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As you likely already know, the Philadelphia Eagles won the Super Bowl. With no prior wins, they were an unlikely pick. Yet they managed to take down the giant New England Patriots, who were led by Tom Brady. Last year when the Patriots won, we were bombarded with how great Tom Brady is. After the Eagles won, we have heard about many of the players having faith in Christ. Sadly, while the media seems fine with political activism, it has a problem with outspoken Christianity.
The last couple of years have been tumultuous for the National Football League. Starting at the beginning of the 2016 season, Colin Kaepernick began protesting what he saw as racial injustice from law enforcement by taking a knee during the national anthem. By taking this action, Kaepernick started a firestorm for the NFL, and sports commentators from many different outlets praised him. Whether or not he was effective is another story.
The media fawned over Kaepernick. They touted him as a “social justice warrior.” As the numbers of anthem protestors have shrunk, there have been no significant changes. Whether he meant to or not, Kaepernick was encouraging the opposite of what Christianity teaches. He stoked the nationwide riots that caused stealing, assaults, and racial tension. But he was perfect for the camera.
With the Eagles winning the championship, the players’ Christian faith was pushed to the forefront of the news thanks to the large number of outspoken Christians. A simple Google search will bring up many stories about the faith of Carson Wentz and Nick Foles. There are many other teammates who have heard the Gospel and now believe thanks to these two. The Bible studies and the faith that has been shown to fellow players have been life-changing. Marcus Jackson was so eager to get baptized, several players went to their hotel pool to do it.
Outspoken Christians in sports are rebels in the eyes of the media. In fact, Christians are rebels anyway. But hasn’t it always been like that? Christ was a rebel. He preached grace over damnation. He spoke of love rather than judgment. Most importantly, he fulfilled prophesy. The outspoken Christians for the Eagles speak the same thing. However, there are attempts to silence commentators in the media who speak highly of these men.
ESPN has been known to silence coaches who openly profess their faith in Christ. In 2015, while conducting a postgame interview, Clemson Tigers head coach Dabo Swinney was cut off of the television for approximately fifteen seconds. This occurred just after Swinney, a proclaiming Christian, thanked “the good Lord.” The screen went to two anchors who were looking down at their tablets, obviously unaware they were on live television.
Of course, most media outlets became an echo chamber, stating the silencing of Swinney was an accident. Knowing how liberal ESPN has become, that is hard to believe.
The media has an obvious bias against Christianity. It’s hard to find the mainstream media criticizing other religions in this country. This isn’t surprising, though. After all, Christ said in John 15:18,” If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first.”
If the same happens to you, then you are doing something right.
