Comparing and contrasting: Super Bowl & Mass, Football & Faith

from blog.adw.org  by Msgr. Charles Pope

I write to you in the midst of a semi-“religious” event: the Super Bowl. People have donned their
sacred attire and are shouting praises. The game really lit up toward the end of the second half and
again in the last quarter. I enjoy football, but see it a lot less since I am a priest and tend to be busy
on Sundays! 

Yet, I remain quite fascinated at how passionate and dedicated many Americans are to the game and 

their team. Would that more Catholics had the same dedication to the Mass and the Church that true 

football fans have for the game. (Fan is short for fanatic). Would too that all priests and religious had 

the same sacrificial dedication that foot ball players have.

Consider for a moment the players. They spend years coming
 up through a system of high school, college and professional
levels. Priest and religious do as well. Football players give
their all to the game. Their whole life is centered on it.
Exhausting, year-long practices, weight lifting and punishing
games. They risk injury, and suffer many pains, all for the game.
Do priests and religious show the same dedication and are
they willing to make the same kind of sacrifices for Jesus?
Will they risk injury and attack? I pray we will and do,
but I wonder. True, we are not paid multi-millions, but we don’t do it for the money. Are we as
dedicated and sacrificial?

And what of the faithful? So many Catholics are dedicated to the game. They even come to Church
wearing the jersey of their team and someone else’s name on their back!

Let’s compare and contrast some of the aspects of football and see if the same kind of thrill
and dedication are exhibited to the Lord, the Mass and the Church.

Disclaimer – I write a lot of this “tongue in cheek.” I am not brooding over this, just observing.
I am also using a technique known as hyperbole. Hyperbole uses exaggeration to make a point.
For example the phrase, “There must have been a million people there” is an exaggeration that
is not literally true but does convey the truth that a lot of people were present. Please take
these comparisons in the light-hearted
manner they are intended.

That said, the point remains a serious one: that we often exhibit unusual priorities when it comes
to worldly vs. spiritual matters. We do well to humorously look at ourselves in order to ask God
for a greater passion for what matters most. Football is about a bag full of air going up and down
a field. Faith is about our eternal destiny.

Consider the following Super Bowl behaviors and contrast them to Mass and the faith:

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