Wickedness at World Cup 2014 - Why did Christians support Evil with Sports Culture?

[Gxg (G²)]

Concerning why I am writing this,

I am a bit perplexed at the way it seems we often speak on the issue of theology in Christian circles - debate on it - and yet when it comes to how we live practically, it seems that our desire for entertainment displays theological views that no one realizes the harm of.

More specifically, everyone saw what occurred with the recent World Cup 2014 recently. Many kept up with it - including others in my family (with my extended family even going to Brazil). Being a Sports Fan, I used to think nothing of it , till I became aware of how much corruption occurred with the event and that not many are aware of it. For reference:

• World Cup 2014: Football, Poverty and Protests | LinkedIn and Brazil: World Cup Gentrification Carried Out via Gunpoint - revolution-news.com

To me, this looked like an elephant in the Room that no one was wanting to talk about when it comes to the people whose homes were destroyed (and families) by the folks supporting FIFA - it's not a good thing when violence and entertainment go together....and thankful for others reporting on this before football went down. I'm thankful for what one of my cousins shared with me on the issue - as seen in the documentary entitled "The Price of the World Cup" . It was shocking seeing how around 200,000 people were forcibly removed from their homes because of World Cup related constructions to make the city seem more beautiful. And many - especially the elderly and youth - were killed by police forces on the streets, even though no one seems to care on it

The Price of the World Cup (ENG/POR/ESP/GER) - YouTube​

And for others, there was a book on the matter that really brought the issue home - entitled Brazil's Dance with the Devil: The World Cup, the Olympics, and the Fight for Democracy (more in Brazil 2014: World Cup where politics and social media invaded the pitch | Football | The Guardian and Brazil’s Dance with the Devil: Dave Zirin on the People’s Revolt Challenging 2014 World Cup | Democracy Now!). He and others have done a lot keeping up with the massive protests occurring with the World Cup for some time now..

It's hard to ignore the protests which occurred as if they do not mean anything:

Contra A Copa: The Other Side of Brazil's World Cup (Full Length) - YouTube​

This sort of mess has been a problem in South and Central America for some time -including Brazil. For Brazil was heading "up", but returned to old ruckus more recently. Thank God there are people there working to help, but the tide is against them for sure. On the one hand, FIFA seems to be promoting an "egalitarian goal" re: chosen countries, which has had the knock-on effect (in Brazil) of deepening the class divide. Of course, Brazil's interest in encouraging investment in its economy by looking like a "world class player" w/fifa, a 'clean, gentrified' city and US type surveillance capacity is not surprising. Given Brazil's (and the regions) history a la Operation Condor, etc., their methods are also not surprising. And we already know that the Drug Traffickers make substantial money with FIFA - but no one seems to want to stop it ... and there is an EXCEPTIONAL amount of exploitation of Child Prostitutes in the World Cup during Brazil.

As another noted directly (for a brief excerpt):

Before anybody gets the idea that Brazil’s World Cup folly is typical Third World corruption, we’ve seen similar shenanigans in London, Athens, Atlanta, and Los Angeles (for the Olympics) and in Germany, South Korea, and Japan (for the World Cup). Reports of exploited foreign labor, a staple of Persian Gulf economies, have already been filed for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Russia’s performance at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi doesn’t portend well for its World Cup turn in 2018.The problems are systemic, a reflection of FIFA’s magisterial presence and the exorbitant demands of the selection process. Malfeasance becomes a necessary feature of the procedures from which hosting bids emerge. Political systems come equipped to handle that necessity. Hosting countries fleece the poor then make the poor vanish. It’s a natural consequence of polities where values are invested in real estate and not in basic human compassion.

