SCL

WOAH – I’ve never gotten the first post. This means something!

The following Steelers have professed faith in Jesus, and follow it up with their actions:

Troy Polamalu – safety
Aaron Smith – defensive end
Amos Jones – special teams asst. coach

And……… (drumroll please!)
Mike Tomlin – COACH OF THE YEAR!

and who would dare root against the team of Terry Bradshaw?

Being deeply entrenched in Steelers Nation (local schools have a 2-hr delay monday, my office doesn’t open until noon, etc.), I can say the Steelers are a suspicious franchise. But despite the belief that Myron Cope is placing curses on all who defile his terrible towel, we’ve got a lot of faith in this town!

GO STEELERS!

Now, off to church, where I will be greeted by a sea of black and gold, the official dress code of this church. (It must be in the bylaws or something)

Aussie here, so I don’t follow US football…

but just because my friend is mad about the Steelers, yep, they have a Christian…a very devout one. Troy Polamalu is an Orthodox (think Greek Orthodox) Christian and has a tendency to attend long Church services at a monastery every time he visits Arizona, before he plays. And crosses himself often… which is how we all realised he was Orthodox (we do it differently to the Roman Catholics).

So…not sure where that leaves you. Sorry!

Rooting for Kurt here not because he is Christian but that he is from the county in Iowa we raised our kids in! Besides he seems to be a nice guy.

WV plareg—Hand Kurt his playreg so he can wipe the sweat from his brow. (pronounced play-reg)

To answer your original question:

I think it’s always OK to root AGAINST the Christian in college football….
Otherwise he might go on to play in the NFL, and become an overpaid, narcissistic, completely secular, boozing, womanizing thug.

Just sayin’….

[bless their hearts...]

i saw that comment yesterday and cracked up! and, secretly hoped that you’d write about it today

but of course, i’ll be pulling for kurt and the cardinals. i’m a st. louisan…and i was here when he led the rams to their superbowl victory. it would just be wrong to root against him.

I think the real matchup is whose hair is more super…

Let us not forget the TEN Comandments either!! No stealing, steeling, stealers or steelers! Kurt all the way baby!! P. S. Do you ever sleep??

snap. what do we do if NO christians are playing?

Since Kurt is a corn-fed Iowa boy who grew up a tractor ride away from me, as well as a fellow UNI alum, I’d probably cheer for him anyway. But put Christian, great father and husband, and philanthropist in the mix and I have myself a winner. Go Cards!

I do, however, have a soft spot for the Steelers and am wondering if Mike Tomlin is related to Chris? If so, that could be, well, Indescribable.

Yes, Mewelde Moore of the Steelers is a Christian also. But I am rooting for the Cardinals!

Players sharing their faith:
http://fraizerbaz.blogspot.com/2009/01/on-eve-of-this-super-bowl-sunday.html

Becky, I’m a Pittsburgher too! And our church declared today “Black and Gold” Sunday…lol. I’m at home with a sick kid, but my husband took the others to church decked out in their black and gold. There are several people in our church who think this is a heathen thing to do…lol.

Also, I’m pretty sure Ben Roethlisberger has professed a faith in Jesus Christ. I thought I had read that somewhere.

Awesome.

For all the players that get the negative media (Pacman Jones, Vick, T.O., etc) there are some real Christian studs in the NFL. Kurt Warner is one of the more obvious ones, but other guys to look into are indeed Polamalu, Jon Kitna (Lions) and Warrick Dunn (Tampa Bay). Dunn buys homes for single mothers.

Anyway, I’m rooting for the Steelers. This Pittsburgh defense should be considered one of the greatest of all time. James Harrison will have at least two sacks. Polamalu will make it a nightmare to try and throw it over the middle, and Lamar Woodly will be in the backfield all day. Not to mention that Big Ben will be playing with a desire to show he’s better than the awful 22.3 rating he posted in his first Super Bowl.

Steelers 24, Cardinals 17.

I like football.

Go Cardinals!!!!

(Sorry…native Arizonan here who’s happy to finally see my state’s underdog team make it to the big game.)

Big Ben & Mike Tomlin are both amazing Christians! Great thing about this Super Bowl, God will be praised by whoever wins and is given the microphone at the end of the game.

P.S. – Imagine all the great football games in heaven when all these Christian football players get there! Can't wait! I bet you Jesus will be the best quarterback though.

What about the whole “no work on Sunday” argument? These guys who profess to be Christians chose a career in which their main work day is on the Sabbath.

Oh wait…so did pastors, worship leaders and youth ministers. lol.

I am, of course, just being silly. I’m from Michigan – home of the Lions – so we’re not even sure what the Super Bowl is

Football in heaven? God spare us! But in all seriousness, as little as I care about football, the little part of me that does care wants the Cardinals to win. I mean, who doesn’t like a good underdog story?

Amen brother! Love this post! Love it, love it, love it! What’s even better is all the comments following you.

Need to get you, josh and me together for some coffee or something.

@ Out on a Limb: I *wanted* to mention Roethlisberger, but was hesitant. My grandmother lived in Mt. Troy (North Side of Pgh.) and she would get so fired up when Ben’s faith would come up. She would say, and I quote “I don’t know what he’s talking about. My sister has gone to the same church that he claims to go to and she said she never saw him there once!”

If you knew my sweet, little, soft-spoken gram, you would be just as shocked as I was to hear her get so mad about a football player! It was hard not to giggle when she was soooo serious about this!

Miss America 2009 is a Christian. I cannot argue with your logic here.

