Washington D.C., Feb 1, 2017 / 01:59 am (CNA/EWTN News).- Super Bowl Sunday. It’s as American as apple pie, but in recent years, controversy has erupted over the beloved American pastime and – considering the risk it poses – whether or not the game of football is even worth it.
Whether one is a devoted football fan, or only watches once a year, Super Bowl Sunday holds a place as a major event for people across the country. However, some say that aspects such as commercialism, graphic content, and the life-changing injuries sustained by players should make Catholics think critically about the game they’re seeing, even as they cheer on the teams before them.
“I love football and in fact it would be difficult to find someone who loves football more than I do,” said Charles Camosy, professor of ethics at Fordham University. He even credits football for his existence, given that his parents met on a train to the Notre Dame-Alabama Sugar Bowl game in 1973.
But despite his love for the game, Camosy said there are a variety of potentially troubling aspects about the Super Bowl. From the often lewd commercials and halftime show to the sometimes cult-like intensity of the fans and violence of the game itself, viewers must take care in how they view the Big Game, he said.
“The key is to be hyper aware of what this is, what you’re doing, and where you stand,” Camosy told CNA. “Be aware that we need to resist those things. Even call it out as you’re watching.”
While the Super Bowl is the most-watched television event in the U.S., there is growing concern that behind the screen and underneath the helmet, the brains of the players competing in the Super Bowl are sustaining potentially life-altering damage.
Within the past decade, researchers at various institutions have noted a link between repetitive brain trauma sustained in football – including hits that produce no immediate symptoms – and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. Also known as CTE, the degenerative brain disease triggers progressive brain damage, and symptoms include memory loss, impulse control, depression and progressive dementia. The mental health problems created by CTE have also been linked to suicidal thoughts and attempts by former professional football players.
CTE has been found in 96 percent of NFL players whose brains were submitted for a 2015 analysis by the Department of Veterans Affairs and Boston University. The disease was also found in 71 percent of all football players – including high school players – whose postmortem samples were submitted for research.
This risk for life-changing brain damage, Camosy said, is “built into football.”
“There are certain things built into football, at least the way we play the game now, that aren’t built into soccer” and other sports, he suggested.
“Given what we now know and given how central violence is to the game, that gives another reason perhaps to resist this.”
Camosy has written several essays on the morality of America’s football culture. He suggests that it is “morally problematic” to support a game that is so deeply intertwined with violence and connected to long-lasting damage for those who partake in it.
He pointed to the criticism voiced by Church Fathers including Tertullian for the Roman gladiator games and the Christians who went to see them. In his treatises, Tertullian slammed the games’ idolatry, the justifications for their bloody nature, the public’s addiction to watching them, and the violence of the matches themselves.
Many of these criticisms of the gladiatorial games, Camosy continued, are relevant to the way football is played today. “We prefer not to look at the violence. We somehow make it compatible with the non-violence Jesus calls us to,” he said.
Chad Pecknold, a professor of Historical and Systematic Theology at The Catholic University of America, had a different perspective.
While the gladiatorial games of the Roman Empire and American football today have some similarities – and can provide insight into the respective cultures that created them – there are also important differences, he said.
Most obviously, imminent death was a prominent characteristic of the gladiator games, in a way that is not characteristic of football.
“The Roman gladiatorial games were a by-product of war, and in this sense they were a potent cultural expression of Rome’s ‘lust for domination,’” Pecknold said.
While theologians such as St. Augustine taught that in some circumstances, the violence of war could be justified, they criticized Rome’s approach to war and found that when the “horrific violence” of war was turned solely into entertainment in the gladiatorial games, that the games “were more pernicious than war itself,” he continued.
American football, Pecknold suggested, does not carry the exact same significance the early Christians cautioned against.
Still, he said, there is reason for caution with football.
“I am not sure if we should worry about football in the same way that the early Church fathers worried about gladiatorial spectacle, but we should pay attention to how easily the goodness of sports can be disordered.”