Despite these realities, I will eagerly watch the World Cup, just as I watch college football despite its inherent dishonesty. .....I don’t discount the possibility that I’m simply hypocritical or weak-willed. .....Still, it’s important to consider our relationships to oppressive institutions, especially when those institutions provide us with a sense of excitement. One way to register objection to Brazil’s excessive graft and displacement of the poor is to bypass the World Cup altogether. It’s a tough thing to ask of the globe’s most passionate fans, so we have to contemplate ways to integrate fandom with political consciousness.​

I love Football as much as others do - but something's wrong if it seems no one pays attention to the protests happening (over forced gentrification) or others who were harmed to make the World Cup possible. It feels very similar to gladiator games and the way the populace reacted with it (and in light of the sheer amount of entertainment we focus on even after it harms others, others have been so brave as to ask If it was allowed would an arena with gladiators fighting to the death prove popular in modern times?). I do hope that others don't get so focused on the aspect of Entertainment with the World Cup that we forget to see the reality of how much the sport may be hurting others.

​

Again, I only kept up with the 2014 World Cup through friends who told me on it with the updates - but I chose not to watch it due to the mess that has been going on there. And with more of the same happening elsewhere in the future, I do wonder if we should keep on watching it and yet never choosing to perhaps leave it alone entirely. I know that Pope Francis spoke on the issue briefly and wished the best (despite the protests)

Nonetheless, it seems that when it comes to the subject of sports and entertainment, we're willing to support a culture promoting death and destruction - and then be quick to debate the nature of Christ. But if the most fundamental aspect of following Christ was to love your neighbor and be like the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:24-39) and pure/spotless religion was to look after WIdows/Orphans as well as to keep ourselves from being polluted by the world (James 1:26, I believe), then why was it the case that not many Christians spoke out on the matter when they were celebrating?

Can a Christian celebrate Pop Culture or Sports culture when it produces death in the process? What does that say of our theology whenever we support actions promoting death via entertainment and say nothing for the sake of being entertained?

If anyone has any thoughts, I'd love to hear..

 

[Gxg (G²)]

...it seems that when it comes to the subject of sports and entertainment, we're willing to support a culture promoting death and destruction - and then be quick to debate the nature of Christ. But if the most fundamental aspect of following Christ was to love your neighbor and be like the Good Samaritan (Luke 10:24-39) and pure/spotless religion was to look after WIdows/Orphans as well as to keep ourselves from being polluted by the world (James 1:26, I believe), then why was it the case that not many Christians spoke out on the matter when they were celebrating?

Can a Christian celebrate Pop Culture or Sports culture when it produces death in the process? What does that say of our theology whenever we support actions promoting death via entertainment and say nothing for the sake of being entertained?

If anyone has any thoughts, I'd love to hear..

To be clear,

Part of what I was seeking to convey in the OP is that it's hard to ignore the fact that how we respond to the subject of sports is a true reflection of the theology we hold to. Others who have spoken on the matter are people like Robert Ellis’s The Games People Play (which has been discussed here, and here) and Lincoln Harvey’s A Brief Theology of Sport .

And for others to consider:

• Theology of sport

• Theology of Sport | Peter J. Leithart | First Things

• A Serious Theology of Play - Q Ideas

• Desperately Needed: A Theology of Sports | Theological Vacillation

The aforementioned resources are all excellent studies on the matter that really make you pause to consider what we say when we tolerate the mess that comes with sports and yet seem to be unable to separate from it as if it's inherent to who we are as human beings. With Sports, I did them in high school - mainly Track & Field and Cross Country. I liked doing it, although I wasn't really a fan of sports outside of that. I never could play Basketball well due to always fouling others and I didn't have the coordination in Soccer (although I was always very fast) - but sports only came alive to me when I began to see how interconnected they were with impacting the world/everyday life (more shared before in Sports Orthodoxy: Looking for/Documenting Orthodox and #1/ #93 / #28 / #178/ #179 ). And there are so many believers who always had to keep that in mind. In example, Jackie Robinson shocked me when it came to his faith impacting the very shape of American Baseball and American culture
(more here and here and here/here).

And with that being said, it seems that we cannot have a mindset as believers that says "It's just sports!!!" and ignore where our love of a sport may come at the price of someone's life or physical well-being.


