Athletes, keep God out of the game

Athletes, keep God out of the game

I do believe we must discourage a religious practice that is manifested at various athletic events. On the front page of the first section of the Oct. 11 Daily Herald, we see a photograph of Bears receiver Brandon Marshall with both arms raised to the heavens as he celebrates his first of two touchdowns against the New York Giants.

And often in baseball games, as a batter crosses home plate after hitting a home run, we will see a picture of him raising his arm and pointing skyward. In the captions under these pictures, the press refers to the athletes as “celebrating” their touchdowns or home runs.

But what they are actually doing is not “celebrating,” but rather pointing upward and thanking God for helping them score that touchdown or hit that home run. However, does this not mean that apparently God was favoring that successful player while disfavoring the players on the defense team or the pitcher on the other team who threw the ball that the hitter hit over the fence?

I myself do not believe in such an arbitrarily acting god that favors one athlete while condemning the opposing athlete. I think we must take action to stop this practice by athletes in athletic contests, and we must encourage these athletes to credit themselves for their success, and keep God out of the game.

Ted Utchen

Wheaton