PJ Smith this AM on radio

[The Maudfather]

"If Nebraska fans worshiped God as much as Nebraska football, the world would be a better place. "

 

About as non-religious as it gets here, seriously....but A-fricken-men. Well said.

If only PJ Smith tackled as well as he made stupid statements to the press...

[Chaddyboxer]

A million or so Husker fans worshipping God that much more would not make the world a better place. I understand the thought here and how it pertains to the situation, but it's totally lacking in perspective and that makes it quite frankly unreasonable and irrelevant.

 

Agree with PJ on this one.

 

Nebraska football is the biggest religion in the state, and I don't say that as hyperbole.

 

Memorial Stadium is quite literally a place of worship.

It is...IMO. But hell...oopps! Talking about God and relating it to Husker football is a whole new can of worms and can go on with various topics of discussion.....

I can tell you this....Do I believe in a God? Yes. Do I have my own set of beliefs that I have developed throughout the years? Yes. Do I believe in Catholicism in which i was raised? No.......But I can tell you this as well, I pay more attention to NEB football and get very passionate about it moreso than I do about God.

And with Judoka's response....I just try to be a good person and follow the golden rule. Would I be a better person if I worshipped God as much as Husker football? Hell if I know. I know that I try my best on here to treat everyone with respect as I do outside of this board....I try to be a good person. End of my religious rant. Crap....this topic became religious in a way....sh#t, hell!

[The Maudfather]

Because you don't need religion to be a kind person with a good moral compass.

 

Then what supplies the force that makes the needle of your "good moral compass" point North? Or do we even need to have a consensus on which way is "North"?

[presidentjlh]

So, football...

[ADS]

Because you don't need religion to be a kind person with a good moral compass.

 

Then what supplies the force that makes the needle of your "good moral compass" point North?

 

Or do we even need to have a consensus on which way is "North"? Maybe just paint the needle so that it's always facing 12 o'clock, then we will always be a kind person according to our own personal, moral compass.

 

I better stop now, this thread is heading south...

[Landlord]

Yes it is. And in way, he pretty much slapped that concept in the face.

 

 

 

As he should. I won't comment on the merit of whether or not it was smart at this time and through a public channel like that, but It's not healthy or beneficial for people to devote themsleves to and find their identity in an event/program/idea centered around young men performing and competing.

 

It's popular on Huskerboard to rag on and put down grown men that wear football jerseys, but honestly, is a grown man that spends three, four, five hours a day talking about the program any better?

 

As much as I love Nebraska and as much as I am proud of our fans, sometimes I get really, really uncomfortable with the religious fanaticism.

[The Maudfather]

Yes it is. And in way, he pretty much slapped that concept in the face.

 

 

 

As he should. I won't comment on the merit of whether or not it was smart at this time and through a public channel like that, but It's not healthy or beneficial for people to devote themsleves to and find their identity in an event/program/idea centered around young men performing and competing.

 

It's popular on Huskerboard to rag on and put down grown men that wear football jerseys, but honestly, is a grown man that spends three, four, five hours a day talking about the program any better?

 

As much as I love Nebraska and as much as I am proud of our fans, sometimes I get really, really uncomfortable with the religious fanaticism.

The Nebraska football religious fanaticism is the reason why we have sold out every game for the better part of the last half century.

[Landlord]

The Nebraska football religious fanaticism is the reason why we have sold out every game for the better part of the last half century.

 

 

And?

[HotGrillonGrillAction]

A million or so Husker fans worshipping God that much more would not make the world a better place. I understand the thought here and how it pertains to the situation, but it's totally lacking in perspective and that makes it quite frankly unreasonable and irrelevant.

 

It is the point....not the content of the message. I couldn't disagree more with your take on the perspective.

[The Dude]

So which is it, we're fair-weather fans, or we care too much?

[Bowfin]

"What the Hell are you talking about?"

 

It's a Boy Scout / Christian thing... You know, how compasses work, is there even a right and wrong without a universal standard...kindly disregard

 

...how 'bout that Bo, huh? Ain't that something!?