The same dynamic that happened with the 2014 World Cup has also happened (when it comes to injustice and mistreatment) with things like the the Superbowl ...very connected with Human Trafficking. I am glad for others who have noted how much we as believers don't take seriously the issues of entertainment and their impact on people's lives (as said here in http://www.christianforums.com/t7722147-2/ and http://www.christianforums.com/t7722147/#post62369215 ). Human Trafficking is something that has happened often at the Super Bowl events and others are starting to become more aware of it - from the Super Bowl parties that happen to the rampant prostitution that occurs when girls are brought in and many other things. It is disgusting - but what shocks me is when others see it and don't care for it.

That same ideology was and STILL is present with the World Cup 2014 event - it was shocking to me to witness how many believers did not say a world on what happened in the event. Not a word. It was not as if it's hidden since this has occurred before in other places - and if we claim Christ, I don't see how we can speak on Liturgy or the need to know the Councils of the Early Church...how we argue about so many things on GT when it comes to saying others are deficient in their theology - and yet we don't see to react at all when there's literally VIOLENCE and destruction occurring in front of us. The amount of deaths that occurred with the elderly and youth who were murdered by the police forces and military were things that NO one should treat as insignificant - nor say anything about when others are protesting. No one should ignore how cops pointed guns at and threatened to shoot protestors as they forcefully and brutally evicted locals from the slums of Rio de Janerio, sent in by the government to destroy poor people’s dwellings in Mangueira so they can build parking lots for the upcoming World Cup 2014.

In spite of police raids on the homes of activists who were speaking on behalf of the people, I am glad others are doing something about it. Protesters are gaining wide audiences with their calls for change in Brazil and beyond. In example, I was glad for the work of several journalism collectives which have launched multilingual websites to cover the protests in Brazil, with teams in every host city. I am reminded of Independent Mídia Ninjais (https://knightcenter.utexas.edu/blo...journalism-phenomenon-emerged-protests-brazil ). The Ninja media group has wanted independent journalism and a revolution of Brazil's media coverage – for during the country's recent unrest, the citizen journalists were hailed as an alternative to major media outlets. One of Ninja's goals is to provide information to people, even though they are able to participate as media agents as well. One of their founders has noted "We want to democratize the world of news and inform people in a better way.”

They have been working with a new platform called Oximity (https://ninja.oximity.com/ ) which brings together social journalism from around the world. Another group, Coletivo Carranca, has also launched new platforms, aiming to be first with news from the streets while producing some of the most striking images of the tournament. They have used digital cameras, and apps such as Twitcasting and Twitcam that allow them to broadcast live online, they are presenting their own version of events – with this challenging the coverage given by mainstream media. Some of them are reaching a huge audience across the country and are now looking to expand their reach internationally – armed with smartphones, cameras and gas masks – tools of a fast-growing trade in street protest news. Additionally, they have occupied a historic area of Rio for the duration of the World Cup 2014 tournament, with space for debates and protest as well as a multimedia center for independent citizen journalists. It is essentially a mini-autonomous republic in the middle of Rio for the duration of the World Cup and an opportunity to show the world what others truly feel with the World Cup. I am glad for how they recorded and live-streamed almost every chant, song and tussle with police in the ongoing demonstrations. Rafael Vilela, a photographer and another founder member of Mídia Ninja noted "Who would have thought that in the land of football, the population would take to the streets and social networks to criticize the World Cup and the investment in the stadiums? But they are seeing the real cost: the poor removed from their homes, favelas occupied by a 'pacifying' police force, and other violent approaches to redevelopment of their cities which is driven by the needs of Fifa and the sponsors, rather than the needs of the people."

​

What surprises me is how many Christians do not seem to be speaking on the issues as much as those who do not seem to claim Christ. I think it should be believers who were sharing on the matter and saying "We will NOT support the World Cup unless this violence stops!!!" - but thus far, that does not seem to be what the bent of many is.

