surprising amount of athletes ‘cross’ themselves
before, during or after their event. And many modern sports men are wearing
their faith on their sleeves, if not on their t-shirts. Kaka, the world's second- most
expensive footballer, famously took off his shirt to reveal the message 'I belong to
Jesus' after AC Milan won the Champions League final in 2007. Usain Bolt, world
record holder and Olympic 100 and 200-metre champion, kisses his crucifix just as
he settles into his blocks and many athletes point upwards after their moment of
victory, indicating where the glory should go.
So, what is the connection between sport and religion? Psychologists are closing
in on the conclusion that sport has many of the same effects on spectators as religion
does. Daniel Wann, a leading sports psychologist at Murray State University,
says: "The similarities between sport fandom and organized religion are striking.
Consider the vocabulary associated with both: faith, devotion, worship, ritual, dedication,
sacrifice, commitment, spirit, prayer, suffering, festival, and celebration."
Manchester United's latest goal scoring sensation has revealed that the power of
prayer is behind his dramatic rise to fame. Javier Hernandez is a committed Christian
who prays on the pitch before every game, "I always pray on the pitch before
a game. It’s an important routine for me but it's not superstition," he says.
Deborah Flood is a British two-time Olympic silver medalist in the Quadruple Sculls.
She also has three gold medals from the World Championships and she's hoping
for another at the London games. She says, “God has given me this ability to row,
and I’m in the rowing world as an ambassador and as a witness for Christ.”
Another athlete with an uncannily similar record to Flood is Allyson Felix, the American
200 metre runner. Allyson also has two Olympic silver medals and three World
Championship golds, and like Flood, sees her running ability as a gift from God,
"My faith is definitely the most important aspect of my life. It is the reason I run. My
speed is definitely a gift from Him, and I run for His glory. Whatever I do, He allows
me to do it."
We've come a long way from Theodosius banning the games because he was afraid
of the kind of influence they were having over Christians. When the London games
start, we don't know how many Christians will be watching or competing. For many,
faith is an intensely private and personal thing. But as more and more athletes are
becoming open about their faith, we should remember the Apostle Paul clearly
thought the dedication of the athlete was a source of inspiration that Christians could
relate to. He recognized the character building significance of the discipline involved
in an athlete’s training, and saw a compelling parallel between both athletes and
Christians aiming to win the prize. And isn’t that what all champions do, whether
striving for Olympic glory or God’s glory - they focus on the prize. “So run to win!
Athletes work hard to win a crown that cannot last, but we do it for a crown that will
last forever.”
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