[Bowfin]

The Nebraska football religious fanaticism is the reason why we have sold out every game for the better part of the last half century

 

L. Ron Hubbard is impressed...we have reached "Operating Thetan Level VIII" in FCS football.

[Husker_x]

"If Nebraska fans worshiped God as much as Nebraska football, the world would be a better place. "

 

About as non-religious as it gets here, seriously....but A-fricken-men. Well said.

 

Nonsense.

 

Several hundred million people worship God in the Middle East more than they do any kind of organized sport. Still think the world is a better place? How singing songs or muttering prayers to an invisible person benefits the world is a mystery, but admittedly the human race has a long, horrific, bloody history of thinking just that.

 

Agree with PJ on this one.

 

Nebraska football is the biggest religion in the state, and I don't say that as hyperbole.

 

Memorial Stadium is quite literally a place of worship.

 

Nonsense.

 

What you wrote is the definition of hyperbole and false equivalency. Nebraska football is popular, well attended, and followed closely by a few million people. That doesn't make it a religion. You could argue that it is more popular/important in some people's lives than religion (hard to argue with that), but that doesn't make a sport religion or a stadium that gets filled up seven times a year a place of worship in the literal sense.

[Landlord]

Nonsense.

 

What you wrote is the definition of hyperbole and false equivalency. Nebraska football is popular, well attended, and followed closely by a few million people. That doesn't make it a religion. You could argue that it is more popular/important in some people's lives than religion (hard to argue with that), but that doesn't make a sport religion or a stadium that gets filled up seven times a year a place of worship in the literal sense.

 

An accepted Merriam-Webster definition of religion is as follows:

 

"a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith"

 

An accepted Merriam-Webster definition of worship is as follows:

 

"extravagant respect or admiration for or devotion to an object of esteem"

 

 

Both seem to fit just fine in a literal sense to me.

[Husker_x]

Nonsense.

 

What you wrote is the definition of hyperbole and false equivalency. Nebraska football is popular, well attended, and followed closely by a few million people. That doesn't make it a religion. You could argue that it is more popular/important in some people's lives than religion (hard to argue with that), but that doesn't make a sport religion or a stadium that gets filled up seven times a year a place of worship in the literal sense.

 

An accepted Merriam-Webster definition of religion is as follows:

 

"a cause, principle, or system of beliefs held to with ardor and faith"

 

An accepted Merriam-Webster definition of worship is as follows:

 

"extravagant respect or admiration for or devotion to an object of esteem"

 

 

Both seem to fit just fine in a literal sense to me.

 

1. Being a fan of Nebraska football comes with no doctrine, principles, much less a system of beliefs requiring faith. There is a set of traditions and a vague concept of the "Nebraska way," but these are not codified in sacred scriptures or adhered to by everyone who comes to the stadium. I don't believe or put faith in anything either when I attend a game or watch it from the comfort of my own home. Again, this is just a false equivalency.

 

2. The object of esteem in a religious context is almost always a supernatural entity. What exactly fits that description when watching a football game? No on attributes supernatural powers to the players or coaches, asks them for blessings or miracles, or thinks that by attending games they can win God's favor or hope for a happier afterlife. We don't come to our 'temple' hoping to unravel the mysteries of the universe, morality, the soul, or the world to come.

 

C'mon, brother. Even I tell people that football is my religion and that Saturdays are my sabbath. I'm joking, of course. There's nothing literal about it. I say it because normally (though less so lately) I put about as much devotion into reading/watching/talking about football as a religious fanatic would talking about their God, but there is only the most superficial of similarities between the two, and when looked at seriously, they are simply not the same thing. Just because a few thousand people gather together in an emotionally-charged environment and focus on a person or an event, that doesn't suddenly qualify it as a religion. It's only when you use the most conveniently broad definition of religion--stripping it of all context and meaning--that you can get the result you want. If you're going to use that definition, why stop at football games? Why not use every sport everywhere? How about the Fourth of July, or the State of the Union speech?