 

[Targaryen]

Subscribing...will come back to this when i have a coherent thought

 

[Gxg (G²)]

Subscribing...will come back to this when i have a coherent thought

That is not a problem whatsoever. Looking forward to hearing your thoughts on the matter and how to address the situation posed in the OP.

 

[Gxg (G²)]

More specifically, everyone saw what occurred with the recent World Cup 2014 recently. Many kept up with it - including others in my family (with my extended family even going to Brazil). Being a Sports Fan, I used to think nothing of it , till I became aware of how much corruption occurred with the event and that not many are aware of it. For reference:

• World Cup 2014: Football, Poverty and Protests | LinkedIn and Brazil: World Cup Gentrification Carried Out via Gunpoint - revolution-news.com

To me, this looked like an elephant in the Room that no one was wanting to talk about when it comes to the people whose homes were destroyed (and families) by the folks supporting FIFA - it's not a good thing when violence and entertainment go together....and thankful for others reporting on this before football went down. I'm thankful for what one of my cousins shared with me on the issue - as seen in the documentary entitled "The Price of the World Cup" . It was shocking seeing how around 200,000 people were forcibly removed from their homes because of World Cup related constructions to make the city seem more beautiful. And many - especially the elderly and youth - were killed by police forces on the streets, even though no one seems to care on it

The Price of the World Cup (ENG/POR/ESP/GER) - YouTube​

Concerning more on why sports are indeed a theological issue, one can go to Thinking through Christianity: The Theology of Sport and Another Look: It’s Holy Week in America - iMonk....and CSRM : Article : Toward a Theology of Competition and Sport . As said best in KING » A Theology of Sports, Pt. 3 (for brief excerpt):

​

Not only are sports a part of God’s created order, but they are a good part of his creation. Sports were created good.

That might not sound like a revolutionary statement, but I think it’s more radical than you realize. The problem isn’t that people think sports were created evil; few would argue that. The trouble is that many believe sports were created neutral, neither good nor evil. This thinking is part of a broader worldview held among many Christians and yet completely unbiblical – that God created certain things sacred and other things secular. God cares about prayer, Bible studies, and church, but things like work, sports, and school are neutral and God only cares about them if they’re used for higher spiritual purposes such as evangelism. Or so they say.

But Scripture clearly says that after God finished his creation, he proclaimed that it was all very good. God cares about baptism and business, redemption and romance, sabbath and sports. ...​

Also, as said by the same author in A Theology of Sports, Pt. 4 >> KING (for a brief excerpt):

Sports are good, but when used for sinful purposes, they can become very bad. Ethical problems in sports have grown as quickly as Mark McGwire’s arms before the 1998 Major League Baseball season.

In a world marred by sin, sports become a playground for…

Violence
Cheating
Organized crime
Sexual Immorality
Child Abuse
Injury
Drugs

We also see systemic problems in sports caused by sin; such as the win-at-all-costs mentality, which leaves in its wake broken families, compromised integrity and wounded friendships. ...Sin isn’t merely doing bad things, it’s making a good thing an ultimate thing. The Bible calls this idolatry. We’re made to love God, be satisfied in Him, find our identity in Him. An idol is anything that seeks to take God’s place in fulfilling those very needs. It’s a God-substitute. When you think of idolatry in the Old Testament, you might think of wooden gods that they would actually bow down to, but Ezekiel 4 makes it clear that the root problem is idolatry of the heart. As it is says in Romans 1, we worship and serve created things rather than the creator. So how does idolatry – making a good thing an ultimate thing – apply to sports? As we saw in Genesis 1-2, sports are a good thing. But in a fallen world, rather than enjoying sports as a gift from God, we often use sports to replace God.​

Sports are intimately connected to how we express our theology - and if we do not glorify the Lord in how we approach the subject of sports, then we're not representing him. This goes for any area that is intimately connected to Pop Culture (more at On Pop Theology and Pop Culture | Theology on Tap - and with that said, I do hope that anyone entering this discussion will be able to clearly understand that discussing the evils that are often promoted by prominent sports events and our reactions to them are not divorced from theological concerns.

