READING REPORT

SMGT 402

Reading Report Instructions

You will submit a 1-page Reading Report (as an attached document) on the assigned readings from each module/week, answering the questions from the workbook.

Each Reading Report must include the following:

· A summary of the major themes and principles in the chapter and workbook.

· A critique of the helpfulness of the chapter in your understanding of sport chaplaincy.

· How the chapter encouraged you to continue or not continue in this field.

Each assignment is due by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Monday of the assigned module/week, except for Reading Report 8, which is due by 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Friday of Module/Week 8.

10 Reformation pastoral care
in the Olympic Village

Ashley Null

Introduction

When a chaplain has long-standing relationships with participants, to be work-
ing in the Athletes’ Village during the Olympic Games is like attending ten
funerals and one wedding every day. Many more sportspersons bury their
dreams during the course of those 17 days than achieve them. Of course, chap-
lains have the unique opportunity to share the indescribable joy of a participant
who has just fulfilled a life-long quest to attain the ultimate sporting achieve-
ment. However, chaplains also have the even greater privilege of standing-by
and supporting the many more athletes who have just seen their life’s dream
shattered before their eyes and lying now in jumbled, jagged pieces at their feet.
For in sport, every person’s thrill of victory comes at the cost of many, many
other people’s agony of defeat. That is the nature of competition.

‘It was the best of times; it was the worst of times’

Nothing made this harsh reality clearer to me than US Swimming’s Olympic
trials for Sydney 2000 in the 200m men’s freestyle. The meet was in Indianapo-
lis, and I had flown in to help with the daily ‘Swimmers’ Chapel’, a programme
led by Josh Davis, a three-time Olympic gold medallist at Atlanta – the most of
any male athlete at those games. Despite such success, however, Josh had yet to
achieve his life-long goal of breaking the American record in the men’s 200m
freestyle set by his childhood hero, Matt Biondi. His goal at these trials was to
win a second trip to the Olympics with a time that established a new record in
his signature event.

Davis’ roommate in Indianapolis was Ugur Taner. Their stories could not
have been more different. At 13, Davis was told by his coach to find another
sport because he lacked promise. By 14, Taner had become the fastest Ameri-
can swimmer for his age ever. In 1992 Davis watched the Barcelona Games
on television. Taner competed in them for Turkey as a dual citizen. But in
1996 the roles were reversed. Taner tried and just missed making the US team
with Josh. This time it was Taner who was forced to follow the fortunes of his
friends on television, while Davis went on to Olympic glory. Four years later,

Pastoral care in Olympic Village 121

at 26, the 2000 trials were Taner’s last chance to fulfil all those expectations that
came from his incredible success as a high school student – the expectations of
his coaches, of his family and of himself. As Taner (2008: 69) described it, ‘less
than 1 percent of all swimmers at the Trials actually make the team, so you can
imagine the level of stress I felt preparing for competition’.

As was our usual routine at a major event, I went to Josh’s hotel room at 4:00
pm to pray with him before the finals in the 200m freestyle that evening. Six
months earlier, Ugur had become a Christian. As a Turkish American with a
decidedly non-Christian family background, his decision to follow Christ had
naturally been a great surprise to everyone. But Josh was overjoyed to have a
fellow born-again believer on the US National Team, even if they were direct
competitors in the 200m freestyle. So Ugur was invited to join our prayer ses-
sion. I prayed with each swimmer individually, and then we all prayed together.
We asked that God would enable both Josh and Ugur to fulfil their calling and
have the peace, power and sense of God’s presence to perform at their very best.

The race was very fast and heart-breakingly close. In less than two minutes
it was all over. Josh had at long-last broken the American record. But Ugur had
missed the Olympic team once again: this time by 1/100th of a second. Both
felt a degree of emotional intensity neither had ever known before. For Josh it
was joy and the hope of better things to come. For Ugur it was the bitter pain
of the things deeply hoped for that could now never be. We three had dinner
together afterwards – a simultaneous toasting of Josh’s new record and a eulogy
for Ugur’s long-held athletic dream. I can only describe the meal as surreal. Josh
tried desperately to be sensitive to Ugur; Ugur tried desperately to be happy
for Josh; I tried desperately to help both sense God’s presence with them at this
equally momentous, but vastly different moment in their lives. Sitting at that
table, I was confronted with hope and heartache, cheek-by-jowl, the epitome
of life as an Olympic chaplain.

What should a chaplain say in such circumstances? How can anyone explain
such a turn-of-events? Was 2/100ths of a second too much to ask from God
Almighty? Did the Heavenly Watchman who promises neither to slumber nor
sleep blink for a mere instant? Or did God just love Josh more? Was Ugur guilty
of some secret moral failure, some deep hidden sin that made God think he did
not deserve to make the team? Was Josh just more humble and Ugur too proud?
Such questions may sound foolish, but not to a grieving sportsperson. When
the sting of defeat is still white hot, the human heart cries out for answers.
Even years later, when a person least expects it, something can trigger that old
memory. Then, with breathtaking speed the pain rushes back in a moment, and
the hunger for an explanation roars back to life all over again. As a common
locker-room wall poster warns: ‘defeat is worse than death because you have to
live with defeat’ (Hoffman, 2010: 152).

In the face of failure, it is all too easy for Christian athletes to see God as their
ultimate coach. Those who feel they have made good spiritual choices often
expect to be included on God’s winning team and be blessed with athletic
success. Those who have made bad choices can easily fear they will be left off

122 Ashley Null

the roster and cut out of any reward, at least until they can prove themselves to
be better spiritually again. When Christian athletes lose, they cannot help but
wonder what failure of regular Christian duty, what recent bad moral choice,
or even what on-going inner unworthiness made God decide they were not
good enough to have their best efforts blessed with success this time. As a result,
in the very moment these athletes need help from their relationship with God
the most, their faith can easily become just another reason to feel ashamed for
being a loser. In the final analysis, the only thing worse at that moment for a
competitor than feeling that they let their country, their coach, their teammates,
their family, their friends and themselves down is thinking the reason for all this
pain is that they have let God down, too.

Even winning is not without its emotional hazards. After years spent dream-
ing of how wonderful an Olympic victory is going to be, the thrill, as incredible
as it is, fades so very quickly. And the next morning comes with its own fresh
set of problems. Success in sport does not insulate winners from all the stresses
and strains of normal life, including relationship problems. Indeed, with the
elite status of being a world champion comes a whole new set of special prob-
lems: ‘Who are my real friends? Does that person care about me, or just want to
brag about knowing an Olympic gold medallist? How come everybody always
expects something from me? How do I squeeze in all these appearances for my
new sponsors while still training to stay on top? Isn’t there any time any more
just for me? What if I lose now? How long can I ride this wave? What happens
to me when my body finally gives out? Why am I still not satisfied? If winning
a gold medal didn’t satisfy me, what will?’

An Olympic chaplain must understand the heart of all those who long to
become champions, even when they achieve their goals as well as when they
do not. In the face of all of the intense aspirations and anxieties that elite sports
people encounter, chaplains must be convincing witnesses to the truth of God’s
enduring love and the power of his promises to deliver a peace and purpose
that passes all human understanding. Indeed, this is the reason why chaplains
are given access to the Olympic Village: to be at the side of those competitors
who wish to turn to God in preparation for their events and then to help them
make spiritual sense of the results afterwards.

Yet, Shirl Hoffman has suggested that special chaplains for elite sportspersons
is fundamentally inappropriate:

Chaplain ministries in hospitals, retirement centers, the military and even
on college campuses are easily understood, but the rush to minister to the
needs of an outrageously paid and catered-to group of elite entertainers
who choose to participate in an enterprise that exacts heavy tolls on life,
limb, and Christian witness is not. Usual justifications point to the peculiar
pressures that face the athletic star: vulnerabilities brought on by instant
riches, the demands of the press, the threat of injury, the dangers posed by
sycophants, and the lure of inviting women. But unlike patients in hospi-
tals and nursing homes who struggle with difficult circumstances beyond

Pastoral care in Olympic Village 123

their control, athletes struggle with pressures, anxieties, injuries, and emo-
tional ups and downs brought on by circumstances of their own choosing.
These are part of the bargain struck when they sign a contract or accept a
scholarship.

