By Carol Glatz
VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- In an effort to flex its moral muscle in the professional sports arena, the Vatican has invited top-tier Christian athletes Tim Tebow and Jeremy Lin to help bring ethical values back to a scandal-ridden world of sports.
The Pontifical Council for Culture is planning to host an international conference on re-instilling values in sports this spring, inviting representatives from top world governing bodies like FIFA (the International Federation of Association Football), the International Cycling Union and the Italian National Olympic Committee.
Msgr. Melchor Sanchez de Toca Alameda, head of the council's "Culture and Sport" section, told Catholic News Service Jan. 16 that pro sports "have become a commodity that is subordinate to the free market and, therefore, to profit."
Instead of sports being an activity that builds important values, respects human dignity and helps shape the whole human person, "it has reduced people to merchandise," he said.
U.S. cyclist Lance Armstrong's admission to doping was just the tip of the iceberg, he said, since high-stakes commercial interests pressure almost every professional cyclist into the illegal practice. The world of cycling and soccer is "a world that is rotten," he said.
"We want to work with the big sports bodies to give new value to sports" and the upcoming conference -- titled "We Believe in Sports" -- will be one way to get that initiative started, the monsignor said.
The council will also have Catholic and Christian athletes in attendance, to give witness to how the worlds of faith and sports can easily come together.
He said the council hoped its participant line-up would include two high-profile Christian U.S. sports stars: NFL quarterback Tim Tebow of the New York Jets, and NBA basketball player Jeremy Lin of the Houston Rockets.
The goal of the conference is two-fold, Msgr. Sanchez de Toca said.
First: "to help put healthy values back into sport and counteract the current market logic, because if the current state of affairs continues, all is lost."
Second: to help the church see sport as an important resource for future priests, Catholic schools, parishes and catechists.
The former-modern pentathlete-turned-priest said the council also wants to hold a "Race of Faith" -- a 100-meter jog, shuffle or sprint up the Via della Conciliazione toward St. Peter's Square during the gathering.
"We want to see lots of cardinals in tracksuits, too," he said.
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Showing posts with label Tim Tebow. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tim Tebow. Show all posts
Friday, January 18, 2013
Friday, January 13, 2012
Witches in Massachusetts Hold Seance to End Tim Tebow's Season
Dec. 11, 2011: Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow (15) prays in the end zone before the start of an NFL football game against the Chicago Bears, Sunday - AP Photo/Julie Jacobson
(Fox News) New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady may not need the help, but some witches are planning to cast a spell to put an end to Denver Broncos quarterback Tim Tebow’s miraculous season.
Witches Lorelei and Lori Bruno were scheduled to hold a seance at noon today – Friday the 13th – at Haven Crow Corner in Salem, Mass. to fix a win for the Pats.
“I’m going to raise the energy of the universe and send out all the good mojo,” Lorelei told the Boston Herald. “Lori will call in the Angels.”
The good witches won’t hex Tebow, as it’s “not their way,” but plan on setting up an altar with a hand-sewn Brady puppet and mojo bags filled with herbs and stones for every Patriots team member.
At the altar, the witches will chant, “Tom Brady will see what he needs to see, be where he needs to be and will take the Patriots to another victory.”
Hunky QB Brady, married to supermodel Gisele Bundchen, is a bigger draw for the witches of Salem than another recent marquee recipient of their spells, Charlie Sheen.
“You know, when we had our spiritual intervention for Charlie Sheen last year, we had a hard time getting all the girls to come,” laughed Lorelei. “But when we told them this Circle was for Tom Brady, oh, everybody will be there!”
“We want the true champion to come out on Saturday night,” Bruno added. “But since we live in Patriot Land, it’s red, white and blue and make the dream come true!”
Friday, February 12, 2010
Father Frank Pavone on the Tebow Ad and "Bump+"
From the National Catholic Register:
by Tim Drake
by Tim Drake
Some pro-life groups and inviduals have criticized Focus on the Family’s Tim Tebow Superbowl ad and Yellow Line Studio’s faux-reality drama series “Bump” as not going far enough. I asked Father Frank Pavone, director of Priests for Life, how he felt about such efforts in the context of pro-life work overall. Here’s what he had to say.
There’s been a fair amount of controversy over the approach of Focus on the Family’s Tim Tebow Superbowl commercial and Yellow Line Studio’s faux-reality show “Bump+”. Do you see a place for such efforts in the broad scope of pro-life work?
Yes. The reason is, first of all, the commandment is against killing and compromising with killing, not against soft ads or approaches. We need to be wise and prudent and know our audiences. The Tebow ad was a victory in that the ad was shown.
I think that one of the things that is helpful for our people to understand, and this is traditional Catholic teaching, is the difference between positive and negative commandments. Negative commandments, such as ‘do not kill’ are absolute. Positive commandments, such as ‘do good’ or ‘preserve life’ or ‘protect your health’ admit of different degrees and limits. While I have an obligation to preserve my health, does that mean that I need to set up an exercise room in my own house or shop only at health food stores? These things vary and there is a lot of room for discretionary judgment. It’s the same thing with the whole pro-life effort.
How strong does a pro-life ad have to be? There’s no norm for that. Imagine all of the negotiations that had to take place with CBS to air the commercial. You get the best things you can get under the circumstances. I was delighted with the ad. Could it have been stronger? Of course, but could it have been stronger under the circumstances?
Are there other examples of softer approaches which have had success?
A lot of the efforts of the pro-life movement in general could be described in this way – television ads with different degrees of intensity, newspaper ads from National Right to Life, or the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Second Look Project. Their message to the people was, ‘Have we gone too far?’ Of course we have, but the point in advertising is where is the mind of the people and how do we best reach them where they are at?
All of these campaigns have had success. The Tebow ad shouldn’t be considered outside of the norm of what the movement has been doing in reaching the audiences where they are.
How do you feel about web-based drama series “Bump+”?
“Bump+” is a great service to the pro-life movement. “Bump+’s” target audience is not the pro-life community. It is trying to reach the vast number of citizens whose attitude toward abortion can best be described as conflicted. “Bump+” is not a forum for an abortion debate. The point here is to help viewers hear and feel both sides of the issue through stories. This is simply a conversation, not a condoning of abortion. We need to bring people through the conversation through stories. Jesus was a storyteller. You tell a story and let people connect with that. We do this through our Silent No More Awareness Campaign.
The big benefit for people in the middle is that “Bump+” helps people get beyond the slogans. Slogans can contain a lot of truth and grace, but they can also shut down thinking. If you can get people beyond slogans, that is a big benefit.
On the pro-life side of the coin, we have to make sure that we’re not just articulating arguments, but that we can feel with those who are facing the decision and the temptations that lead one toward abortion. This doesn’t mean that the decision should be anything other than choosing life, but the more we understand them, the better we will be able to help them.
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