God in the Stadium: Sports and Religion in America. By Robert J. Higgs. University Press of Kentucky, 1995. 400 pages. $17.50 cloth.
God in the Stadium is a commentary on the developing relationship between sports and religion and how it has changes directly with the constant transformation of society. Parallel in some aspects to Don Johnson’s writings in Aethlon: the Journal of Sport Literature, Higgs comments on the relationship between religion, with a focus on Christianity, and sports while also including his military experiences and pieces of modern day education due to its relation to both religion and athletics. He makes a point that both religion and sports have both been nationalized, Hellenized, Romanized, and eventually televised. …show more content…
This idea of sports only being allowed in certain circumstances continues on to Chapter Three where it is explained that ivy league institutions such as Stanford or Harvard only allowed for their students to participate in athletics after a week of learning is finished. Even then these athletics should encourage manliness and “readiness for battle”, similar to the Puritans. Chapter Four follows with the American frontier evangelism focusing on the suffrage of Christ on the Cross, advocating for a masculine movement to take place. A “selling-the-gospel” mentality was developed and competition was finally encouraged especially between denominations. Emotional outbursts became viewed as manifestations of the gift of the Spirit which paved the way for embracing athleticism. Chapter Five focuses on the years 1851- 1917 when sports were thought to redirect violence that was around due to the Civil War. It was thought to allow participants to “blow off steam” but instead sports created a more intense environment of competition and separation while also taking over institutes once known for producing clergy such as Harvard, Yale, and Princeton. In Chapter Six, Higgs explains how after the civil rights movement, Vietnam War, and feminist revolution there was still an emphasis on competitive sports and academic achievements
God in the Stadium is a commentary on the developing relationship between sports and religion and how it has changes directly with the constant transformation of society. Parallel in some aspects to Don Johnson’s writings in Aethlon: the Journal of Sport Literature, Higgs comments on the relationship between religion, with a focus on Christianity, and sports while also including his military experiences and pieces of modern day education due to its relation to both religion and athletics. He makes a point that both religion and sports have both been nationalized, Hellenized, Romanized, and eventually televised. …show more content…
This idea of sports only being allowed in certain circumstances continues on to Chapter Three where it is explained that ivy league institutions such as Stanford or Harvard only allowed for their students to participate in athletics after a week of learning is finished. Even then these athletics should encourage manliness and “readiness for battle”, similar to the Puritans. Chapter Four follows with the American frontier evangelism focusing on the suffrage of Christ on the Cross, advocating for a masculine movement to take place. A “selling-the-gospel” mentality was developed and competition was finally encouraged especially between denominations. Emotional outbursts became viewed as manifestations of the gift of the Spirit which paved the way for embracing athleticism. Chapter Five focuses on the years 1851- 1917 when sports were thought to redirect violence that was around due to the Civil War. It was thought to allow participants to “blow off steam” but instead sports created a more intense environment of competition and separation while also taking over institutes once known for producing clergy such as Harvard, Yale, and Princeton. In Chapter Six, Higgs explains how after the civil rights movement, Vietnam War, and feminist revolution there was still an emphasis on competitive sports and academic achievements