Delighting in God’s Good Gift of Sport and Competition Michael Goheen Vancouver, B.C.

My Personal Story Serving the god of sport World negating gospel and a degraded view of sport Among the various things we can relax with, athletics are low on the scale of demonstrable significance (Christianity Today).

My Personal Story Serving the god of sport World negating gospel and a degraded view of sport Joy of discovery –A gospel of the kingdom –Jesus the Christ as creator and reconciler of all things –New understanding of creation

For God so loved the world He gave His one and only Son... (John 3:16). For everything God created is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving... (I Timothy 4:4). We serve Christ by thankfully receiving our life as a gift from his hand (CT, par. 46).

Experience of a Father Delights to give good gifts Delights in our response –Enjoyment –Thankfulness –Love

Sport and Competition God’s gift A phys. ed. teacher’s question “What is it about sports and competition that delights you?” ‘God made me fast. When I run I feel his pleasure.... it’s not just fun. To win is to honour him’ (Eric Liddell).

Sports and Competition Rooted in Creation How He created us as human beings Calling He gave to enrich our lives

Rooted in who we are... As social creatures As imaginative creatures Sports part of ‘our artistic and imaginative impulse’ (Giammatti) or ‘aesthetic potential’ (Holmes). Sports ‘feed a deep hunger’ (Novak)

Rooted in the task God has given us Genesis 1:26-28; 2:15 Formative power to explore, discover, develop potential of creation in diverse ways “... underlying all human cultural activity is a substrate of created reality which both makes possible that activity and sets normative standards for it.” (A. Wolters) Sports: one cultural product

God’s Good Gift of Competition Sports a good gift—but competition? ‘Morally wrong because it pits one... against another in rivalry...’ ‘Basic ingredient’ of sports

God’s Good Gift of Competition ‘Successfully overcoming unnecessary obstacles’ necessary for enjoyment of game Obstacles provide hindrances which prevent the player from using the most efficient way of accomplishing the goal. The joy in the game is in creating tactics to overcome the obstacles and accomplish the goal’ (Frey et. al.).

Competition is... Based on co-operation not rivalry Latin root—competere: to strive together, to meet or come together, agree. Co-operative agreement on goals, rules, and obstacles of game Co-operative agreement to contest one another for mutual enjoyment

Competition can... Enhance joy and emotional intensity of athletic experience Sharpen skills Refine the whole aesthetic experience Improve the social experience

An opponent is... Not first of all a rival Loving neighbour who provides opportunity for more delightful experience of sport by providing stiff competition ‘... competition can bring out co-operation, celebration, respect, and even love’ (Zuidema).

Destructive Potential of Competition Very powerful impulse Twisted by sin Need to discern healthy competition Opponent neighbour in image of God Treated with love, dignity, respect, and appreciation

Quotes in Sydney Olympic Tower ‘I don’t care who I’m playing. I want to win more than they do.’ ‘Intimidation is the key. You can have the other beaten before they hit the water.’ ‘Winning isn’t everything; it is the only thing.’ ‘To play this game you must have fire in you, and there is nothing that stokes fire like hate.’

Two Conditions if Athletics is to be Good One part of the symphony of creation

One ‘Sound’ in the Symphony of Creation Sports and competition have their own ‘sound’ –One valid (good) God-given activity alongside of others

One Sound in the Symphony Attempts to justify sports by a more noble utilitarian purpose Sports needs no justification Does not need to be justified because it: –Brings physical fitness –Provides refreshment for work –Builds character and self-discipline etc. ‘Essentially sport has no purpose at all: it is an end in itself... its possible uses are incidental like art, religion, and friendship.’

Two Dangers When ‘sound’ of play and leisure is too weak –Sacred/secular dualism –Body/soul dualism ‘... games are of the body, and thus of a lower order than things of the spirit’ (Wilson).

Two Dangers When ‘sound’ of play and leisure is too weak When ‘sound’ of play and leisure is too loud – Hedonism: ‘Sports is the fastest growing religion in America’ – ‘Pursuing pleasure we lose the gift of joy’ (CT)

Two Conditions if Athletics is to be Good One part of the symphony of creation Conforming to God’s design

Conforming to God’s Creational Design Need to understand creational design of sport –Wisdom: Divine and human “... wisdom... was wrought into the constitution of the universe” and human wisdom is “ethical conformity to God’s creation.” (J. Fleming) “... underlying all human cultural activity is a substrate of created reality which both makes possible that activity and sets normative standards for it.” (A. Wolters) Need to understand sin’s corruption Need to seek healing paths for healthy sport

Three lenses for true image Creation Sin Restoration

Conforming to God’s Creational Design Need to understand creational design Need to understand sin’s corruption Need to seek healing paths for healthy sport Need to understand battle for leisure and sport

Clash of Kingdoms Antithesis

Battle for Leisure and Sport ‘There is no neutral ground in the universe every square inch, every split second, is claimed by God and counterclaimed by Satan’ (C.S. Lewis).

What is that delights you about competition? Emotional intensity –‘Thrill of victory, agony of defeat’ –Way out of proportion with importance –Absorbed intensely and utterly in serious pursuit of non-serious activity (Huizinga, Frey) –Joy, emotional vibrancy spills into life ‘Play relativises our over-seriousness toward life, filling us with a spirit of joy and delight that carries over into all aspects of our existence.’

My Delight in God’s Good Gift of Competition Emotional intensity Physical satisfaction ‘Athletes know the beauty of intensity of effort, the motivation of pursuit of goals, the feeling and being of fitness, the expressiveness of movement, the creativity of play, the excitement of total involvement and the joy of sport’ (Zuidema).

My Delight in God’s Good Gift of Competition Emotional intensity Physical satisfaction Social bonding Aesthetic enjoyment –‘Creativity of play’ –That perfect play

My Delight in God’s Good Gift of Competition Emotional intensity Physical satisfaction Social bonding Aesthetic enjoyment Religious deepening

Sport and Competition Matter ‘Turn your eyes upon Jesus...’ ‘Nothing matters but the kingdom but because of the kingdom everything matters’ Treasures of sound, healthy sports ‘The treasures of the nations will go into the new Jerusalem. Among those treasures... is good, sound, healthy leisure’ (Spykman). Being a preview of sound, healthy sports