Whether it be with the evils that occurred throughout the World Cup 2014 with the gentrification/murders - or trafficking in the Super Bowl or even issues relating to the NBA when it comes to coaches supporting idolatry/corruption like what occurred with Donald Sterling of the Clippers and his being a slum lord (more in Clippers and Clipping Houses: Housing Discrimination by Sterling that isn't talked on ) - we need to be discussing these issues if we're going to claim any kind of heart to reflect Christ.

What we say about events in the sports world will show what we feel theologically in the same way that what we say about slavery or how we're to be working reveals our worldview

And with what went down with the World Cup recently, seeing the lack of coverage here in GT seemed to give the impression that there's a good bit of DISCONNECT in knowing what Christ was about since people were being harmed in it (including Christians) and we are to address evil.

 

[squint]

Rome had gladiators. We have professional sports. Not much different imho.

I'm sure you're aware of the corruption probe into how the cup location is bought off and bribed for, er, ah, I mean officially determined?

re: sports, in my city a few years ago they built a new football stadium via .gov forced taxation voted on by the majority. That little fee ended up costing my company over $20,000. a year, no kisses, no thank you's, no tickets. Then, after it was paid for, .gov decided to extend the fee indefinitely so they could build other facilities for other billionaires.

Corruption...gag reflex.

 

[ChristsSoldier115]

How many christians were even aware of it? I have a theory that, most likely, 80% of all christians are not aware of whats going on outside their immediate area, and 40% of those don't even know something is wrong in their own area.

 

[Gxg (G²)]

Rome had gladiators. We have professional sports. Not much different imho.

I agree - modern sports today and the way they are promoted is essentially a culture based on the same violence (as well as dehumanization of life) that occurred with the gladiator games.

And what's even more wild to consider is the ways that the World Cup. Much of the funding for the World Cup is actually going to be sadly supporting terrorism in many respects - with the entertainment industry being promoted so much since it distracts the people from seeing what is being set up and developed in the rest of the world....the same events that people decry (like violence in the Middle East or other nations) being things that they are actually supporting in the end without realizing it since they don't follow the money or see where things connect.

• MARTIN SAMUEL: The World Cup hosts in bed with terrorists | Mail Online

• Which World Cup Teams Are Most Popular Among Jihadis? - Vocativ

• Olympic Capitalism: Bread and Circuses Without the Bread | Let's Try Democracy

• round thoughts » Qatar is The Terror Funding World Cup Host

• Why Jihadists Love the World Cup - Newsweek

• The World Cup Soccer in Qatar (2022), Controversy over Appalling Migrant Worker Conditions | Global Research

That's on top of the reality that Cocaine Capitalism has been a big part of the World Cup with the funding as well (the name of it being Narco-Soccer, more in COLOMBIA: The Rise and Fall of Narco-Soccer | Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS) and "Tale of Two Escobars"). ...and exploitation of workers to create the stadiums on top of things.

I am glad that the 2014 FIFA World Cup brought to light the social inequalities, injustices and class struggle in Brazil - as well as exposing the problems of property speculation, gentrification, criminalization and forceful removals, as the country was indeed rocked by the largest protests in the history of the championship...

But not many realized it - and so long as folks are entertained, people won't say anything....especially here in the U.S. And as another noted wisely in Brazil: Workers Struggle Trumps Sports Spectacle | Global Research and here:[/url]

For decades social critics have bemoaned the influence of sports and entertainment spectacles in 'distracting' workers from struggling for their class interests. According to these analysts, 'class consciousness' was replaced by 'mass' consciousness. They argued that atomized individuals, manipulated by the mass media, were converted into passive consumers who identified with millionaire sports heroes, soap opera protagonists and film celebrities. The culmination of this 'mystification' - mass distraction -were the 'world champions hips' watched by billions around the world and sponsored and financed by billionaire corporations:

• the World Series (baseball)
• the World Cup (soccer/football)
• the Super Bowl (American football)

It's never JUST a game...nor is it simply "sports" since they are connected to global/geopolitical realities in more ways than what others are comfortable with. And we need to begin seeing how things intertwine, as believers in Christ. I agree with other believers advocating for what is occurring in the Middle East via persecution of others and seeing that those minority groups are protected - with good threads on the matter being places like The Arabic "nun" - supporting our Christian brothers and sisters and Prophet Jonah's Tomb destroyed and so many others.

