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Sport as a Theological Challenge
SVOBODA, Vojtěch
The aim of the thesis is to describe relationships between spirituality, Christianity and sport in history and present. In the first part the author underlines ritual origins of games and sports in pre-Christian cultures, especially ancient Greece and Rome. Revolutionary Christianity separated physical competition from religious ritual. In Christian author´s (Paul, Tertullian, Basil, John Chrysostom, John Cassian and John Climacus) games rating there is an obvious ambiguity They criticized an idolatric origin and connection with cults. Attributes typical for ancient athlete, self-discipline and perseverance, they remained positive. Athletes will and willingness to overcome obstacles gave some of the Fathers of the Church as an example for spiritual struggle, the term "athlete of Christ" had a strong significance in this context. The historical part contains Thomas´s Aquinas valuation of sport in the form of games. In discussion focused on the assessment of the sinful nature of games Aquinas submitted to the rule of reason. One of the key issues in contemporary theology of sport is introduced on the difference between the theological concepts of contemporary authors Rev Dr Lincoln Harvey and Rev Dr Robert Ellis. Harvey's theory, based on a systematic basis, based on the classical axioms of Christian doctrine. Sport is construed as a "liturgy of our contingency", set in the autonomous space that God lovingly gives his creatures. The consequence of this theory is the denial of the transcendent dimension of sport. Ellis´s theory is based on empirical research conducted among athletes. His attention is focused on efforts to achieve the best possible performance by referring to Irenaeus of Lyon, Maslow and others interpreted as a reflection of God's self-transcendence necessary for the creation of man. Sport according to Ellis in contemporary society fullfil some of the functions previously belonging to organized forms of religion. The final section deals with altered states of consciousness in sports and their relationship to the mystique. The author begins by describing his own experiences that are then interpreted from five points of view (philosophical, theological, phenomenological, transpersonal and skeptical). On this basis, the author formulates his own interpretation of the connection between sport and mysticism, whose findings help to deepen the above discussion and also can help with looking for a solution.
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