Weekday Wonderings: Sports, Spirituality, and the World Cup for Soccer
It’s the FIFA World Cup season. We’ve just finished some interesting semi-finals (and really this World Cup has been full of surprises all along…) and for those looking ahead to the final on Sunday morning, you might be considering whether to watch soccer or attend worship this week. If you decide on church, of course, you can watch highlights of the game (or the whole game) later. If you decide on soccer, you can listen to the sermon online. Soccer is a compelling sport in many ways, from the endurance required (with a maximum of three substitutions, most of the team is running for an hour and a half – at least – and still expected to display other skill) to the equality of access (anyone, anywhere in the world, can play if they have a ball, or something ball-like) and global appeal compared to many other sports.
Of course, soccer may not be your cup of tea, but many of us have at least one team sport that we follow with an attentiveness that could be described as religious – or spiritual, if you’d rather be Spiritual But Not Religious.
Actually, there’s a lot of writing about sports and spirituality (watch for another weekday wondering coming up all about baseball and spirituality!) Kevin Birnbaum writing from the context of sports in Catholic schools suggests “what we do with our bodies necessarily affects our souls.” (As an aside, we see this in the use of ritual in the church, such as lighting candles, sharing communion, or singing hymns together. We also see this in the way our faith calls us to pay attention to our bodies and the bodies of others, and we take care of each other through illness, and try to care for bodily needs like addressing hunger and housing.) The article continues: “In addition to the obvious benefits of sports — physical health, a sense of community among teammates, learning to be a part of something larger than oneself — they can also foster cardinal virtues like fortitude and temperance, as young athletes learn to discipline their minds and bodies.” Therese Miller in a long article written for The Sport Journal discusses other connections between sports and spirituality.
Do you see a connection between sport and spirituality as someone who participates (or has participated) in sports? As someone who watches sports?
It’s interesting to consider the ways that sports speak to a spirituality not divided by religion (although you could argue that followers of different sports might not be all that different than followers of different religions…). In an article for Time, Sohaib N. Sultan writes about the hard work and practice that went into him developing some skill as a soccer player. He goes on, “As a struggling spiritual seeker and now Imam, I have found that the spiritual journey is not dissimilar to the path a soccer player needs to take. Seeking God necessarily required of me daily disciplines of praying, chanting, fasting, serving, and so on. And, I found that I can’t do it without role models and mentors, living and dead, who show me the way through instruction and inspiration. And, finally, I discovered that journeying to God with a communityof people who have the same goal and orientation is that much more realistic and fulfilling, and that it is in community that we can strive toward the highest values and virtues.”
The spirituality of sport is one that takes work, that uses the player’s whole being, and touches on action but also character. Similarly, the spirituality of faith is one that takes work, that connects to a person’s whole being, and requires not just words but actions that live out those values and character. And just as sport is both work and play, faith is about challenge and joy – a presence in difficult times and a celebration of all that is good and fun.
So to all of you enjoying the World Cup – enjoy the last couple of games! And to everyone else watching and participating in sports this summer, blessings for that spiritual practice. May it feed your larger spiritual living.
Rev. Emily Gordon
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