But it is ironic that many are now in alarm over what's happening over there - and yet not realizing the many ways that there was actually direct support of the problem if they sat back and said nothing on the World Cup...as the World Cup was used by the ISIS to spread their agenda

I'm sure you're aware of the corruption probe into how the cup location is bought off and bribed for, er, ah, I mean officially determined?

Indeed - not many consider that.

Of course, they know that most people loving sports won't really consider that when they just want to see the sport itself.

re: sports, in my city a few years ago they built a new football stadium via .gov forced taxation voted on by the majority. That little fee ended up costing my company over $20,000. a year, no kisses, no thank you's, no tickets. Then, after it was paid for, .gov decided to extend the fee indefinitely so they could build other facilities for other billionaires.

Corruption...gag reflex.

Gag reflex indeed. So sorry to see what happened to your city with that situation....

 

[squint]

Gag reflex indeed. So sorry to see what happened to your city with that situation....

From an individual perspective there are few avenues of recourse for resistance other than to just STOP PAYING THEM.

The same can be said for any social complaint. If we don't like it, don't pay, don't play.

Thank God religion remains optional choice at this point in society. There was a time the masses were bent over and sorely abused by corrupt power mongers in this space as well.

 

[Gxg (G²)]

How many christians were even aware of it? I have a theory that, most likely, 80% of all christians are not aware of whats going on outside their immediate area, and 40% of those don't even know something is wrong in their own area.

I think that's part of the problem - and to be clear, it's one thing if one doesn't know what's going on in innocence. However, it's entirely different when one notes from the jump that they do not care to know since they are already committed to another goal. This is something that I noticed whenever I brought up the issue to others - it was given some attention during the World Cup....but as the focus was on the teams they were cheering for and that was something they were gung-ho for BEFORE I noted where the World Cup supports a lot of mess, it was an issue of "We'll deal with this later."

And not surprisingly, after the parties, nothing has been said on it. What does come up a lot is that it's just how things are and one cannot really change that - which is an excuse to keep on being entertained with your passion or sport (idolatry).

I know that it's often hard to keep up with things happening around you and I am just as guilty as others - I often have a hard time remembering things like local elections of mayors and names of other elected figures in my area, although I try to keep up as best as possible. However, if made aware, I will jump on it and seek to keep that in mind since I am held accountable. Theologically, by not doing anything, I reveal that I have a theological stance that it doesn't matter what happens around me...

 

[Gxg (G²)]

From an individual perspective there are few avenues of recourse for resistance other than to just STOP PAYING THEM.

The same can be said for any social complaint. If we don't like it, don't pay, don't play.

Indeed. No one is being forced to be entertained - and they can only succeed when they know others will pay for the product they are going out of the way to promote at the expense of others. It's just like the music industry - people get mad at the producers of the music and corrupt musicians/singers who promote filth in their products...but no one considers that they can only do well because the public demands it and does nothing to stop it - that, or the fact that others don't research to see what else is out there besides what's promoted in the mainstream media.

On the same token, as believers, something is wrong when it seems there is not UNIVERSAL support to stand against such evils in the Sports Industry just as they do against murder or slavery and other things.

Thank God religion remains optional choice at this point in society. There was a time the masses were bent over and sorely abused by corrupt power mongers in this space as well.

Technically, there has already been an enforced religion/theology that has been mass-produced and influencing all others. Nihilism, Hedonism, Secular Humanism, the religion of Relativism (where one says all religions HAVE to be seen as equal, etc. ....that stuff surrounds us and we're constantly bombarded with worldviews and philosophies. We just don't realize it many times where there is indeed a religion within this world system that is enforced and NOT optional.