(Hoffman, 2010: 235)

Of course, Hoffman’s argument that people should be expected to lie alone in
an uncomfortable bed of their own choosing equally applies to America’s all-
volunteer military, for whom he, as a US citizen, readily concedes the appropri-
ateness of a chaplaincy ministry. The only difference between the two groups
would seem to be Hoffman’s implicit respect for soldiers who wage war and his
evident disdain for the enterprise of elite sports and especially for those who
engage in them. Yet a more impartial commentator would surely agree that
the Olympic authorities would, in fact, be remiss in their duty of care for their
participants should they fail to provide chaplains to offer professional support
for competitors of faith. Despite Hoffman’s objection, such a task is as crucial
for these participants as it is complicated. What then should be a chaplain’s
approach to ministry to the sporting elite?

The Gospel as the antidote to the shame
culture of elite sports

The greatest pastoral need for any overachiever is to understand that the gospel
is the antidote to performance-based identity. Olympians are no exception. So
many factors in competitive sports encourage athletes to base their self-worth
on what they are able to prove they can do. More often than not, they are
trained to feel good about themselves only when they are winning. As one ath-
lete told a researcher, ‘if you lose, you’re nothing’ (Hoffman, 2010: 210). When
they do lose, they are expected to internalize a deep personal dissatisfaction
with themselves. For only if their emotional experience of losing is sufficiently
horrendous will they find the willpower to make every sacrifice necessary to
claw their way back to self-respect by winning the next time. Current research
only confirms how common amongst perfectionist sportspersons is the fear of
failure with its attendant sense of worthlessness and shame (Sagar and Stoeber,
2009; Sagar, Boardely and Kavussanu, 2011).

According to Andre Agassi’s (2009) lyrical and deeply illuminating autobi-
ography Open, by the age of 7 he associated winning tennis tournaments with
emotional safety: safety from his father’s rage at his not being good enough,
safety from his own sense of shame at failing to prove he was good enough,
safety from his consequent deep self-loathing – a self-imposed emotional abuse
which the mature Agassi labelled ‘torture’. At age 10, a well-meaning coach told
Agassi how to harness his shame for success:

You’re hurting right now, hurting like heck, but that just means you care.
Means you want to win. You can use that. Remember this day. Try to use

124 Ashley Null

this day as motivation. If you don’t want to feel this hurt again, good, do
everything you can to avoid it. Are you ready to do everything? I nod.

(Agassi, 2009: 55)

At 22, Agassi discovered that even achieving a Grand Slam was not enough to
heal the wounds from all the self-torture which he had inflicted upon himself
to gain such rewards. After his victory at Wimbledon, he realized that ‘winning
changes nothing . . . . A win doesn’t feel as good as a loss feels bad, and the
good feeling doesn’t last as long as the bad. Not even close’ (Agassi, 2009: 167).
Because so many elite sportspersons instinctively shame themselves as the price
of, and power for, excellence, most champions compete not to win, since the
thrill of victory is so short-lived, but rather compete not to lose, so as to avoid
the bitter sting of their own deeply cutting emotional self-flagellation.

Therefore, the first task of any chaplain to elite athletes is to help them learn
to separate their personal identity from their athletic performance. For only
love has the power to make human beings feel truly significant, not achieve-
ment. Only knowing that they are loved, regardless of their current perfor-
mance, has the power to make Olympians feel emotionally whole.

Failure to make the crucial distinction between significance and achieve-
ment will forever hold the self-esteem of athletes hostage to all the ups and
downs of competitive life. Like all human beings, elite athletes need to know
that they are valued not for what they have or have done or what they may
still do, but for who they are, with both their good points and their bad. Only
really being loved, continuously, as they are, deep down inside, with all their
fears and failures, with all their deeds and dreams, only that kind of love will
give them a sense of worth and value that will not go away, even when their
athletic prowess does.

Of course, the only source for an assured, steadfast, unconditional love is God
himself. Christian sportspeople, therefore, have a wonderfully clear opportunity
for a different source of identity. According to the Bible, their worth and value
is to be found solely in the love God proved he has for them by dying for them
on the cross. Such was the clear message of the Protestant Reformation’s recov-
ery of the Pauline doctrine of solifidianism (Null, forthcoming). While we were
yet enemies, Christ died to reconcile us to God (Rom. 5:8–10), and, through
the gift of personal faith (Rom. 3:23–4), sinners are reckoned righteous, despite
their evident shortcomings (Rom. 4:5). There is now no condemnation for
those in Christ Jesus (Rom. 8:1). They are adopted as God’s own children for-
ever (Rom. 8:15–17). Nothing in all creation can ever separate believers from
the love of God as revealed in Jesus Christ (Rom. 8:31–9).

In the Reformation tradition, Christians do not merit either their justifica-
tion or their sanctification, neither wholly by their own efforts nor in part by
their cooperation with God’s grace. Both right-standing with God and loving
right afterwards like God are the work of God himself within the hearts of
his children. Individuals must certainly make choices in the Christian life, but
good choices are always and only the fruit of God’s promise to be at work in

Pastoral care in Olympic Village 125

believers, drawing them ever closer into fellowship with himself so that they
may become more like him. Once again, Paul summed up this aspect of Ref-
ormation spirituality the best:

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed – not only in my
presence, but now much more in my absence – continue to work out your
salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will
and to act according to his good purpose.

(Phil. 2:12–13)

Naturally, obedience to the ways of God is an essential part of being a member
of His family. However, in the end even obedience itself is a gift that comes to
Christians because of God’s faithfulness to bring them into full relationship with
him. After all, if nothing will separate believers from the love of God in Christ
Jesus, then the love of God must seek to drive out, little by little, although never
fully in this life, the self-centeredness of their hearts which naturally shies away
from divine intimacy. Only the power of divine love can allure human beings to
learn to love serving God and others more than sin and selfishness.

Here is the true nature of God’s unconditional love for his children. Implicit
within the gift of love is a calling of another into relationship. And any rela-
tionship requires both individuals to give up some measure of autonomy so as
to think of the other’s needs and desires, at least a little. For sinners to accept
the gift of God’s love is to admit into their hearts a power from outside them-
selves that then tugs at their very self-centeredness, seeking to draw them out
of themselves into relationship with him. Consequently, divine perfect love
must seek to stir up in believers an equally full, unreserved selfless self-giving
of all of themselves to their God. Therein lies the gospel’s power as the greatest
antidote to performance-based identity. For God himself has promised to keep
loving sinners until his love makes them as lovely as he himself is. In the age to
come they will be eternal splendours, shining brighter than the Milky Way, for
they will be radiated by, and radiating to, the Trinity as well as one another the
transforming unconditional love of God, forever.

Why is the Reformation’s teaching about obedience as a gift such an impor-
tant principle for chaplains to communicate to elite athletes? Only a proper
understanding of sanctification by grace will save Christian athletes from seeing
God as the ultimate ‘bad dad’ sports coach who cuts them from the team in the
face of spiritual failure. Only knowing that personal holiness is God’s gift, not
another achievement they have to earn, will save elite sportspersons from fear-
ing that God’s love is as contingent on their performance as every affirmation in
the Olympic world. Only knowing the true nature of grace will save Christian
athletes from spiritual shame at the very moment they need to turn to God for
help in fighting off sporting shame for failing to reach their competitive goals.
Only knowing the alluring power of God’s unconditional love will save elite
sportspersons from turning to the treadmill of self-loathing, where they look to
self-hatred as the best motivation for fighting sin harder so that they can win

126 Ashley Null

back divine approval to ensure that God will bless them with victory the next
time. Only knowing the gospel will foster emotional wholeness in Christian
athletes facing the immense pressures of Olympic competition (Null, 2008; for
Roman Catholic perspectives, see Mazza, 2008; Novak, 1976).

Three Reformation pastoral questions

Once elite sportspersons have come to identify the love of God revealed in
Jesus Christ as their enduring source of worth and value, they need learn how
to apply this truth practically to their competitive life – especially during such
an emotionally intense event as the Olympic Games. Once again, the insights
of the Reformation prove helpful. According to the English Reformer Thomas
Cranmer, grace produces gratitude; gratitude engenders love; love births repent-
ance; repentance leads to good works: good works bring about a better society
(Null, 2004). Christian athletes must first focus on what God has done for them
through sport before they can seek to do something for God through sport.
Three questions are particularly useful in enabling Christian athletes to experi-
ence the Reformation’s integration of their faith and their sport: (1) How has
God’s gift of sport enabled you to experience joy? (2) How has God’s gift of
sport drawn you closer to Him? (3) How has God’s gift of sport drawn you
closer to others in His service?

How has God’s gift of sport enabled you to experience joy?

