Our Virginia correspondent sent word of a reminder from the deities of the NFL to churches about legal and illegal Super Bowl festivities:
(1) Churches may only show the game on equipment that they regularly use for worship. They may not bring in additional rented audio-visual equipment.
(2) Churches may not charge admission. They are, however, allowed to take donations to defray party expenses.
(3) Churches may not record or further retransmit the broadcast of the game.
Apparently the separation of church and state does not extend to football and church.
If the NFL had simply reminded Christians of the need to keep the Lord’s Day holy, they could have cut through the fine print. But this way, the footballers get the best of both kingdoms (which is not a good thing if you are certain church in Laodicia).
12 Comments
What kind of Reformed Church worth its salt even has “audio-visual equipment”?
I thought you were going to recommend that the NFL simply cite the applicable verses, since the bible contains guidance for ALL of life…
I’m just planning on streaming the Super Bowl on my iPhone during the service. If my church would just be like the one down the street, we’d be cutting the service short and having a root-beer kegger in the foyer with the game on a big screen. At least that way I could pay attention to the service.
“root-beer kegger”!! Good one.
Well, if theonomists ran the world they would have.
Erik, how could we record all those fine Old Life sermons from around the world without AV equipment? Oh yeah, perhaps the church furnace and AC needs to go too.
Terry,
We have the A, just not the V. The Second Commandment being the primary reason.
Ironically most of the Rushdoony-DeMar Theonomists deny the abiding validity of the 4th Commandment and therefore would be fine with watching the NFL on the Lord’s Day.
“Apparently the separation of church and state does not extend to football and church.”
Off course it doesn’t. That would mean a separation of church and free-market, not state. How else has the American evangelical church managed to survive, and even thrive, in these post-modern times without the ability to channel and capitulate to market forces?
A Ray Lewis parody on SNL:
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/1503674-ray-lewis-video-watch-ravens-star-spoofed-on-snl
It did not copy right: youtube worked
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7tgrxzme3o
The annual hyping of this event, by a mass of people who never otherwise watch an NFL game (let alone wager the odd nickel or so on a spread) acting like this is some great event, able to interrupt church life, never fails to astound.
Most of the 40 I’ve watched were boring or massacres, usually a letdown for this sports addict, left to wait impatiently for Opening Day.