Both Camosy and Pecknold acknowledged positive aspects to the game of football – including the God-given athletic talent, strategy and teaching of virtue, as well as the game’s ability to bring together families and communities.
“If it can serve the common good of the family, the neighborhood, the community, then it’s really terrific and we should thank God for it,” Pecknold said.
But that affection can quickly become disordered and occupy a disproportionate place in people’s lives, he cautioned. And the commercial aspect of football, which grows out of the economy, can also be concerning because of what it reflects about the culture.
Ultimately, he said, when approaching the Super Bowl and its content, “Christians can watch football with a clean conscience, but they might want to turn off the halftime show.”
Camosy agreed that it is possible to watch the Super Bowl with a clean conscience, but suggested that Christians avoid being drawn into the negative elements, perhaps by openly “(making) fun of the commercials and what the half-time show is all about.” He also warned Catholics who watch the Super Bowl to be wary of their own focuses and care for the game, and to be careful, when cheering for teams, “that we don’t create another source of ultimate concern here – that this isn’t another god.”
And Catholics should speak up about the violence that plagues the game, Camosy said.
“What I call for is a similar kind of shift that happened almost a hundred years ago,” he said, recalling Teddy Roosevelt’s reforms to the game when college students were dying during matches.
“Leave the good – get rid of the bad.”
This article was originally published Feb. 6, 2016.
[…]
I hold Pope Francis partially to blame for this witch hunt of traditionalist Catholics. I am NOT saying that he was party to this political persecution of Catholics in the USA. But I AM stating categorically that his repeated and public singling out traditional Catholics for criticism and ridicule only serves to encourage persecution of Catholics by rogue elements in our Federal government. He should hang his head in shame.
Amen, Deacon.
My only possible disagreement is that it is “rogue elements.” I am beginning to believe it is standard operating procedures of the government these days.
I don’t think it’s any business of the FBI what form of the liturgy Catholics attend or whether they’re in full agreement with VII but it did appear from the documents that it was SSPX communities who were singled out, not so much those who attend the TLM outside the SSPX.
Again, the FBIs job is not to sort out Catholic disputes over liturgy or infiltrate churches. Ive had SSPX friends and have never heard anything extremist or violent from them. My hope has always been that the SSPX and Rome would reconcile.
they just shot a pastor out west, I wonder why they didn’t arrest him out in public
Do you really believe that they act upon what the Pope says?
If the Pope publicly denigrates traditional Catholics by calling them rigid and radical, don’t you think that is encouragement enough for the Catholic-haters in the Biden administration?
This is the same FBI that Catholic Joe uses against his political enemies, Christians and now Catholics.
The war on Christians and Christianity, especially the Catholic Church, began 2000 years ago in Jerusalem.
To identify as Catholic does not preclude being a domestic terrorist. Unfortunately! If you listen to many “Trad” podcasts you will soon realize that there ARE far right Catholics who could possibly be a threat to our present form of government. Everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty, but that doesn’t mean that if possibly suspect they shouldn’t be investigated. If you don’t do anything wrong you shouldn’t be worried.
I fear traditional Catholics far less than the rogue administration now running the Federal government and people who think it’s the purview of government to interfere in the religious practices of Catholics.
There is no such thing as “Far-right” Catholics, only CINO Catholics, who do not follow the doctrines of the Church. To them, it may seem like we are “far-right”, but that is because the CINOs are “far-wrong”!
Dee. How far-right are CINOs? I continue to remain cautious when I see a broad-brush indictment of any group. I try to refrain from usig “all” and “none”. God bless.
Do you have examples of traditional Catholics who pose a threat James? I don’t doubt it’s possible but I’m not aware of any.