Most evangelical sports theology begins with Jesus’ parable of the talents (Matt.
25:14–30). Christian athletes are told that they have a responsibility to be good
stewards of the gifts which God has given them: consequently, they need to
honour God through developing their athletic talent (e.g. Athletes in Action,
1994: 13–15). While such an appeal to duty and obligation fits perfectly with
the sporting world’s expectation of performance-based affirmation, a Reforma-
tion understanding of Christian vocation does not begin with what believers
must do for God but with what God has already done for them and not merely
in justification but in sanctification as well. As the Apostle Paul taught, even the
good works Christians do for God are actually God’s gifts to them which he has
carefully prepared in advance to give to them at the kairos moment (Eph. 2:10).

Of course, God ultimately intends his gifts to be used to build up the body
(Eph. 4:12) and to promote unity with himself (Eph. 4:13). However, the first
reason He gives good gifts to human beings is the evangelism of joy. As a wit-
ness to his providential care for humankind, God gives the people of the earth
sun and rain, plenty of food to eat and the opportunity to turn their hand to
a variety of activities in order that they may have joy (Deut. 16:16; Matt. 5:45;
Acts 14:17). The Psalmist recognized sport as one of these joy-giving activities:
‘In the heavens [God] has pitched a tent for the sun which is like a bridegroom
coming forth from his pavilion, like a champion rejoicing to run his course’
(19:4–5). By comparing the feeling champions experience when performing

Pastoral care in Olympic Village 127

their sport to a honeymoon – intense physical satisfaction and emotional con-
tentment all at the same time – the Bible could not offer much higher praise
for the joy of sport. As a God-given gift, every race, every game, every perfor-
mance is an opportunity to experience afresh the thrill that comes from doing
something God designed the heart of every sportsperson to love. In the film
Chariots of Fire, Eric Liddell aptly expressed this Reformation approach to sport:
‘I believe God made me for a purpose, but he also made me fast, and when
I run I feel his pleasure.’

The Bible teaches that such joy is essential for enduring the hardships of life.
Paul noted that because of their former abundance of joy, the Galatians would
have gladly plucked out their own eyes, if it would have relieved Paul of the
suffering his own caused him (Gal. 4:15). Hebrews says that Jesus ignored the
shame and endured the cross because of ‘the joy set before him’ (Heb. 12:2).
Little wonder, then, that Nehemiah told the people of Jerusalem that ‘the joy of
the Lord is your strength’ (Neh. 8:10).

Some Christian coaches today seek to harness joy, in particular the joy of
relationships forged under fire, as a healthy alternative for motivating their ath-
letes through the stress and strain of competition. Coach Biff Poggi of the
Gilman, Maryland, High School football team, begins each new season with
this pep talk:

We’re gonna go through this whole thing as a team. We are the Gilman
football community. A community. This is the only place probably in your
whole life where you’re gonna be together and work together with a group
as diverse as this – racially, socially, economically, you name it. It’s a beau-
tiful thing to be together like this. You’ll never find anything else like it
in the world – simply won’t happen. So enjoy it. Make the most of this.
It’s yours . . . . The relationships you make here . . . you will always have
them . . . for the rest of your life, the rest of your life. Cherish this, boys,
cherish this.

(cited in Marx, 2003: 44; cf. Ehrmann, 2011; Drape, 2009: 45–6)

Coach Poggi is a wise man. Despite the ups and downs of life in competitive
sports, there is so much to cherish as part of that experience, especially the rela-
tionships formed along the way.

Now what is true for a high-school football season is so much more true of
the privilege to be competing in the Olympic Games. As a result, the first task
of a chaplain in the Olympic Village is to help participants savour the sheer joy
of being an Olympian. One of the best ways to do so is to ask participants to
reflect on all the blessings they have received from God through sport over the
years – counting them one by one, as the old hymn says: all the people who
have invested in them; all the friends they have made; all the places they have
seen; all the maturity in Christ they have gained; all the love they have expe-
rienced. Nothing pushes back Olympic anxieties like realizing that nothing
which will happen during the Games can ever take away the joys of the athletic

128 Ashley Null

journey that brought them there. Then, of course, there are all the wonderful
experiences of Village life to relish while they last. For example, Josh Davis has
famously compared worship in the Olympic religious services centre to a fore-
taste of heaven; people from all lands and languages gathered together, acknowl-
edging the goodness of God and his lordship over all, regardless of the results of
their competition. Counting it all joy is the best way for participants to prepare
for their competition and to take in stride the results when they come.

How has God’s gift of sport drawn you closer to him?

The second reason God gives gifts to people is to draw them into ever deeper
personal fellowship with him (Eph. 4:13). Martin Luther understood this
principle and argued that a person’s vocation was a divinely devised school of
discipleship (see Wingren, 1957: 28–38). Consequently, God has equipped all
vocations with ‘trouble and toil’ to confront Christians with their need to turn
to Him in prayer to be changed according to his Word. Here is the practical
arena where God acts on his promise to turn His children inside out, enabling
them to learn to die daily to ego and reorienting them toward loving service to
Him as well as others. By leaning on the promises of God and asking His Spirit
to write them on their hearts daily, Christian athletes have a never-ending
stream of opportunities to grow in living out the truths of their faith:

that their identity is based on the cross, not on today’s success or failure;
that their power to give their all during competition comes not from their

own willpower, but from Christ who is at work in them to strengthen
and draw their wills to his, for discipline and endurance are the fruit of
the Spirit (Gal. 5:22);

that their right-standing with God stays constant because of God’s grace,
regardless of all chances and changes of the world of sport, even regardless
of all the vagaries of their own faithfulness to him, in sorrow and in joy;

that living by faith means to trust that the value of all the struggle, sweat and
self-investment to become an Olympian is not ultimately determined by
their results during the games but by God’s faithfulness to use everything
for his eternal purposes;

that if their day of competition turns out to be Good Friday, just because
they are Christians does not mean that the nails will not hurt; however,
God is a good steward of pain. The stinging bitterness of defeat will not
have the last word. Easter will come. It may take three days, three years or
even three decades, but Easter will come. God is faithful to work all things
together for good (Rom. 8:28).

For so many Christian competitors in the Olympic Village, the games become
the school of discipleship where they face the crucifixion of their deepest held
aspirations as part of a divine plan to enable them to experience first-hand an

Pastoral care in Olympic Village 129

even deeper joy of seeing God’s love work all things together for good at the
kairos moment.

How has God’s gift of sport drawn you closer to
others in his service?

If Luther emphasized vocation as a divine means to deepen individual faith,
Calvin emphasized vocation as the divine call to take that deepened faith and
work to restore human beings and their life together to God’s intention in
creation (Niebuhr, 1951). Once sportspeople have reflected on the joy God
has given them through sport and the intimacy they have gained with Jesus as
a result, they are equipped to make a difference for Christ. For now they have
more joy and more of Jesus to share.

The Olympic Games offer so many opportunities to restore both sport and
the people of sport to God’s purposes. By how they participate in the games
(Weir and Daniels, 2004), Christian athletes can witness to sport as something
other than overly commercialized entertainment whose stars believe that ‘you
ain’t trying if you ain’t cheating’ (Hoffman, 2010: 210). They can compete drug-
free and in the spirit of the rules, not just by the letter, thus showing a credible
alternative to the win-at-all-cost mentality that so pervades the Olympics. They
can reject treating their opponent as an adversary who threatens their identity,
but rather value them as a co-worker whose achievement and active resistance
will call forth in the Christian a higher standard of sporting excellence which
could not be achieved alone (Weir and Daniels, 2004). They can give their all
during competition, expecting to sense Jesus’ presence within them, since when
they are in motion they are in harmony with the purpose for which Christ
created them. When fear of failure whispers in their ear that they are going to
lose, they can refuse to pull back, even though giving less than their best would
make defeat easier to bear. For, ironically, it is easier psychologically to feel
guilty for not having tried hard enough, than to feel powerless to have changed
the situation. Consequently, Christian athletes can give everything they have to
the very last moment of their competition, despite knowing that to do so will
only intensify their emotional pain should they, in the end, fail. In victory, they
can exhibit humility and gratitude, realizing that most other Christian athletes
have worked just as hard and prayed as much, but God had set aside other gifts
than Olympic success for them. In defeat, they can refuse to torture themselves
with self-loathing or shame those on their team whose failures may have con-
tributed to their own disappointment. They can rejoice for those who win and
weep with those who have not, regardless of their own situation. They can, in
short, bring the joy and hope of Jesus to all they meet which, of course, is the
very best form of evangelism.