Go Cardinals!

heidi reed

Well, since I started this conversation, may I say it has been a riot to read all the comments! I am still rooting for black and gold tho’. Kurt says its more important to spread the gospel than win the superbowl anyway Besides, he gave his teammates the book The Shack (don’t even get me started man!)

wv-jauncess jaundice for princesses

I’m not voting for the Cardinals just because they have Kurt Warner (and I’m from Missouri, where he won the Super Bowl with the Rams). I think the Cardinals are the underdogs. I’m convinced that God roots for the underdogs.

However, my hubby, who is from St. Louis, cannot forgive the Cardinals for moving from St. Louis to Arizona (never mind the fact that he was 5 when this happened). I asked him, WWJD?

He’s rooting for Pittsburg.

Thank you to those who are representing the truth on this page – Big Ben is a follower of Christ.

Hello.

Kurt Warner, who?! please.

While I will be rooting for the Cardinals, I think that it is lame to root for a team because one player on it is a Christian. So what if the quarterback on one team has professed faith in God? I’m sure there are probably like five linemen on the other team who get no TV time because they aren’t in a “star” position that are more ardent Christ followers.

I’m rooting for the Cardinals because I am a Browns fan and I hate the Steelers. Also, the Cardinals are not that good so if they win I won’t feel like there really is a best team in the NFL.

Go Cards!

I was actually thinking about this because I like to watch Ben Rothisberger play, but I should root for Warner, as a Christian. But my worship leader told me that Rothisberger is a Christian too! So I googled Big Ben. I literally typed ‘Is Ben Ro…’ and a list of questions popped up: ‘Is Ben Rothisberger Jewish?’ ‘Is Ben Rothisberger a Christian?’ ‘Is Ben Rothisberger a jerk?’

Anyway, it seems he is a Christian, according to this article. http://voices.kansascity.com/node/3340

Agh! I’m so conflicted!

I must say that I feel no guilt for rooting against Kurt Warner today. The only reason I am rooting for the Steelers is because I am an Eagles fan. I want the Steelers to beat the Cards because they beat the Eagles.

However, I did see a church sign this week that said “God hates stealing, but go Steelers!”

I didn’t even know it was widely known that Warner is a Christian (I don’t much attention to football). I had a manager who goes to church with Warner, so I knew he goes to church.

Anywho, I’m not rooting for the Cards because Warner’s a Christian. I’m rooting for ‘em b/c I’m an Arizonan born and raised.

LET’S GO CARDS!!!

I’m rooting for the Cardinals because Kurt Warner made a kids movie called “The Good Sports Gang” which is totally awesome.

so, I mean, anybody who can pull the front spot on http://www.beyondtheultimate.com gets extra spiritual points…..Kurt Warner is that man….

I went into the game conflicted, but when the Cards scored their last TD, I found out I wanted them to win…..

but…yay God! hahaha

nice article on Polamalu:

http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09032/945810-66.stm?cmpid=steelers.xml

so yes we know that warner is a christian.. but…
if you noticed during the game the ENTIRE offensive line of the pittsburgh steelers were on their knees praying.. so… now what?
((i rooted against warner))

If you were a real Christian, you would have been cheering for the Cowboys all season. After all, they are God’s team. Yes, I know they’ve been losing lately. But as we see in the Bible, God’s people can and do get sent into exile. But he will bring us back.

Actually, let me follow this analogy a little further… The Cowboys aren’t in exile quite as much as they were earlier this decade. Could it be said that a remnant has returned? If so, then the time has come for the Gentiles (other teams) to be brought into the covenant of promise (Super Bowl victories).

*sigh*

Addendum to my post:
T.O. and PacMan Jones are most definitely Pharisees.

“Next to the World Cup and March Madness, I’m pretty sure the Super Bowl is God’s favorite sporting event.”…

What?!? Are you sucking up to the international crowd with the World Cup reference? Pull-lease! Everyone knows that unless it’s big in America, it’s not really a sport.

Attention: Please send all complaints about this comment to: theacuffs@yahoo.com

Thank you.

To Matthew W:
You have no idea how loud I laughed when I read your post. Classic classic comment.

Jon, this topic needs to be included in your book, and make sure Matthew W’s comment makes it there too.

My thoughts …

http://www.typepad.com/services/trackback/6a010536afa78a970c010537014c99970b

I didn’t know Kurt Warner was a Christian…always good to know. I did notice how much he looks like Richard alpert from lost:)(it’s the eyes)

I am a HUGE KC Chiefs fan and Tom Brady was the one highlight of our pitiful, pathetic season! You’re Welcome!

Big Ben is a Christian. It was a big part of who he was while attending Miami University. He always pointed to the sky after big plays, his way of acknowledging God. He lead the team in prayer before and after games.

First of…Elizabeth: Steelers stands for “steel” as in the metal that is manufactured in the “Steel City”, not theft.

I’m a Pittsburgh girl all the way and think our team plays with integrity, even if I have a Christian Brother on the Cards!! Tomlin is a super great guy, and we also have punter Daniel Sepulveda on the Steelers (stinks he was on IR this season) because he is a strong Christian who has been an amazing role model by speaking to students all over Pittsburgh about his faith.

A better question is: What does God do when both sides are praying??

John,
Apparently you didn’t get the memo. God has shifted His position on sports.
God drops out of NCAA playoffs

Hey John,

I am a little late on this, but I thought I would throw in a little comment:

You don’t have to have written a book about your faith to be a Christian football player.

Go Steelers, Ed

The Steelers have more Christians on the team than the Cardinals do, but that's professing. There are a lot of Christians on every team that don't profess.