It’s the weekend for Respect Human Life, and I have a twist on our annual observance. Everybody has a hero, it seems, though what type of hero and what is the source of that admiration seems to play differently to the vast audience of hero‐worshippers. Some admire “heroes” from the spiritual realm, others are to be found in Hollywood on the celluloid or other make‐believe stages of the entertainment world. Others are war or civic heroes, true to form. Still, some are found among the vast array of political, sports or financial entrepreneurs. A current one for me, believe it or not, is a sports hero, too. His name: Tim Tebow!
In spite of the Broncos loss last weekend, the question still will be asked whether Tim Tebow will end up an NFL great, like fellow Bronco, John Elway? That remains to be seen. I could probably get as many opinions as the number of people that I ask. But what is certain is that Tim has become a special person in my book (though I’m not known to particularly favor the Broncos) because he’s not afraid to live and proclaim his Christian faith. He’s a walking, living pro‐life testimonial, going back even to before he was born. When he was still in‐the‐womb, his mother courageously chose to carry him to term despite doctors’ recommendations that she abort him.
Even before he went pro, a Christian family group commissioned an innocuous TV ad that ran during the 2010 Saints‐Colts Super Bowl game. It briefly told the story of his family’s struggle about Tim’s impending birth. The word “abortion” wasn’t even mentioned, but all it took to rock the liberal “anti‐life” movement was a positive portrayal of child‐bearing. Radical feminist groups (some call them femi‐Nazis), media‐types and liberal pundits went haywire even before the ad ran. The vice president of The National Organization for Women (NOW) told ABC News that Tebow’s story of survival was “really quite offensive… This ad is hate masquerading as love!” she barked. But guess where the real hate was? You see, Tim wasn’t dismembered alive and scraped in pieces from his mother’s womb. The New York‐based Women’s Media Center launched a failed censorship petition drive to pull the ad, framing it as an “attack on choice.” Yet, Tim’s mom did make a “choice,” only it wasn’t the right choice for them, and she dared to make it known publicly.
As Tim Tebow’s claim to fame has grown exponentially, so, too, has the left’s hatred for him. This is due in large part to his very open Christian faith. After each game, Tim begins by thanking God: “First and foremost, I’d like to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.” The new expression known as “Tebowing” is about his dropping to one knee in prayer. Then there’s Tim’s favorite Scripture verse, John 3:16, (also found on Notre Dame’s Library wall facing their football field) which he’s known to wear painted in black swaths under each eye. After the Broncos’ recent electrifying playoff win against the Pittsburgh Steelers in overtime, John 3:16, was reportedly the most popular search term on the Internet. During that game, Tebow coincidentally passed for precisely 316 yards and averaged 31.6 yards per completed pass. As the television viewing audience for the last 15 minutes of the game was 31.6 percent, to add this to his mystique.
The attention that Tebow’s bold faith has drawn to the Gospel message has secular “progressives” and other Goddeniers furious ranting as raving lunatics. American Atheists, a New Jersey‐based group that promotes religious cleansing from the public sphere, says that Tebow is “full of cr*p.” “Tebow takes religion and injects it into the mix and divides the fan base,” complained David Silverman, the group’s president. “[Religion] injects the divisive force into football,” he continued. “Why in the world are we talking about religion when we are talking about football?” he demanded (because, leaving out religion, then football is just a touchy‐feely snuggle fest). Of course, Tebow is merely doing what Jesus asks of his followers: “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 10:32)
The problem is that secular “progressives” don’t want Christ acknowledged before anyone ‐‐ period! They endeavor to shut down or mock anybody who tries. For example, during the Broncos’ regular season loss to the Buffalo Bills, socalled “progressive” anti‐Catholic and pseudo‐intellectual funnyman Bill Maher tweeted about the game, capturing the left’s visceral hatred for Tim Tebow in 140 characters or less: “Wow, Jesus just [expletive deleted] TimTebow bad! And on Xmas Eve!! Somewhere in hell Satan is Tebowing, saying to Hitler ‘Hey, Buffalo’s killing them.’”
Jesus addressed the Bill Mahers of the world — past, present and future — on more than one occasion. In John 15:18‐20, for instance, He reminds His followers: “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” Those who belong to the world do indeed hate Tim Tebow. He stands for much of what our post‐modern popular culture despises: sexual purity within the bonds of natural marriage, the sanctity of human life, selflessness, personal charity, humility and much, much more. After all, Tebow has never even been arrested for drug possession or sexual assault, for Pete’s sake! We simply can’t allow children this kind of sports’ role model now, can we?