When God allows Olympians to see the difference their life and witness to
Jesus have made in other people’s lives – whether over a conversation in the
locker room after a game in the Olympic stadium, over a cappuccino in the
Village McCafe or in front of a bank of cameras before a televised audience of

130 Ashley Null

billions – that joy, that real joy, abides long after the Closing Ceremonies are
over, even long after their physical prowess is gone. In the light of that joy, all
the heart-ache along the way will seem as mere mosquito bites, real but only
momentary pains of no lasting significance (2 Cor. 4:17).

Conclusion: God’s redeeming love

In the Christian life, God takes all of his children on journeys they do not wish
to go. He makes them travel by roads they do not wish to use. All so that he can
bring them to places they never wish to leave. With Jesus, pain, no matter how
great – even when of Olympic proportions – never has the last word. Nothing
has made this hopeful reality clearer to me as an Olympic chaplain than watch-
ing God’s pastoral care of Josh Davis and Ugur Taner since the 2000 Trials.

In 2004 Davis himself tasted the bitter disappointment of not qualifying
for another Olympics. He would eventually retire to concentrate on his great
love – motivating people to dream great dreams and achieve their best. In the
intervening years, he has had the joy of speaking to literally hundreds of thou-
sands of people. Today, amongst many other activities, he leads the Mutual of
Omaha Breakout Swim Clinics, dispensing advice on technique, motivation
and a healthy spiritual life to age-group swimmers all around the US.

And Taner? Faced with the death of his life-long ambition so shortly after he
became a Christian, Ugur had to immediately wrestle deep within his soul as
to why he had turned away from his family background to come to Jesus. Had
he in reality just tried to take out an ‘insurance policy’? Was he merely hoping
to get the Christian God on his side so he would surely win his place on the
Olympic team like Josh? If so, now was the time to admit his mistake, move on
and move away from the Christian lies he had so foolishly listened to. Or were
the claims of Christ true? Was Jesus’ love in his heart more than enough to make
life worth living, regardless of his loss? If so, now Ugur needed to lean on the
grace of God to sustain him through all his doubts and despair until God made
clear to him a new, deeply satisfying direction for his future.

In the end, Taner discovered that Jesus’ love would not let him go. Despite
the ups and downs of coming to terms with never being a US Olympian, Ugur
found his trust, hope, love and even, yes, gratitude towards his saviour grow-
ing little by little with every passing day. And Ugur was not the only person
to notice the deepening, maturing faith at work in him. Liesl, his not- yet-
Christian wife, was too close not to see the changes happening to this man she
loved so much. She had wanted nothing else but to heal her husband’s broken
heart, but her own heart broke when she discovered she could not. Then, when
she saw Jesus doing for her husband what she longed to see, she found herself
slowly falling in love with a saviour who so clearly loved her husband as deeply
as she did. Four years later, Ugur’s long-standing prayers were answered. At
the kairos moment, Liesl became a Christian, and together they began to build
a new family heritage – a Christian heritage – that they now share with six
wonderful children. Today, they manage a large swimming school in California,

Pastoral care in Olympic Village 131

and their lives continue to focus on the joy of serving Jesus, not because he
made Ugur’s Olympic dreams come true, but because Christ fulfilled an even
deeper desire in Ugur’s heart – to have a family knit close together in Christ –
and Jesus did it in a completely unexpected but fully effective way. In the end,
Christian Olympians, regardless of their performance during the Games, will
find their ‘mouths filled with laughter and their tongues with songs of joy’. For
with Jesus all God’s children will one day be able to say: ‘The Lord has done
great things for us, and we are filled with joy’ (Ps. 126: 2–3).

References

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Athletes in Action (1994). The Total Athlete, Lebanon, OH: Campus Crusade for Christ.
Drape, J. (2009). Our Boys: A Perfect Season on the Plains with the Smith Center Redmen, New

York: Times Books.
Ehrmann, J. (2011). Inside Out Coaching: How Sports Can Transform Lives, New York: Simon &

Schuster.
Hoffman, S. (2010). Good Game: Christianity and the Culture of Sports, Waco, TX: Baylor Uni-

versity

Press.

Marx, J. (2003). Season of Life: A Football Star, a Boy, a Journey to Manhood, New York: Simon &

Schuster.
Mazza, C. (2008). ‘The Pastoral Ministry of Sport: Taking Stock and Looking Ahead’, in

Sport: An Educational and Pastoral Challenge, Vatican City: Liberia Editrice Vaticana, 31–59.
Niebuhr, H.R. (1951). Christ and Culture, New York: Harper & Brothers.
Novak, M. (1976). The Joy of Sports: End Zones, Bases, Baskets, Balls, and the Consecration of the

American Spirit, New York: Basic Books.
Null, A. (2004). ‘Thomas Cranmer’s Theology of the Heart’, Trinity Journal for Theology and

Ministry, 1: 18–34.
— (2008). ‘ “Finding the Right Place”: Professional Sport as a Christian Vocation’, in Don-

ald Deardorff and John White (eds), The Image of God in the Human Body: Essays on Chris-
tianity and Sports, Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen, 313–66.

— (forthcoming). ‘Cranmer and Paul’, in J. Linebaugh and M. Allen (eds), Reformation
Readings of Paul, Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

Sagar, S.S., and J. Stoeber (2009). ‘Perfectionism, Fear of Failure, and Affective Responses to
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Sagar, S.S., I.D. Boardely and M. Kavussanu (2011). ‘Failure and Student Athletes’ Interper-
sonal Antisocial Behaviour in Education and Sport’, British Journal of Educational Psychology,
81: 391–408.

Taner, U. (2008). ‘Pursuing God’, in J. Davis (ed.), The Goal and the Glory, Ventura, CA: Regal
Books, 68–9.

Weir, J.S., and G. Daniels (2004). Born to Play!, Bicester, Oxon: Frampton House.
Wingren, G. (1957). Luther on Vocation, trans. Carl C. Rasmussen, Philadelphia: Muhlenberg

Press.

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9 Gospel-shaped sports
chaplaincy
A theologically driven
sport ministry

John B. White

Introduction

Christian sports chaplains undertake pastoral care as specialists in public con-
texts outside traditional places of congregational life and worship, not unlike
chaplains in other secular settings. Sports chaplains experience ministry on the
margins of congregational life proper (Threlfall-Holmes and Newitt, 2011).
Holst (2006) describes this for hospital chaplains as walking between two
worlds – religion and medicine, which, for the purposes of this book, means
a walk between religion and sport, or the church and the institutions of sport.
Consequently, this walk between different contexts raises a number of con-
cerns, if not conflicts and tensions, which Christian chaplains need to address
if they are to negotiate the ideological differences and power struggles. For
example, because many sports chaplains are embedded in Olympic, professional
and collegiate sporting contexts, they are serving privileged individuals in posi-
tions of power.

The economic and social advantages possessed by these individuals can con-
flict with and even distort gospel virtues such as those taught in the Sermon
on the Mount (Kotva, 2012). Conflict is exacerbated by the fact that the nature
and values of sport can be juxtaposed with concerns such as those posed by
the environment, poverty, hunger, disease, unemployment and illiteracy. These
everyday moral matters are also ecclesial dilemmas when considering how to
justify the time and resources spent on sport (let alone sports chaplaincy), when
the world is in pain and suffering (Twietmeyer, 2007). Additionally, there are
plenty of instances in the world of sport of sexism, racism, exploitation of ath-
letes, violence and religious discrimination, which bump up against gospel pat-
terns of speech and action. In this chapter, I consider two main questions: how
are the convictions of the gospel fundamental to Christian sports chaplaincy,
and how should the good news inform and transform the way in which these
sports chaplains serve? My claim is that the culture of sport requires sports
chaplains to be apprehended and shaped by the whole gospel: this is a theologi-
cal task and responsibility.

To explore these questions, requires an understanding of what the gospel is so
that sports chaplains minister in a manner worthy of the gospel (Phil. 1:27–30).

108 John B. White

What this means in principle and practice has everything to do with how well
chaplains embody the good news in the liminal spaces of ministry in sport.
Biblical interpretation is complex but what I am interested in here are general
biblical themes.

Gospel truths: what is the Gospel?

The gospel is the good news about God’s saving work in Jesus Christ. The
God of the gospel confronts our human existence, for as Paul asserts it is God’s
power that brings salvation (Rom. 1:16–17), accomplishing redemption in the
salvific acts of Jesus Christ (Rom. 3:21–6). Newbigin (2003) writes about this
confrontation as God in Christ breaking into and becoming present in our
human history, calling for healing and liberation from the idolatrous pow-
ers that oppress. The good news is about Jesus, who liberates or saves us from
sin, to which this world is in bondage, estranging humans from God and one
another.