 

[squint]

Technically, there has already been an enforced religion/theology that has been mass-produced and influencing all others. Nihilism, Hedonism, Secular Humanism, the religion of Relativism (where one says all religions HAVE to be seen as equal, etc. ....that stuff surrounds us and we're constantly bombarded with worldviews and philosophies. We just don't realize it many times where there is indeed a religion within this world system that is enforced and NOT optional.

True that. But that has been true of the 'world' that we are to hate from the beginning.

 

[Gxg (G²)]

True that. But that has been true of the 'world' that we are to hate from the beginning.

Very true - and from the beginning there have always been people who'd speak about it to show it for what it is. In regards to the OP, I just wish there were more who would be willing to do so as it concerns the Sports industry on the multiple ways it has promoted the aforementioned religious ideologies at several junctures (as well as the violence and outright murder occurring in places, even beyond the World Cup)...

But so long as people think sports are a neutral thing which can never take on a theological nature or be a bad reflection of our theology (and really a reflection of holding the theology of the world according to I John 2:19 with the things of the World), there will be a lot of damage that continues. It's like people have cognitive dissonance...

"I love Jesus!!!!" is what is proclaimed while we sit back watching the T.V on who scored the most on the field - even though the soccer field itself was made on the backs of oppressing others and we didn't care enough to say "I am not going to claim Christ and watch this when I know where it comes from." All believers in Christ need to be united on this issue - and as it concerns this forum, the amount of time debating on theological issues pertaining to the Church or Christ need to also be focused on debating issues in the Sports realm as well if we're really that concerned with reflecting Jesus. But we all have our leanings...

 

[squint]

Very true - and from the beginning there have always been people who'd speak about it to show it for what it is. In regards to the OP, I just wish there were more who would be willing to do so as it concerns the Sports industry on the multiple ways it has promoted the aforementioned religious ideologies at several junctures (as well as the violence and outright murder occurring in places, even beyond the World Cup)...

But so long as people think sports are a neutral thing which can never take on a theological nature or be a bad reflection of our theology (and really a reflection of holding the theology of the world according to I John 2:19 with the things of the World), there will be a lot of damage that continues. It's like people have cognitive dissonance...

"I love Jesus!!!!" is what is proclaimed while we sit back watching the T.V on who scored the most on the field - even though the soccer field itself was made on the backs of oppressing others and we didn't care enough to say "I am not going to claim Christ and watch this when I know where it comes from." All believers in Christ need to be united on this issue - and as it concerns this forum, the amount of time debating on theological issues pertaining to the Church or Christ need to also be focused on debating issues in the Sports realm as well if we're really that concerned with reflecting Jesus. But we all have our leanings...

I'm pretty sure you are familiar with exponential charting.

On the scale of matters, evil, it appears to be a rapidly progressing vertical incline in so many matters currently it's hard to keep track of them all.

 

[ChristsSoldier115]

I think that's part of the problem - and to be clear, it's one thing if one doesn't know what's going on in innocence. However, it's entirely different when one notes from the jump that they do not care to know since they are already committed to another goal. This is something that I noticed whenever I brought up the issue to others - it was given some attention during the World Cup....but as the focus was on the teams they were cheering for and that was something they were gung-ho for BEFORE I noted where the World Cup supports a lot of mess, it was an issue of "We'll deal with this later."

And not surprisingly, after the parties, nothing has been said on it. What does come up a lot is that it's just how things are and one cannot really change that - which is an excuse to keep on being entertained with your passion or sport (idolatry).

I know that it's often hard to keep up with things happening around you and I am just as guilty as others - I often have a hard time remembering things like local elections of mayors and names of other elected figures in my area, although I try to keep up as best as possible. However, if made aware, I will jump on it and seek to keep that in mind since I am held accountable. Theologically, by not doing anything, I reveal that I have a theological stance that it doesn't matter what happens around me...