So, even if God doesn’t care about who wins NFL football games, He unquestionably cares about those who play, watch and love football. Win or lose, no matter what happens with the rest of the football season, one thing is for sure: people will keep talking about the Broncos’ Tim Tebow. And when people are talking about Tim they can’t help but talk about the profound faith that drives him both on and off the field.
In spite of the Broncos loss last weekend, the question still will be asked whether Tim Tebow will end up an NFL great, like fellow Bronco, John Elway? That remains to be seen. I could probably get as many opinions as the number of people that I ask. But what is certain is that Tim has become a special person in my book (though I’m not known to particularly favor the Broncos) because he’s not afraid to live and proclaim his Christian faith. He’s a walking, living pro‐life testimonial, going back even to before he was born. When he was still in‐the‐womb, his mother courageously chose to carry him to term despite doctors’ recommendations that she abort him.
Even before he went pro, a Christian family group commissioned an innocuous TV ad that ran during the 2010 Saints‐Colts Super Bowl game. It briefly told the story of his family’s struggle about Tim’s impending birth. The word “abortion” wasn’t even mentioned, but all it took to rock the liberal “anti‐life” movement was a positive portrayal of child‐bearing. Radical feminist groups (some call them femi‐Nazis), media‐types and liberal pundits went haywire even before the ad ran. The vice president of The National Organization for Women (NOW) told ABC News that Tebow’s story of survival was “really quite offensive… This ad is hate masquerading as love!” she barked. But guess where the real hate was? You see, Tim wasn’t dismembered alive and scraped in pieces from his mother’s womb. The New York‐based Women’s Media Center launched a failed censorship petition drive to pull the ad, framing it as an “attack on choice.” Yet, Tim’s mom did make a “choice,” only it wasn’t the right choice for them, and she dared to make it known publicly.
As Tim Tebow’s claim to fame has grown exponentially, so, too, has the left’s hatred for him. This is due in large part to his very open Christian faith. After each game, Tim begins by thanking God: “First and foremost, I’d like to thank my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.” The new expression known as “Tebowing” is about his dropping to one knee in prayer. Then there’s Tim’s favorite Scripture verse, John 3:16, (also found on Notre Dame’s Library wall facing their football field) which he’s known to wear painted in black swaths under each eye. After the Broncos’ recent electrifying playoff win against the Pittsburgh Steelers in overtime, John 3:16, was reportedly the most popular search term on the Internet. During that game, Tebow coincidentally passed for precisely 316 yards and averaged 31.6 yards per completed pass. As the television viewing audience for the last 15 minutes of the game was 31.6 percent, to add this to his mystique.
The attention that Tebow’s bold faith has drawn to the Gospel message has secular “progressives” and other Goddeniers furious ranting as raving lunatics. American Atheists, a New Jersey‐based group that promotes religious cleansing from the public sphere, says that Tebow is “full of cr*p.” “Tebow takes religion and injects it into the mix and divides the fan base,” complained David Silverman, the group’s president. “[Religion] injects the divisive force into football,” he continued. “Why in the world are we talking about religion when we are talking about football?” he demanded (because, leaving out religion, then football is just a touchy‐feely snuggle fest). Of course, Tebow is merely doing what Jesus asks of his followers: “Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven.” (Matthew 10:32)
The problem is that secular “progressives” don’t want Christ acknowledged before anyone ‐‐ period! They endeavor to shut down or mock anybody who tries. For example, during the Broncos’ regular season loss to the Buffalo Bills, socalled “progressive” anti‐Catholic and pseudo‐intellectual funnyman Bill Maher tweeted about the game, capturing the left’s visceral hatred for Tim Tebow in 140 characters or less: “Wow, Jesus just [expletive deleted] TimTebow bad! And on Xmas Eve!! Somewhere in hell Satan is Tebowing, saying to Hitler ‘Hey, Buffalo’s killing them.’”
Jesus addressed the Bill Mahers of the world — past, present and future — on more than one occasion. In John 15:18‐20, for instance, He reminds His followers: “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.” Those who belong to the world do indeed hate Tim Tebow. He stands for much of what our post‐modern popular culture despises: sexual purity within the bonds of natural marriage, the sanctity of human life, selflessness, personal charity, humility and much, much more. After all, Tebow has never even been arrested for drug possession or sexual assault, for Pete’s sake! We simply can’t allow children this kind of sports’ role model now, can we?
So, even if God doesn’t care about who wins NFL football games, He unquestionably cares about those who play, watch and love football. Win or lose, no matter what happens with the rest of the football season, one thing is for sure: people will keep talking about the Broncos’ Tim Tebow. And when people are talking about Tim they can’t help but talk about the profound faith that drives him both on and off the field.
Very Rev. Canon Tom
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