The apostle Paul accents the gospel he was entrusted with as the ‘ministry of
reconciliation’, for he writes that ‘in Christ God was reconciling the world to
himself ’ (2 Cor. 5:18–19). This claim witnesses to the reality of reconciliation
for the work of Christ ‘had as its effect the bringing of the “the world” back
to God’ (Green and Baker, 2011: 84). Paul makes it clear in this passage (2 Cor.
5:11–21) that God in Christ is both the source and substance of the good news.
Reconciliation is ‘in’ and ‘through’ Christ: the events of his death and resurrec-
tion alone are the means. That implies, if God is the gracious subject who initi-
ates reconciliation, then humans are the objects, since the problem of sin and
estrangement lie with humans who inhabit a world that needs a comprehensive
restoration. God’s action in Christ reconciles sinners and the world to himself
and inaugurates a cosmic renewal of all of life (Collins, 2013).

Paul concludes his exposition of reconciliation as an event in which Christ’s
death is the punishment for sin; He took away our sin in that He takes our place
by suffering and dying the death of a sinner on the cross. Paul further claims
that the result of Christ’s death is that ‘in [Christ] we might become the right-
eousness of God’ (2 Cor. 5:21). Here Paul connects being reconciled to God
(2 Cor. 5:18–20) and Christ’s death with the biblical concept of being made
right with God. God’s forgiving activity of reconciliation means we become
the righteousness of God. Although there are a plurality of images and other
pertinent passages for elucidating the atonement (Green and Baker, 2011) and
even more explicit references to justification (Romans 3–5), Paul’s point is that
the sacrificial death of Jesus is the basis for sinners being declared righteous.
Reconciliation means human beings stand in a right relationship with God,
because our justification is accomplished in the event of the cross; Christ as the
means of our justification exchanges our state of sin for the righteousness of
God (Collins, 2013). This truth of the gospel is that God justifies the ungodly or
sinners (Rom. 4:5). In the Christian tradition, the consequence of humankind’s
transition from one condition into another is because Jesus Christ became what

Gospel-shaped sports chaplaincy 109

we are as sinners in order to make us what He is. This final point is important
in the proceeding discussion on justification and sport.

The trajectory of 2 Corinthians 5:11–21 reminds us that ministry is the
direct consequence of the good news concerning Jesus Christ. Just as God
called Paul to the ministry of reconciliation, God graciously invites sports chap-
lains to implement reconciliation as a witness to God’s new way of life in Christ
for the world of sport. What follows is a discussion of two specific inferences
for sports chaplaincy that come from an affirmation of the good news as articu-
lated in terms of the cross event. The first explores a pastoral care implication
concerning personal identity, whilst the second mines a prophetic implication
of doing sports chaplaincy.

Gospel conclusions for sports chaplaincy

Justification and sport: pastoral considerations of personal identity

If justification is accomplished in the event of the cross, then the glory of the
cross says, ‘No!’ to sportspersons’ absurd and hopeless efforts to justify them-
selves in and through their performances (White, 2012). This is not to say that
sportspersons cannot gain a relative appreciation for who they are as they play
sports: namely, healthy pride and confidence which fits a proper love of self.
However, the ‘gospel according to sport’ is self-justification, for it attempts to
travel the penultimate road of sports as an ultimate authority for determin-
ing personal worth. This gospel proclaims and performs a plausibility structure,
which legitimizes self-justification, counter to faith in Christ alone. Coakley
(2009) explains sociologically that this quest is real because the normative cul-
ture’s sport ethic is an over-conformity to particular interpretations of values,
norms, and goals of sport. What often follows is that the identities of sportsper-
sons become habituated to this logic and thus cemented in sport itself. Accord-
ing to Hughes and Coakley (1991: 312), athletes who most commonly adopt
this sport ethic are those ‘whose identity or future chances for material success
are exclusively tied to sport’, because ‘self-identification becomes lodged within
sport’. Indeed, Hughes and Coakley go on to argue that ‘the role of the ath-
lete (player, climber, skier, runner, etc.) becomes extremely salient to a person’s
identity’ (ibid. 318).

How self-justification works: relationships and recognition

German theologian Eberhard Jüngel helps to explain further what this concept
of justification means existentially within contemporary society. He describes
how our lived experiences connect to and mediate a pre-understanding of the
meaning of justification. He claims that ‘to justify something, to justify oneself,
to be justified – these are primary life-processes that occur daily’ ( Jüngel, 1999:
28). Humans normally justify their actions when they fail or when something is
misunderstood by vindicating or defending themselves. On a more basic level,

110 John B. White

when people justify themselves, they assert that their lives fundamentally have a
meaning. Jüngel further states that this worldly life process, the act of justifica-
tion, always occurs before some authority or other. He holds that these different
authorities function as courts of law in that the event of justification summons
us before others, whether that tribunal is a human institution, myself or even
before God (although God relativizes all others because He is the true source
and means of justification). The nature of life is such that we exist before these
kinds of forums which question and evaluate us: that is, athletes before their
teammates, opponents and spectators; coaches before media and management;
children before their parents; and so on. In these events, a person existentially
experiences her or himself ordered to appear before someone to justify her or
himself. We even do this before ourselves, which Jüngel concludes is our own
conscience serving as a tribunal. With this whole account, the challenge of
justification is how everyday life inculcates evaluative interpretations about a
person’s identity, which form her or his self-understanding as something she or
he must vindicate, regardless of the relationship or sphere of life.

Jüngel (1999) argues that there are two essential aspects of our humanity,
which explain why we justify ourselves. The first is that because we exist and
live as social creatures in relation to others (even to ourselves), our existence
implies a responsibility before others, ready to be summoned to accountability
and hence, to defend and to justify, if necessary. The second aspect is the human
longing for approval: we were made in such a way that we depend on recogni-
tion. As Jüngel (1999: 29) states, ‘the will to justify ourselves springs from this
fundamental anthropological need for approval’. The problem with this drive
for approval or self-justification, when understood in relation to sport, is that
even though sport performances may witness to a person’s identity and even
temporarily satisfy the demands of this tribunal, they do not merit God’s jus-
tification and so leave this desire for justification unsatisfied. With regard to
the human condition Jüngel goes on to argue that theological reality rebukes
all human attempts at justification, since the ‘one who is in the wrong before
God is incapable of any such things. Before God, no wrong can be made right.
Before God, all “making right” is excluded’ (ibid.).

Kelsey (2009) verifies that what is so dangerous about human attempts at
self-justification is that they skew reality. Humans falsely believe that they
author the worth and meaning of their lives and identities. This can make us too
dependent on the acknowledgement and affirmation of others. If our identities
and self-worth are fully contingent on the affirmation of others, then we are in
a treadmill that is in ‘bondage to the assessment of others’ (Kelsey, 2009: 873).
For Kelsey, inherent in self-justification are beliefs and habits that something is
wrong enough with humanity to question the worth of human life and thus,
seek justification in reference to some penultimate strategy. Kelsey sees any
existential ‘hows’ (strategies) that try to bring worth to personal identities apart
from reconciliation in Christ as deeply insecure and this ‘insecurity generates a
living death of endless and vicious cycles’ (ibid.). The only solution to this prob-
lem is found in the gospel in which God’s reconciliation blesses and establishes

Gospel-shaped sports chaplaincy 111

the unrighteous as righteous; God justifies and so people are given definitive
approval and forgiveness through the word of God’s grace ( Jüngel, 1999).

The ‘Gospel according to sport’ in Friday Night Lights

In Friday Night Lights, Buzz Bissinger describes this pre-understanding of
justification through his ethnographic narrative about how one high-school
(American) football team seemed to animate Odessa, a town in West Texas,
holding it together in some sense. Bissinger and his family relocated from Phila-
delphia to spend a year interviewing and learning the ethos of this town, where
almost 20,000 fans would show up on a Friday night because ‘football went to
the core of life’ (Bissinger, 2000: xii). Bissinger chronicles how unresolved and
complex tensions related to ‘race’, sport, education, religion and politics fuelled
a community to seek justification vicariously in and through the works of their
high-school coaches and athletes. In turn, he interrogates how coaches and
athletes experienced this tribunal or others’ expectations and its effect on the
identities of the main characters. One main character, in particular, is Boobie
Miles, who until his tragic knee injury in a scrimmage game was perceived
as the anointed one. He relentlessly sought recognition from others with his
apparent invincibility and requisite attitude in football boosting his team and
town’s aspirations for proving themselves. Boobie exemplifies what Coakley
(2009) argues happens when athletes equate their identities with their sporting
prowess and performance: they overconform to the normative values of sport.
Bissinger reports, for example, how Boobie stood existentially before different
tribunals (members of his family, uncle L.V., fans, media, teammates, coaches,
opponents and rivals, the team physician, Caucasians and African-Americans,
teachers and college recruiters) which summoned him to meet their expecta-
tions. These generalized others socialized Boobie to earn their recognition, jus-
tifying whether his life project to make it to ‘the pros’ and be somebody would
prove meaningful.