Seriously? This is the very thing that a govt should NOT do. Investigate any random group hoping to find a crime or grounds for prosecution. Like checking all the figures in your tax return hoping to find a mistake and calling it criminal activity. In our country that is supposed to be illegal. Police are supposed to investigate AFTER a crime has been committed, or when/if they come into possession of evidence a crime is about to be committed. PLANTING undercover “moles” into catholic churches , or worse yet, trying to “turn” church employees and clergy is McCarthyism at its worst. Doubtless conservative people are often not only conservative in their religious practices but in their politics as well. But there is a gross difference between being conservative and being radical enemies of one’s govt. Funny that today, I read that the former DEM-led J6 Committee has destroyed a great deal of security video tapes and evidence which was supposed to be turned over to the GOP. Every time I see subversive actions trying to distort our country and our rule of law, the partisan and illegal actions are ALWAYS coming from the left. Since that crowd has no moral compass or patriotism or loyalty to the US, it’s no shock to observe this. Just disgusting. Catholic democrat voters, wake up before this gulag machine comes for you too.
“If you don’t do anything wrong, you shouldn’t be worried.” Seriously? Have you not been paying attention? The current administration and its DOJ have been going after a lot of people that have done nothing wrong. Parents, pro-life fathers, etc.
Perhaps you’re on this Catholic page to try to distract?
After Mark Houck I don’t see how you can do nonchalantly give this administration the benefit of the doubt in these regards.
I am truly concerned by the comments I have read here. They make me wonder if the conservative traditionalist schismatics are in league with radical national supremest groups.
The FBI, a bastion of Catholicism, is being attacked by radicals around the world. Now it is being attacked by our Mother Church?
The implication the President Biden, a life long faithful son of the church, hates the Church would be laughable in a sick comedy. It is tragic our Church has been infected by those who have the cognitive dissonance to believe such things.
Faithful son of the Church who supports abortion and performed a gay marriage. If that’s faithful, what does a faithless son of the Church look like?
More social credits for you Comrade Scott!
🙂
Joey has no issue with terminating an unborn life so he is NOT following the faith. Did he finally admit his son had a daughter?
He also became rich off foreign involvement, directly or indirectly – better open your eyes
I’ll assume this is satire.
Rubbish! Prove it! I assume you are a satirist. You can do better.
The troubling issue is the FBI is identifying Catholics as potential terrorist. Who would have thought this even a few years ago. This is a product of many rapid pro abortion American organizations that are out to destroy anyone and any organization, religious and others, that is pro life. The FBI is means they use to implement their anti life agenda.
If you don’t think that it is the puppet master Obama pulling all the strings on Joe the Stooge; think again. This administration has been Obama’s play toy since long before Trump “lost” re-election. This country made the mistake of placing in office a Muslim-leaning, homosexual communist as the first president to take over control of the country following 9/11. That mistake cost us dearly and continues to grind away at the very fabric and foundation of our country. If something doesn’t change and change dramatically and quickly, I think it prudent to discuss a “post-American” world and how to prepare oneself for a “post-American” America.
More and more information will emerge regarding how Obama has been behind all this corruption in government. Look to see how he militarized the FBI and the CIA to go after and destroy his political enemies. I have a standard that I apply when judging people’s trustworthiness: the broader the smile, the less you can trust the actor.
Dear Deacon. Without getting too political… I was no fan of PRESIDENT Obama, however you indicict him with “ALL corruption in government” without any details. WOW! You seem to have missed our recent history.
God bless.
Should we believe this? AG Garland said. “It does not do investigations based on religion. I saw the document you have. It’s appalling. It’s appalling. I’m in complete agreement with you.”
It has been revealed that there are rogue FBI members that have infiltrated the DOJ and other government agencies and the military. Because of it’s mission of protecting US citizens, I withold judgement until Jordan finishes his investigation the investigaters.
God save the union.
While Portland, Oregon has lost an estimated one billion dollars, owing to crime-related homelessness that exists on the sidewalks in front of businesses there, the F.B.I. in Portland is concerned about conservative Catholics? This belongs in the comics section of “The Oregonian.”
Sadly, Mark T you are not far from the mark.