To Tebow or not to Tebow...

Remember the blog project I did last year with three other women? Well, Froggie decided to resurrect it with me and we each got to invite another friend to join us. She invited a mutual friend (someone I met through her) and I invited a friend whose blog I really enjoy reading. So now it's Froggie, Mom of Many, Moma Rock and Merrylandgirl. Hope you enjoy the topics that we'll be exploring!

This week, Froggie picked the topic:
In 2010, the Denver Broncos drafted Tim Tebow, a quarterback from the University of Florida. Tebow, a devout Christian, would wear biblical references such as "John 3:16" on his eye paint during college games. Recently, there has been a lot of talk in the news about Tebow and how he kneels and prays after a game success. "Tebowing" has become a widespread phenomenon to the point that it has been accepted as a word in the English language.

WIth all this in mind, should professional athletes be able to publicly display their religious beliefs during games? What other thoughts do you have on this phenomenon?

Before reading ahead, first see what everyone else had to say on this topic:
Froggie
Mom of Many
Moma Rock

I hadn't really heard of Tim Tebow and this phenomenon before now. I'm not always up to date with news stories. (Even though I was one of the few around my office who knew about the recent Beit Shemesh controversy, but that's another story in itself.) I don't go to sporting events all that often, but I have to wonder if Tebow is doing this for his actual beliefs or if it's just for show...to create an image for himself in the name of religion. It makes me think of when Madonna adopted Kabbalah as her religious beliefs and suddenly had to show off how "Jewish" she was. It now comes off as being a phase, as I haven't heard anyone call her "Esther" in a long time.

Having said this, if an Orthodox Jewish baseball player started davening mincha in the middle of the playing field, complete with phylacteries and tallit, would he get such support? I have to wonder if it's about the religion and the way it looks to the secular public vs. actually having such spiritual beliefs and customs. Had Tebow been an Orthodox Jew and started quoting Rashi on his face and wearing a black hat and payos, would he still receive the support of the public for his religious beliefs? I bring this up because I feel that we are angling more toward a Christian society, based on the beliefs of celebrities that are supported by the general public. Since I'm not into sports, I'd like to transition this to the music realm.

I've heard a bunch of pop and country songs mention Jesus in their lyrics. There's a song by Jann Arden called "Could I Be Your Girl?" It has a great sound and beat, but in the chorus, Jesus is mentioned. She also says "Oh, my Lord." I don't know if the song is about Jesus or about love. It's very confusing. Then there's "Jesus, Take the Wheel," which was played on every station when it first came out, even though it was by a country singer. There's also The Band Perry. I love them, but in two of their hit songs, they have some mention of the Lord in some way or another. They don't straight out say "Jesus," thankfully. However, it is there. My husband and I used to joke about "De-Jesusing" songs. We'd sing them and say "Hashem" instead. Oddly enough, I don't know of any popular music on the radio that uses the word "Hashem." And even though my sons think Uncle Moishy is a rock star, that doesn't count! Maybe it's not as commonplace for Jews to flaunt their beliefs in everyone's face (or ears, in this case), but I wish singers of other religions could show the same restraint. If I wanted to hear about Jesus on the radio, I'd listen to the gospel station. I appreciate that they have faith in a deity, but it still bothers me anyway. I feel like I have to censor the word in those songs for my kids and there's not even a swear word to be found.

So there you have it...I don't feel that religion and public entertainment of any kind (sports, movies, music) should mix unless there's going to be equal support for other religions to do the same to any extent. As I don't see that happening anytime soon, I feel we can exist happily without the use of religious symbolism in a secular society. There are reasons we have houses of worship, after all.