Although Boobie’s story extends the problem of justification beyond the
New Testament, his example illustrates the issue of justification as it relates to
identity amongst athletes. Moreover, Boobie’s context for justifying himself
is a competitive zero-sum game which means, according to Kelsey, that he is
driven to compare himself with others (Kelsey, 2009): a logic which necessarily
means that there must be a winner who justifies his or her identity and a loser
who does not. Before Boobie’s injury he commanded respect, securing and
winning his identity, but after his injury his winning status became vulnerable,
begetting deep insecurity and tentativeness in how he played, for he was no
longer a winner and the balance of affirmation shifted to the success of other
teammates.

Kelsey (2009) argues that this way of defining personal identities binds
humans to a vicious cycle of death, which in Boobie’s case was driven by the
vice of envy. Bissinger accounts for Boobie’s envy (along with other emotions)
in how he reacted toward Chris Comer, a teammate who had replaced Boobie

112 John B. White

in the backfield after his injury as the new distinguished running back. Prior
to Boobie’s injury, he had succeeded in defining his identity as successful, since
he was the honoured athlete who had earned the praise of others. During this
time, Boobie even cheered Comer’s accomplishment as a running back second
to Boobie, presumably, because when he compared himself to Comer, Boobie
had kept his status as the winner and thus, Comer was not a real threat to his
identity. This comparison only increased Boobie’s own sense of righteousness.
Bissinger (2000: 15–16) notes the dramatic shift after Boobie’s injury:

As the season progressed and Comer became a star while Boobie lan-
guished, the cheers [from Boobie] stopped. He made no acknowledgement
of Comer’s score. He sat on the bench, his eyes staring straight ahead, burn-
ing with a mixture of misery and anger as it became clear to him that the
coaches had no intention of playing him tonight . . . . He sat on the bench
and felt coldness swirl through him, as if something sacred inside him was
dying, as if every dream in his life was fleeing from him and all he could
do was sit there and watch it disappear amid all those roars that had once
been for him.

Bissinger gives voice to how Boobie’s emotions illustrate the inner workings of
this cycle of death with Boobie feeling alienated and estranged not only from
himself but also from others, for in comparison, his own worth and value are
diminished and denigrated. In sum, Boobie’s identity is condemned to this false
quest for success through social approval.

When applying Kelsey’s analysis, Boobie’s case draws attention to how per-
sonal identity can get distorted by the ‘gospel according to sport’. The logic
of self-justification in sport occurs when sportspersons answer the existen-
tial question ‘Who am I?’ with ‘My sport performance justifies my personal
identity.’ It is theologically problematic to reduce one’s worth to one’s athletic
abilities, since self-justification only further estranges sportspersons from God,
others and themselves, keeping them in their condition of sin which leads to
death in many complex and nuanced ways (personally, socially and spiritually).

The Christian Gospel speaks to the ‘Gospel according to sport’

The ‘gospel according to sport’ affords sports chaplains opportunities to embody
and speak the Christian gospel as it confronts the liminality between God’s
justification and self-justification. The gospel erupts in such elemental crises
in which life and death confront personal identity ( Jüngel, 1999). Here is a
cultural discourse and practice in which the true gospel meets vulnerability
and neediness. This helplessness as illustrated for many is a chain of tragic self-
justifications which paradoxically can set the stage for sportspersons who are
downtrodden and heavy-laden with this burden to prove themselves, to receive
the good news ‘like cold water to a thirsty soul’ (Prov. 25:25). The word of

Gospel-shaped sports chaplaincy 113

reconciliation about Jesus Christ addresses all of humanity at the core of their
personhood, for what it means to be truly human is grounded in Christ; it is
a new union as derived from God’s undeserved gift of righteousness, a conse-
quence of Christ’s death and resurrection. ‘The word of the cross’ (1 Cor. 1:18),
when contextualized for sport, constrains sports chaplains to address sportsper-
sons where they are and as they are, to be reconciled to God (2 Cor. 5:20) and,
thus, to experience the benefit of God’s grace as forgiveness of sin.

The good news is a radical paradigm shift through which a sportsperson’s
whole existence is reinterpreted, emancipating them from their living lies and
death ( Jüngel, 1999). The quest for self-justification is over, and they are now
justified by faith in Christ. It is the unconditional nature of this event of jus-
tification and its application that has always frustrated and offended the world,
especially in zero-sum contexts and for those who believe that their works or
winning should determine their standing or identity. What lurks primarily in
this way of human self-understanding is an identity that is actualized by what
athletes do, namely, their performative works of righteousness. Works right-
eousness is incompatible with and condemned by the doctrine of justification.
God’s final word of justification puts an end to this achievement-oriented quest
for finding one’s true identity (White, 2011).

Prophetic imagination for sports chaplaincy

If justification as revealed in the message of the cross radically breaks into, con-
flicts with and judges this present (evil) age and the old way of life under sin (2
Cor. 5:14–21), then the good news prophetically calls into question the status
quo. Paul employs apocalyptic imagery when he uses such language as ‘new
creation’ (2 Cor. 5:17) to describe how Jesus’ death made effective the miracle
of a new ‘world-order change’ (Green and Baker, 2011: 88–9). The cross not
only declares a new state of affairs for sinners but for the entire cosmos, in that
the power of the gospel speaks to all spheres of life.

The cross is a sign of what happens when one takes God’s account of real-
ity more seriously than Caesar’s. The cross stands as God’s (and our) eternal
no to the powers of death, as well as God’s eternal yes to humanity, God’s
remarkable determination not to leave us to our own devices.

(Hauerwas and Willimon, 1989: 47)

Jesus Christ crucified means God judges what is evil. Ironically, God chose the
folly of the cross to accomplish this. How Jesus died was offensive and scandal-
ous to the Greco-Roman world (1 Cor. 1:18–30). The cross was a horrible,
gruesome form of punishment in an honour-and-shame based culture that the
Romans used to intimidate observers and to humiliate the subversives, crimi-
nals, outcasts and rebellious slaves who were put to death. The reality of Christ
crucified is at odds with many aspects of the world in its present fallen form.

114 John B. White

Moreover, Jesus embodied the Kingdom’s good news in his life and ministry by
advocating justice for the marginalized and defying the use of violence (Sider,
1993).

Taking a prophetic stance on problems in sport

An immediate implication is that just because the people and institutions of
sport act in a particular way, it does not necessarily follow that this is the way
it should be:

[Christ’s] death publicly exposes and condemns all of the sporting world’s
abuses of God’s intention for the human body [and personal identity], all of
sports’ spiritual, moral and relational lies like pride, envy, idolatry, violence,
disrespect, greed, cheating, taunting, preening, and the vitriol and anger of
coaches and parents [and athletes].

(White, 2012)

Sports chaplaincy which does not take a prophetic stance on these abuses is not
grounded in the gospel, since good news reveals how the bad news oppresses
and harms human beings. Furthermore, because justification stands at the cen-
tre of how chaplains should relate to a world that cries for justice, ethics is core
to the doctrine of justification. How sports chaplains must think and act has
ethical significance for who they are as new creations and what should be done
to put things right.

Newbigin (1986) understands the power of the gospel to transform the
entire human situation. The reach of the gospel, in his view, is cosmic, since
Christ as Creator and Redeemer reclaims and restores all. Not only are indi-
viduals and creation affected, but the social order is also to be transformed:
human institutions, such as sport, are affected by human sin and are in need
of the gospel’s leavening influence and renewal. The gospel story applies to
the entire human race and all creation. Who we are and what creation and
culture should be finds its meaning in relation to the story of Jesus. For sports
chaplains, their witness in word and deed is not then merely to individual
souls getting saved, but to a gospel directed to the whole person and the
whole culture of sport. Ellis (2014) notes that the tendency of sports chap-
lains and ministries is to keep their public engagement to that of evangelism
and individual pastoral care, but because of the reality of the whole gospel
this witness remains incomplete. The gospel demands that sports chaplains
widen their concerns to include systemic and social issues (‘race’, family,
economics, gender, media practices and so on). The gospel poses an inclusive
ministry focus.

