Religion And Sports Research Paper

It is Sunday morning, million of Americans wake up; instead of going to church, they go to their couches. Over the past ten years the number of church goers in the United States has decreased substantially, and the number of ESPN watchers has increased in an alarming fashion. Events like Super Bowl have become comparable in creating revenue to holidays such as Christmas. People are becoming so engrossed in the realm of sports that they are worshipping athletes, teams, and franchises over traditional gods and God. Sports have become indistinguishable from religion. In the past, religion and sports were believed to have a nontraditional and mutualistic relationship. Although sports were not viewed as a religion, they were viewed as a way to worship gods, specially the god of victory, Nike. Sports were used as a token of appreciation for the gods, which is also known as a sacrifice. Starting in 776 BC, Greek athletes competed in Olympic games to demonstrate their eliteness and talents. Those who showed signs of higher levels of coordination and athletic skill were praised and treated better than most men. In fact, athletes who reigned supreme in
For example, some people in the United States have moved across a country to be close to their favorite team. Many people decorate their homes, cars, and clothes with images of sports which relates directly to religious worship. Many people watch the football game religiously on Sunday morning. Traditions in the past that have been related to religion, are now used in sports. Face painting, hair tinting, and distinctive costumes are thought to satisfy religious goals such as making people feel that they belong to something bigger than themselves. Just like Christians identify with God, sports fans identify with a team. By doing this, the fans create a type of congregation that they can relate to and see as