Religion

I was reading the "Parade" magazine yesterday as I always do on Sunday mornings, and I noticed an article about a new book written about how NFL players reconcile their deep faith with on-field violence. I never knew they had a problem with the violence they inflict on each other every game. What a surprise! We are hearing so much lately about the old pros who are no longer in the game, physically or mentally. All the hits they've taken have done bad things to their brains, and they will never be the same again. I know in football, the players hit as hard as they can and as often as they have a chance to do so. And now to hear they are concerned is quite a surprise.

But, according to the book by Curtis Eichelberger, they are now finding a way to reconcile their feelings with their actions.  They pray! It tells of one player who knocked the crap out of another player to the point that he looked almost dead. The hitter was scared and got down on a knee and began praying. But when the injured guy got up, the hitter refocused on his job - which I guess was hitting others really, really hard - and went on his way. This player had many thoughts after that incident and prayed a lot, finally deciding it was his responsibility to God to play as hard as he could because the Lord had given him these talents. He was playing the game as hard as he could to honor the Lord. When I read that, I thought, "What a bunch of crap!"

I find this really baffling. It seems people use religion as an answer for everything even though they may not be what you call religious. You see athletes in a prayer circle before a game. Are they praying to win the game? Do they think there's a God somewhere listening to them? I think the whole thing is bogus, but if it makes them feel better, good for them. I don't go along with it, but that's just me.