This gospel conclusion further problematizes the narrow construal of the
gospel to the spiritual dimension, to organized religion, to the individual, to the

Gospel-shaped sports chaplaincy 115

after-life or to the soul. Frank Deford originally reported a similar observation
almost 40 years ago having interviewed individuals from prominent sport min-
istries in North America. He lamented the fact that these chaplains neglected
to consider social and moral matters: cheating, the evils of recruiting, dirty play,
racism (Deford, 1976). Why does this happen?

A diagnosis of the problem of neglect: a malfunction
of sports chaplaincy

Volf (2011) explains that one reason for this neglect is because of idleness of
faith. Chaplaincy idles when chaplains fail to obey the prophetic demands of
the gospel, not doing what they should, getting stuck, because of what Volf sees
as a result of the power of systems. All institutions operate from some kind of
ideology for ensuring order and positing what is acceptable and not acceptable.
Chaplains do not serve and work in a vacuum but in a context dependent on
processes such as economic and political relations and values. The dominant
culture of sport, for example, overpoweringly narrates how each contribut-
ing part fits into the whole, including coaches, athletes, management, families,
chaplains and media. Each part needs to play a role in order for the whole to
operate efficiently. The power of such systems with their own convictions and
interests, according to Volf, can tempt and trap chaplains, just as it can sport-
spersons, to act and to assume roles in accordance with the normative values of
sport instead of the gospel. Budde and Brimlow (2002) recognize how easy it is
for chaplains then to get co-opted by different worldviews and purposes, espe-
cially since their positions require them to conform materially, affectively and
spiritually to the formative processes within the power structures and practices
of an institution. Here is where the practice of the gospel in sports chaplaincy
is especially susceptible to compromise.

In their research on the roles and responsibilities of collegiate sports chap-
lains, Dzikus, Hardin and Waller (2012) show how two chaplains at different
(US) public universities were used by athletic departments to promote a posi-
tive image for their sport programmes. The University of Tennessee, Knoxville,
football team featured their chaplain in the 2007 University of Tennessee Football
Guide with testimonials about the chaplain’s role being to mould athletes into
well-rounded players, making them into good men and inspiring the entire
university, which the guide used as a public relations and recruitment strategy.
Because the chaplain is accountable in some sense to this football programme,
then his own loyalty to and the programme’s acceptance and endorsement of
him relates to their institutional interests. Their assessment and use of him in
this programme was based on whether he upheld the university’s ideals. So long
as this chaplain conforms to this programme, he receives institutional bless-
ing. Although the cause of the gospel takes up human flourishing and even
contributes to the common good in sport (Christian chaplains care about the

116 John B. White

well-being of coaches and players), our witness to the gospel can be altered by
the normative purposes and values of sport. That is, the prophetic direction of
the gospel must resist equating the scandalous nature of the gospel with the
exclusive message and distorted values of an institution like football. The gospel
entails that chaplains interpret their work, and what it means to be human,
which in the case of the University of Tennessee’s guide is what it means to
be a man, in a manner worthy of the gospel. However, this prophetic conclu-
sion of the gospel does not mean a chaplain is out to confront for confronta-
tion’s sake, nor does it imply that the gospel and sport are incommensurable.
On the whole, what is at stake in the University of Tennessee’s guide and use
of their chaplain are their normative judgements about what makes a well-
rounded, good man. Gospel-driven chaplaincy envisages what it means to be
fully human in terms of God’s revelation in Jesus Christ. The good news con-
cerning Jesus Christ is the true goal of our humanity, and it is in his image that
we are conformed (Col. 3:10). This brings into relief how the agenda of the
University of Tennessee’s guide might get confused, if not conflated with that
of the gospel. Implicit in this confusion is a tacit accommodation. While the
chaplain may facilitate chapels, religious meetings, lead weekly devotionals and
Bible studies and meet for personal counselling and discipleship, the ideology of
American football (or of any institution for that matter) and how this material,
embodied performance forms a male, can compete with and be antithetical to
a gospel understanding of what it means to be a man.

This is troubling, for as Messner (2007) argues, because sports are sites for
constructing gender, then this conception of masculinity embedded in the
University of Tennessee’s guide reproduces traditions and conventions con-
cerning masculinity and shapes reality. Although many other social institutions
and experiences contribute to gender identity, organized sport in general and
American football in particular produces scripts about masculinity which are
not neutral or value-free. Fogel (2011) refers to ‘sporting masculinity’ as one
particular script to which male athletes subscribe in order to meet the expecta-
tions of their peers. So, for instance, when being a good man as promoted by the
University of Tennessee’s guide is associated with physical toughness and power,
aggression, heroic conquests or slogans such as ‘no pain, no gain’, then ‘sporting
masculinity’ is not consistent with the model given by Jesus Christ. Practically
this means that, even though the chaplain encouraged the individual piety of
the coaches and athletes, unless he analysed and exposed how such hegemonic
myths of manhood and personal identity located in the power of this social sys-
tem can oppress and exploit sportspersons, then he condoned institutional evil.
Again, just because certain notions of masculinity and the attendant behaviour
are part of the given order of sports, it does not follow, according to the gospel,
that this is the way it is supposed to be.

Furthermore, might this chaplain’s failure to confront the sin of systems be
perceived as divine validation of the goals and objectives of the University of
Tennessee’s guide (Kotva, 2012)? Consider, also, how the presence of the gospel
in this example is not so much a distinct way of life, but is morphed by and into

Gospel-shaped sports chaplaincy 117

this institution’s rhetoric and practices (Volf, 2011). Not only does religion use
sport in this form of sports chaplaincy, but sport uses religion (Coakley, 2009).
This trivializes the gospel and domesticates its transformative power. When reli-
gion is used for public relations and as a tool for recruitment, it sacralizes an
institution’s power structures.

Additionally, in sport where such malfunctions exist, the gospel should
awaken sports chaplains to question the power of the system when athletes are
instructed to do something – deliberately take out an opponent, feign injury,
employ tactics which purposefully intimidate both physically and psychologi-
cally or hate the other side – which outside sport many would not affirm (Volf,
2011). Obedience to the institution of sport may contradict Christian moral
convictions.

A Gospel-shaped solution: prophetic
inquiry and criticism

In order to counter and resist such strategies, chaplains need to incorporate
what Brueggemann (2001: 13) calls the prophetic imagination, which is ‘to
nurture, nourish, and evoke a consciousness and perception alternative to the
consciousness and perception of the dominant culture around us’. Since this
critical stance is intrinsic to the gospel, the prophetic role is part of the calling
and responsibility of the sports chaplain. In this sense, sports chaplains are moral
leaders, not only spiritual advisors giving pastoral care to support players and
coaches.

The gospel emboldens the prophetic vision, since in Jesus Christ incarnated,
crucified and resurrected the old has passed and the new has come (2 Cor.
5:16–17), giving sports chaplains in their union with Christ the prophetic
imagination to discern the difference between the way things are and the way
they should be in Christ. This prophetic imperative invokes a myriad of ques-
tions, which chaplains can and should raise. What are the morally wrong actions
and systemic injustices in how sports are currently organized and practised?
How is the human body abused and misused in sport? How should chaplains
advocate justice for women, gay, lesbian and disabled athletes and other minori-
ties in sport? What are the economic injustices and disparities in sport? How
have the economic interests of the National Collegiate Athletic Association
and other sporting organizations exploited sportspersons and misshaped sport?
What kind of reform should we advocate in relation to players’ rights? Admit-
tedly, because the prophetic voice has often been absent in sports chaplaincy,
and because chaplains are normally in post by way of privilege, the challenge
to existing policies and practices is significant (Ellis, 2014), but such voice is
necessary for the sake of the whole gospel, for the whole sportsperson and for
the whole culture of sport.

Furthermore, when chaplains fail to critique the moral and social matters
that Deford wrote about in Sports Illustrated in 1976 including racism and sex-
ism, they risk supplanting the direction of the gospel and, instead, tolerate

118 John B. White

norms internal to the social order of sport. Instead of responsibly witnessing
to the new order as inaugurated by Christ’s death and resurrection, their evan-
gelistic witness underwrites what this cultural discourse considers best, for this
gives chaplains relevance while preserving the status quo (building character,
winning, team unity, making good men, excellence and so on). There is a tragic
trade-off when the gospel is confused with sport, and, moreover, the more
the chaplain conforms then the less likely the gospel’s call for repentance and
correction will be heard, for it loses its distinct voice and identity (Volf, 2011).
Volf (2011: 95) aptly states that the gospel ‘means the good news – something
good, something new, and therefore something different’. Again, this does not
mean that the prophetic stance of the gospel is merely dissent in that it only
condemns what is wrong within a particular context (Biggar, 2011), for Jesus
Christ as the source and substance of the good news affirms the created order
as revealed in the incarnation and resurrection (O’Donovan, 1994).

