Monday, January 08, 2007

What's the call when a player observes a religion?

To understand my position on religion, internets, you have to understand that I went to Catholic school for 12 long years, and you have to understand that while yes, Catholic schoolgirls DO have that reputation for a reason, being immersed in such a skewed religious environment all. the. time. just beat any care I had about it right out of me.

That said, my gut reaction to this story is, why is it a story in the first place? Have we really hit the bottom of the barrel where we have to turn something like this into a story? I can't argue that hockey is separate from religion, because that would make me a hypocrite: anyone who knows me will tell you that hockey is my religion and any ice rink is my church. Discussing players, teams, and transactions can get just as heated as debating God and church doctrine if you're discussing it with a smart fanatic.

Yes, his devotion and his need for concessions does affect his teammates, and that's not fair, but neither is it fair when a teammate gets himself ousted from a game or gets suspended from a game. And yes, I did just compare reserving a sweet place in heaven to a goon.

But more then arguing what the call should over this, I'm too busy being indignant that this is a news story. Maybe it's because I don't think about religion because it's not a part of my life, or maybe it's because I like to pretend that society has progressed beyond the point of someone's religion being a news story.

So what do I think the call should be? Two thumbs up until he -or anyone- starts sacrificing virgins at center ice.

4 comments:

CapsChick said...

I think it's a story because it's a first - when some new obstacle presents itself to the world of hockey, people like to jump on it. This is definitely uncharted territory for the NHL and for professional sports in general.

I don't think it's limited to religion either. I guarantee you, the day a hockey player or former hockey player announces he's gay, that will be the story du jour...and the fact that it will be a story will be just as sad.

Can I just say I love the fact that you compared religion to goonery? Classic :)

Jordi said...

Oh gosh now I have to start picturing God as this heavenly hockey player.

The Acid Queen said...

It's not that hard--whenever I see pictures of Mike Commodore with the 'fro and beard I keep having to do a double-take because I keep thinking he's Thor.

Heather said...

... you mean, god ISN'T a heavenly hockey player? ...