Paul Rouse: The relationship between sport and religion both endures and evolves
UNITED IN FAITH: Morocco players pray after Yahya Jabrane scored the their first goal against Togo during an African Nations Championships game in Douala. Picture: Daniel Beloumou/AFP via Getty
One of the most interesting aspects of the world of modern sport is its intersection with religion.
This is something that has run across several centuries and is complex (to the point of being contradictory) in all manner of ways.
On the one hand, some churches sought to stop the playing of certain sports and, indeed, to stop the playing of all sports on Sundays. On the other hand, other churches understood immediately the power of being associated with sporting activity.
This second aspect worked in different ways. Sport was presented as a way to fight against “degeneracy” and against the evils of modern life, particularly for the urban working classes who were perceived by middle class vicars to be mired in squalor.
As well as serving as a broader answer to saving people from drunkenness and debauchery and other acts of impiety, there was also the ambition to use sport to recruit people to active engagement with religion. It made sense for religious organisations to involve themselves when sporting organisations were being founded.
For example, Southampton Football Club owes its origins to a soccer club founded at St. Mary's Church, in the city in 1885.
Similarly, the founding of clubs such as Aston Villa, Glasgow Celtic and Everton was all intimately connected with religious institutions.
The strains of religious association with sport in English soccer has run across the decades. This is something that is both a matter of symbolism and of substance.
In terms of symbolism, it can be seen in the fact that for almost 100 years, the Christian hymn, "Abide with Me" is sung in the last minutes before the kick-off of the FA Cup Final.
The sheer scale of modern sport, the fact that it is absolutely central to so many aspects of social and cultural life, ensures that it remains a focal point of activity for people who believe in spreading the message of Christianity.
One such organization that is active in the United Kingdom is ‘Christians in Sport’. That organization had its origins in a meeting at the Park Lane Hotel in London in July 1976.
Some 80 people turned up, including the former Wimbledon champion Stan Smith. And from that meeting, Christians in Sport grew and then began to thrive.
The scale of the activities of Christians in Sport is now significant. It is a registered charity and the Charity Commission for England and Wales shows that in the financial year ending 31 August 2021 there were 36 employees working there. There are also more than 150 active volunteers.
Its total income for that year was more than £1.7m; this included donations of more than £1.4m and a great of more than £77,000 from the government. Its total income over the past five years is just short of £10m.
The organization also runs an online shop which sells branded merchandise across a wide range of sporting paraphernalia, all stamped with the Christians in Sport name and logo. There are sports bags and sweat bands, jerseys and water bottles, hats and car stickers, as well as an extensive range of books including one which includes “24 Bible studies to help players and coaches grow in Christ as they compete.”
The money that is used – among other things – to pay for regional staff workers who engage with “young people, students, adults and elite athletes”. This aim is to equip “Christian sportspeople to live and speak out for Jesus in their unis and sport clubs”.
Among the things that workers get involved in are the running of summer sports camps for 12-17 year olds.
There are also outreach workers for elite sports people. This is a considerable challenge. Jonny Reid, of Christians in Sport, explained: “What we try to do is to help sports people connect sport and their faith for themselves. We also try to equip them to speak to their teammates about Jesus. Covid has helped is in one way in that it has allowed for the holding of peer-group meetings on Zoom. So we would have 30 coaches and maybe 25 elite players who come together on Zoom to read the bible and pray together. We also help those people to connect into churches in their area.”
These are Protestant churches, but across all sports and all religions, the question of how players should act when their religious beliefs conflict with their chosen sport is not a straightforward one? And it is a question that becomes still more complicated when that chosen sport is also the player’s job?
A great example of this is the brilliant Australian rugby league player, William Hopoate, who plays for St. Helen’s in the European Super League.
Hopoate is Mormon, declined to play on Sundays and back in 2011 when he was considered just about the hottest rugby league prospect in the southern hemisphere, he turned his back on the game and embarked on a two-year Mormon mission. This was despite clubs all over the NRL pursuing his services and offering lucrative contracts.
In declining to play on a Sunday, Hopoate explained he was following scripture on the meaning of Sunday: “It’s a holy day reserved for holy activities like attending church and studying the scriptures. Also, where possible, we abstain from work and recreation.”
His one-time coach at The Bulldogs in Australia supported Hopoate’s decision not to play on Sundays, even if it meant him missing key matches. Des Hasler said: “His beliefs distinguish him. This is what makes him tick. We are very proud to have such a person within our walls. To deny something that is so fundamental to a person is to deny that person the right to be who they are.”
A different aspect of the impact of religion can be observed through the recent match between Manchester United and Leicester City. In a poor match, just about the best player on the field was the Leicester central defender Wesley Fofana.
What made his performance all the more remarkable was that Fofana was just returning from action following a horrific pre-season leg break.
Not just that, but his manager Brendan Rodgers said afterwards: “He has just started Ramadan. He hasn’t eaten or drunk a thing. To play like that shows what a player he is.”
In terms of Christians in Sport, the former Ulster second row player, Peter Browne, has as his remit to work with professional rugby players across the United Kingdom. His father – Leonard – had been involved with Christians in Sport from the 1970s and Peter, himself, had been at Christians in Sport during his teenage years.
While at Ulster, he was part of a weekly bible study group with some other teammates. He retired in 2018 due to medical reasons, involving multiple concussions. His role now is to encourage rugby players in their Christian faith, and this includes elite Irish players.
In Northern Ireland, the summer camps run by Christians in Sport sell out within 30 minutes. They begin in the morning with a primary sport chosen by the players – rugby, soccer, athletics or hockey, depending on which camp a player chooses. And in the afternoon there is a sort of multi-sports programmes, including Gaelic football.
The plan for Christians in Sport is that they are moving to progress in the south of Ireland. They are looking to register as a charity and this summer they will support Christ City Church Dublin to deliver a sports camp in Dublin, Sports Extra.
It is a reminder that the relationship between sport and religion both endures and has evolved. And it will continue to do so.
