Shirl James Hoffman

A Brief Theology of Sport

Theology

“This is an impressive contribution--required reading for anyone interested in thinking deeply about the place and meaning of sport in Christian life. In this brief book, Harvey unpacks a stunning array of theological insights that deserve thoughtful reflection by all Christian sport enthusiasts. Don't look here for a list of dos and don'ts, because the book is fundamentally about why: why sport is important in the life of faith, much more important than widely believed. Fair warning: those looking for ways sport might be made more useful or more productive in the service of the church, or who regard sport as a form of worship, or who are looking for Scripture verses to pump up their competitive zeal will find no support here. Neither will the rabid sport fan whose commitment verges on idolatry, nor will those who bow the knee to commercialism and professionalism or conflate sport with military exercises. Instead, Harvey points to a higher, heretofore unexplored reality of sport anchored in the doctrine of creation. Sport, says Harvey, is a liturgy of self-contained, embodied, meaningful non-necessity . . . a 'communal actualization' of our identities as beings brought forth out of nothing, but put 'on a trajectory towards God.' Harvey both celebrates sport and warns of its dangers, showing us that harvesting sports' spiritual bounty requires that it be approached with a certain serious non-seriousness. In competition we may win or we may lose, but either way, the game remains a 'wonderfully unnecessary but internally meaningful way to chime with (our) own unnecessary but meaningful life as creatures of God.'”

The Games People Play

Theology

“[Ellis] masterfully weaves a thread through the church's inconstant history with sport, dissects sport as a modern cultural phenomenon, and armed with a prodigious arsenal of evidence, dares to ask whether the transcendent moments of sport might actually be experiences of God. A must-read for anyone hoping to understand how sport fits within the Christian tradition.”