Broadly speaking, these are different questions related to the same topic.
God has told us to take care of our body, and regular physical activity is compulsory in order to stay healthy. Sport is the most common and entertaining way to stay physically fit.
And for some people, sport is more than just staying healthy. It is their career, it is what allows them to make a living, and it may be their highest talent.
Either way (fitness or career), sport can also be very expensive:
- For the individual amateur, buying the equipment, access to the venue, membership (depending on each different sport).
- For the career sportspeople, the whole investment into their training - often since childhood -, and again, special equipment, different venues, instructors, doctors, etc.
- And let's not forget the millions of spectators who pay to watch the sportsmen and sportswomen in action.
There is so much money involved.
As a person from a low-income family, I had few or no options to properly learn any sport as a child. I grew up with the perception that it was a luxury, since I didn't need to be fit. My friends who did regular sports did them just because they could afford to, and it seemed like pure entertainment.
Growing older, I learned that being fit and physically healthy actually IS a necessity. Maybe it is not as urgent as the need for food and shelter, but lack of fitness is what causes diseases and illnesses in the long run.
The first question is:
Can I still say that sport is a luxury? Or could I say that some sports are luxury while others are not? e.g. could I think that it is not a luxury if it helps you achieve your "basic" fitness without spending too much money?
Should Christians avoid some types of sports if they are too expensive to learn and are not there only to achieve "basic" fitness?
Examples: ice hockey, racing cars, bob-sledding, curling
Could such sports be considered a luxury, a waste, and thus a sin?
The second question:
If Christians avoided doing some types of sports because they are a luxury, they would probably also stop watching those sports - live, or on TV.
How then should Christians view others involved in the chain of that sport, i.e. the career sportspeople? Would professional ice hockey players be considered "sinners"?
Obviously, the more people stopped watching a sport, the more professional sportspeople would lose their jobs. Could a whole sports career and industry be considered sin?
A final question: what about other forms of entertainment?
If everyone were to stop going to concerts or seeing plays at the theater because they start seeing that as a luxury, would it ideally also mean that musicians, actors, artists and other entertainment professionals should actually... go and look for less sinful jobs?
God has told us to take care of our body, and regular physical activity is compulsory in order to stay healthy. Sport is the most common and entertaining way to stay physically fit.
And for some people, sport is more than just staying healthy. It is their career, it is what allows them to make a living, and it may be their highest talent.
Either way (fitness or career), sport can also be very expensive:
- For the individual amateur, buying the equipment, access to the venue, membership (depending on each different sport).
- For the career sportspeople, the whole investment into their training - often since childhood -, and again, special equipment, different venues, instructors, doctors, etc.
- And let's not forget the millions of spectators who pay to watch the sportsmen and sportswomen in action.
There is so much money involved.
As a person from a low-income family, I had few or no options to properly learn any sport as a child. I grew up with the perception that it was a luxury, since I didn't need to be fit. My friends who did regular sports did them just because they could afford to, and it seemed like pure entertainment.
Growing older, I learned that being fit and physically healthy actually IS a necessity. Maybe it is not as urgent as the need for food and shelter, but lack of fitness is what causes diseases and illnesses in the long run.
The first question is:
Can I still say that sport is a luxury? Or could I say that some sports are luxury while others are not? e.g. could I think that it is not a luxury if it helps you achieve your "basic" fitness without spending too much money?
Should Christians avoid some types of sports if they are too expensive to learn and are not there only to achieve "basic" fitness?
Examples: ice hockey, racing cars, bob-sledding, curling
Could such sports be considered a luxury, a waste, and thus a sin?
The second question:
If Christians avoided doing some types of sports because they are a luxury, they would probably also stop watching those sports - live, or on TV.
How then should Christians view others involved in the chain of that sport, i.e. the career sportspeople? Would professional ice hockey players be considered "sinners"?
Obviously, the more people stopped watching a sport, the more professional sportspeople would lose their jobs. Could a whole sports career and industry be considered sin?
A final question: what about other forms of entertainment?
If everyone were to stop going to concerts or seeing plays at the theater because they start seeing that as a luxury, would it ideally also mean that musicians, actors, artists and other entertainment professionals should actually... go and look for less sinful jobs?