I don't think christians know the balance of church and state. They would rather wait for the state to deal with the crisis and gripe, complain, and vote[maybe].. instead of actually doing something about the problem.

 

[Gxg (G²)]

I'm pretty sure you are familiar with exponential charting.

On the scale of matters, evil, it appears to be a rapidly progressing vertical incline in so many matters currently it's hard to keep track of them all.

Very accurate image as it concerns the ways that others can be overwhelmed with the rise in problems and don't know how to handle it

 

[Gxg (G²)]

I don't think christians know the balance of church and state. They would rather wait for the state to deal with the crisis and gripe, complain, and vote[maybe].. instead of actually doing something about the problem.

With what the OP speaks on, I think it's often a matter of simply not caring enough than actually thinking it's the job of the State or governments. Entertainment is what people desire above all else in many respects

 

[Gxg (G²)]

Subscribing...will come back to this when i have a coherent thought

Seeing if you had a coherent thought as of yet on the matter

 

[Nanopants]

I didn't have time to watch the full videos, but I've been around long enough to have a rough idea of where this is going.

Here's the thing: big sporting events like the World Cup generate revenue, they produce jobs, and help drive local economies (yes, even corrupt sectors of it). To cut off huge venues like this for the sake of some corrupt activity that feeds off of it would be like burning down a house because there are rats in the basement, or like destroying the organs of a patient to remove a tumor. Fixing the real problems is so much more difficult than indignation alone can handle, and demoralizing a perfectly innocent activity and its participants because someone, somewhere is doing something wrong, doesn't serve anyone but ourselves.

 

[Targaryen]

I think I have some coherent thoughts on the subject and can comment to the general theme.

First of all, I'm as big of a sports fan as you claim to be with your love of International Football. For me I love the North American versions of the game and the not so american game of cricket.

So I know both the extremes in the sport as king culture and the sport as culture and civilized culture routines.

The NFL for instance is a huge conglomerate of not only weathy owners but wealthy players that basically pay or get paid to race around with an ovoid ball and people are like fooled into thinking this is the new cure for cancer or some other such nonsense.

In terms of moral integrity however, the NFL falls far short of that with some of the things that have transpired. Athletes on drugs, racist owners, misogyny, greed. You don't really have to look to hard to find the latest offender. Take the case of Ray rice, a running back for the Baltimore Ravens. He was caught on camera abusing his wife and is currently in court proceeding to find out if he should serve some kind of a sentence. The commissioner of the NFL had the opportunity to send a message to anyone caught doing reprehensible acts such as that and he did alright. 2 games suspension. Only two games when , for instance last year a player stomped on another player's unhelmeted head in a game and got 5 games.

In cricket, the game is presented as the last bastion of the civilized sportsman. and massive fines are levied against breeches in conduct that in soccer or other North American sports, would be considered passe and par for the course. however, this game which in the sub-continent of Asia is bigger then even soccer is, is facing more and more issues of corruption and scandal. Players getting paid to fix matches, national boards accused of buying off the world governing body and so on and so on.


Sport is a landmine really when it comes to theology cause if you look at it, it condenses both the best and the worst in our daily lives and glorifies it. It in reality is just another way, with a lot less bloodshed,in a sense, of conducting war on different groups. Look at any war or any theological stand from the surface and you could see it. Allies vs Nazis, the English monarchy vs the French Monarchy, Catholic vs Protestant.

We overlook the abuses of sport at our peril at times and then when we look back on it we go. "well why didn't anyone do anything?" but, the sad fact to me at least is this and it comes down to the original quote in Latin that kind of best explains humanity's reactions to events like this:

"iam pridem, ex quo suffragia nulli / uendimus, effudit curas; nam qui dabat olim / imperium, fasces, legiones, omnia, nunc se / continet atque duas tantum res anxius optat, / panem et circenses"

Already long ago, from when we sold our vote to no man, the People have abdicated our duties; for the People who once upon a time handed out military command, high civil office, legions — everything, now restrains itself and anxiously hopes for just two things: bread and circuses.