Jacksonville's Super Bowl a marriage of parties and religion

[truthpusher]

http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/sports/10827065.htm?1c

Posted on Sat, Feb. 05, 2005

Jacksonville's Super Bowl a marriage of parties and religion

RON WORD

Associated Press

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - Links to places of worship are on the Web site of the Super Bowl Host Committee. Religious literature is being passed on streets to football fans. Several NFL players, instead of partying with Playboy bunnies and hitting nightclubs, are professing their faith at churches.

In a town often said to be the buckle on the Bible belt, churches are taking unprecedented opportunities to get the gospel out to the 100,000 people who are in Jacksonville for Sunday's Super Bowl.

<snip>

"You are in town for the Super Bowl," Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Antwaan Randle El told the crowd at Friday night's Super Bowl Gospel Celebration concert, "but you are here because of God."

<snip>

The Host Committee's Web page lists the church services and addresses for hundreds of area churches, many of which have built events around the big game. The NFL, however, has been strict in deciding which activities to endorse.

complete story:

http://www.ohio.com/mld/ohio/sports/10827065.htm?1c

[merwin]

1. Jacksonville is latest breaking news? Hasn't it been around for a while?

edit:
OK, having an actual story makes much more sense

[bloom]

2. us telepathy impaired might need more to go on.

[truthpusher]

3. oopsy. all better now.

[VegasWolf]

4. I don't know!! All this "Praise the Lord" stuff with football is patently

absurd. If there really was a god, he would be betting on the Patriots to win, but not by 7.

[AG78]

5. No wonder it's the most popular sport in this country

It has a military theme, and everyone thanks God for touchdowns.

Oh yeah, and you can gamble easily.

[Kimber Scott]

6. Funny how the Mormons weren't allowed to proselityze the Olympics

in Salt Lake City but, these people can proselityze the Super Bowl. I guess because it's not an international event, huh? Or, maybe it's because they're not Mormons.

[truthpusher]

7. Good point! n/t

[Not_Giving_Up]

8. After the "wardrobe malfucntion" last year, I think they're trying

to prove something. See? They're wholesome people! It was that evil MTV!!!

Puleeze!!!

[Lauri16]

9. This is disturbing

on so many levels

[otohara]

10. ABC Did This Story

lastnight - they didn't ask the people being greeted how they felt about thousands of Christians out to convert them. Librul media strikes again.

[VegasWolf]

11. "How do they feel about thousands of christians out to convert them?"

Machine guns please.

[daleo]

12. Football and religion

Prostitutes ought to be doing a roaring trade.

[fortyfeetunder]

18. Hey, those ladies are only ministering to the needy! n/t

[daleo]

21. Verily, a hands on ministry. n/t

[dbt]

13. I used to joke about refusing to discuss sports or religion

because they were the same thing. Now I see that it was not a joke...


dbt

[T Bone]

26. Almost, Sports is the new Opiate of the Masses

The old opiate is just a tad jealous, methinks, and/or trying a comeback here. The first shot the old opiate has fired is the swarming coverup of Janet's boob, and a reactionary halftime show complete with a song titled -GET BACK !-- I would really like to know if the NFL halftime people had any input into MCCartney's song selection? I bet he would tell id someone asked him. Another song was 'Live and Let Die'. Militaristic enough for you?

[hector459]

14. Anybody read the book "The Bible Fraud" by Tony Bushby?

If you did what did you think of it? It just didn't convince me that the scriptures were not true but it sure made me think.

[daleo]

20. I haven't read it, so I can't comment directly.

But, from the sounds of it you might find Tom Harpur's "The Pagan Christ" interesting. He maintains that the story of Christ seems to be an amalgam of various myths and was originally meant to be taken symbolically, rather than literally. This view was stamped out by the Church in the early centuries AD. He maintains a Christian faith and identify even after making this determination. In fact, he says this has strengthened his faith, as it has taken away the need to believe literally in the more improbable aspects of the story.

It is a Canadian book, so you might have to go to Chapters.ca (on line book seller) to get it.

[hector459]

24. Thanks.

I had read several writings about how many stories in the Old Testament were actually taken from writings and stories that pre-dated Moses by hundreds of years and that the Egyptians and Moses had access to all those writings. The first attempt at monotheism was actually taken by an Egyptian Pharaoh contemporary with Moses and it is theorized that this is where Moses got his ideas about one God and some of the original laws and practices laid out in the OT. History is interesting.

[tinymontgomery]

15. Thank you God

for giving me the sense not to give a crap about the stupid bowel! This is just another reson I'm glad I don't follow professional sports.

[llmart]

16. Makes me glad I don't watch TV.......

especially the "Stupid Bowl."

[BlueManDude]

17. Please God - make the Patriots cover the 7 point spread!!!

I need the $$$. I watch NFL games with the sound turned down so as not to be subjected to the RW propaganda that subtley makes it's way into the broadcast.

[Merlin]

22. Dammit, God. You better not or us Birds fans will start worshipping money

Oh, wait a minute. We already do...

But still... !

[VegasWolf]

19. Please God - Let Janet jackson appear again! n/t

[devilgrrl]

23. I keep forgetting how much God cares about football...

and not for the downtrodden that make up 70%+ of the worlds population.

[dhinojosa]

25. I swear the Simpsons hold the key secrets to American society

that's what the episode following the SuperBowl was about.