EHRHART: Thank God for the Eagles Victory
I really enjoyed Super Bowl LIX. What a game! The Birds made the two-time defending champion Kansas City Chiefs look like a bunch of Pop Warner League amateurs. Spectacular catches by A.J. Brown, DeVonta Smith, Jahan Dotson, and even Saquon Barkley.
The Philadelphia defense was simply awesome with six sacks of Patrick Mahomes, a fumble recovery, and two interceptions including a pick-six by phenomenal rookie Cooper DeJean. Even Jake Elliott was back to his usual self, missing nary a field goal or point-after.
But within moments of the game’s conclusion, coach Nick Sirianni proclaimed, “God’s blessed us very much. He gave us all the talents to be able to get here. So first and foremost, thanks to Him,” adding later, “Thank you, God, thank you, Jesus.” That kind of took some of the shine off the victory.
Now before you get all riled up and accuse me of being some godless communist or diabolical spokesman for Beelzebub, let me explain.
If Sirianni is right, does this mean that God is a Philadelphia Eagles fan who made sure the Birds had enough talent to defeat the Chiefs? What about the other 30 teams who didn’t even make it to the Super Bowl? Did God make sure those teams’ players didn’t have what it takes? Did the members of those teams not pray hard enough or believe strongly enough in God’s benevolent grace?
Whose side was God on when the Eagles lost to the Chiefs in Super Bowl LVII? And why, after favoring the Chiefs with victory in that contest, and then again a year later, did God abandon the Chiefs this time around? Did He decide He didn’t like Taylor Swift’s music anymore? Did He find Harrison Butker’s views on women, homosexuality, and abortion just too uncharitable?
What will happen to the Eagles next year? Will God continue to bless them with talent? Will they go on winning Super Bowls for all eternity, or at least long enough to be called a dynasty? And if they, too, like the Chiefs and every team before them, eventually fall from the pinnacle of athletic achievement, will they then have lost God’s grace? Will Nick Sirianni find himself saying next year, “My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
Once again, don’t get mad at me. I’m not the one who brought God into this conversation in the first place. I’m only taking note of what Coach Sirianni said. And he’s the one who said the Eagles owe this victory to God.
The fact is that there are lots of things we can easily and safely thank God for. The people we love. The people who love us. Flowers in the spring. Beautiful snowfalls. Mountains and rivers and oceans and meadows. All creatures great and small like elephants and butterflies and Holstein cows and otters. The planet we live on. The universe itself.
But winning the Super Bowl? I just can’t imagine that God really cares who wins the Super Bowl. Or the World Cup. Or an Olympic gold medal. Or all of the other sporting events in which I too often hear the winners declare “all glory to God” or “I owe it all to Jesus.” Whenever I hear that sort of thing, I find myself wondering, “Who was God cheering for?”
My own guess is that God is always rooting for each and every contestant to play hard and fairly, to have fun and try not to get injured, and to be a good sport, win or lose.” I can’t say with absolutely certainty, but I strongly suspect that God has more important things on His mind than the outcome of Super Bowl LIX.
Like maybe wars in Ukraine, the Holy Land, Yemen, Myanmar, and 100 to 150 other armed conflicts going on at any given time around the world. Like maybe what’s going to happen to all those people Episcopal Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde so eloquently spoke in defense of last month at the National Cathedral. Like what we human beings are doing to this very finite and fragile planet we’re living on.
Indeed, given that Jesus broke bread with sinners and fed the multitudes for free and healed the sick without asking if they had medical insurance, I think it rather unchristian to imagine that God cares one way or another who wins the Super Bowl. So enjoy the Eagles’ victory in this year’s Super Bowl, but please leave God out of it.