Conclusion

In this chapter I have argued that the gospel justifies sinners which can not only
liberate sportspersons but can transform how chaplains imagine and relate to
such cultural realities as sport. The good news concerning Jesus Christ is both
the basis of the identity of all sportspersons and the reason for sports chaplains
to confront prophetically the concrete theological predicaments of the people
of sport. The gospel calls chaplains back to the work of Christ as definitive for
how they care for the people of sport. When sportspersons reflect and practise
a distorted identity, chaplains must graciously speak in word and deed God’s
perspective on sport and life, no longer from an worldly vantage point but ‘in
Christ’ as a ‘new creation’ (2 Cor. 5:16–17).

References

Biggar, N. (2011). Behaving in Public: How to Do Christian Ethics, Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.
Bissinger, H.G. (2000). Friday Night Lights: A Town, a Team, a Dream, Cambridge, MA: Da

Capo.
Brueggemann, W. (2001). The Prophetic Imagination, 2nd edn, MN: Fortress Press.
Budde, M.L., and R.W. Brimlow (2002). Christianity Incorporated: How Big Business is Buying

the Church, Grand Rapids, MI: Brazos.
Coakley, J. (2009). Sports in Society: Issues and Controversies, 10th edn, Boston, MA:

McGraw-Hill.
Collins, R. (2013). Second Corinthians, Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic.
Deford, F. (1976). ‘Religion in Sport’, Sports Illustrated, 44/16: 88–100.
Dzikus, L., R. Hardin and S. Waller (2012). ‘Case Studies of Collegiate Sport Chaplains’,

Journal of Sport and Social Issues, 36/3: 268–94.
Ellis, R. (2014). The Games People Play: Theology, Religion, and Sport, Eugene, OR: Wipf &

Stock.
Fogel, C. (2011). ‘Sporting Masculinity on the Gridiron’, Canadian Social Science, 7/2: 1–14.

Gospel-shaped sports chaplaincy 119

Green, J.B., and M.D. Baker (2011). Recovering the Scandal of the Cross: Atonement in New Testa-
ment and Contemporary Contexts, 2nd edn, Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

Hauerwas, S., and W. Willimon (1989). Resident Aliens: Life in the Christian Colony, Nashville,
TN: Abingdon Press.

Holst, L. (2006). ‘The Hospital Chaplain: Between Worlds’, in L. Holst (ed.), Hospital Ministry:
The Role of the Chaplain Today, Eugene, OR: Wipf & Stock, pp.12–27.

Hughes, R. and J. Coakley (1991). ‘Positive Deviance among Athletes: The Implications of
Overconformity to the Sport Ethic’, Sociology of Sport Journal, 8/4: 307–25.

Jüngel, E. (1999). ‘On the Doctrine of Justification’, trans. J. Webster, International Journal of
Systematic Theology, 1/1: 24–52.

Kelsey, D. (2009). Eccentric Existence: A Theological Anthropology, vol. 2, Louisville, KY: Westmin-
ster John Knox Press.

Kotva, J.J., Jr. (2012). ‘Hospital Chaplaincy as Agapeic Intervention’, in M.T. Lysaught et al.
(eds), On Moral Medicine: Theological Perspectives in Medical Ethics, 3rd Ed., Grand Rapids,
MI: Eerdmans, pp.260–8.

Messner, M.A. (2007). Out of Play: Critical Essays on Gender and Sport, Albany, NY: SUNY
Press.

Newbigin. L. (1986). Foolishness to the Greeks: The Gospel and Western Culture, Grand Rapids,
MI: Eerdmans.

— (2003). Signs Amid the Rubble: The Purposes of God in Human History, ed. Geoffrey Wain-
wright, Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans.

O’Donovan, O. (1994). Resurrection and Moral Order, 2nd edn, Leicester, UK: Apollos.
Sider, R. (1993). Good News and Good Works: A Theology for the Whole Gospel, Grand Rapids,

MI: Baker.
Threlfall-Holmes, M., and M. Newitt (eds) (2011). Being a Chaplain, London, UK: SPCK.
Twietmeyer, G. (2007). ‘Suffering Play: Can the Time Spent on Play and Games be Justified

in a Suffering World’, Quest, 59(2): 201–11.
Volf, M. (2011). A Public Faith: How Followers of Christ Should Serve the Common Good, Grand

Rapids, MI: Brazos Press.
White, J. (2011). ‘Sport and Christian Ethics: Towards a Theological Ethics for Sport’, PhD

thesis: University of Edinburgh.
— (2012). ‘How is the Gospel Relevant to Sports?’, Sports Spectrum (Summer): 20.

8 Reviving the shepherd in us
Pastoral theology and its
relevance to sports chaplaincy
in the twenty-first century

Steven N. Waller and Harold Cottom

In entering the footy world (or any world!) the chaplain must also empty himself
of the privileges and indeed the reputation that he may be accorded in the religious
world from where he has come. He enters the world with empty hands – he has not
the skill of a trainer or the inspirational techniques of a coach, nor the administrative
methodology of a manager or CEO. He comes bearing the humble mantle of one
who comes to serve, who comes with the promise of care and compassion, who will
listen without reproach or report to the coach!

B.G. Stewart, n.d.: 17–18

Introduction

In his essay ‘The Pastoral Ministry of Sports’, Carlo Mazza makes a stirring
observation that many serving in sports ministry perhaps overlook. He specu-
latively poses the question of where the pastoral ministry in sports fits into the
scheme of professional pastoral ministry. The essay begins with the following
statement:

It is curious to notice that within the specializations in theology today,
there is not a specific sector dedicated to the so-called ‘pastoral ministry of
sport’. Actual trends in theology don’t seem to be fascinated by an aspect of
life that involves millions of people, sportsmen, fans, spectators.

(Mazza, 2008: 31)

Interestingly enough, other chaplains and educators unfamiliar with pastoral
ministry in sporting contexts have made similar observations. This is especially
true in the US among the community of chaplains, namely those that are affili-
ated with organizations such as the Association of Professional Chaplains and
the American Association of Pastoral Counsellors.

In this chapter we seek to: (1) examine the biblical and theological aspects of
pastoral or ‘shepherding’ ministry; (2) elaborate upon the integration of pastoral
theology and sports ministry; (3) elucidate upon some of the challenges fac-
ing shepherding ministry in sporting contexts; and (4) use pastoral theologian

Reviving the shepherd in us 97

Andrew Purves’ theological framework – which undergirds the concepts of the
crucifixion and resurrection of ministry – in order to rejuvenate sport-based
pastoral ministry. Our discussion is anchored in sports chaplaincy in the US, but
many of the points that we raise are applicable to sports chaplains on a global
scale. The need for a coherent pastoral theology which guides the work of
sports chaplains is essential to their contribution across the world.

Pastoral theology as the foundation of shepherding

Pastoral theology is the strand of theology concerned with the practical applica-
tion of scripture to the ‘care of souls’ (Kurian, 2005). The term is often considered
synonymous with pastoral counselling or pastoral care (Kinast, n.d.). Likewise,
pastoral theology encompasses many of the requisite skills used by those in pas-
toral ministry which includes preaching, evangelizing, administration and caring
for the troubled, the sick, the penitent and the bereaved (Lartey, 2003).

The literary works of classical pastoral theologians such as the Cappadocians –
Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa and Gregory of Nazianzus – John Chrysos-
tom, Martin Bucer and Richard Baxter help to ground both the theology and
practice of those who provide spiritual care for others. The body of scholarly
work produced by pastoral theologians such as Seward Hiltner, Thomas Oden,
John Patton, Richard Olsen, Emmanuel Lartey and Andrew Purves provides
unique insights into the integration of pastoral theology and contextualized
ministry. Hiltner, often referred to as the ‘father of modern pastoral care’ and a
pioneer in the development of pastoral theology used the term ‘shepherding’
to operationalize the integration of practical theology and the work associated
with pastoral care (see Hiltner, 1958). The shepherding aspect of pastoral theol-
ogy grounds the work and ministry of sports ministers and sports chaplains. It
is sound pastoral theology that informs and guides the work of sports ministry
generally and sports chaplaincy specifically.

The shepherd in the Bible and theology

The term ‘shepherd’ is used in a variety of biblical, theological and practi-
cal contexts. In Reconstructing Pastoral Theology, Purves (2004) suggested that
shepherding is much more than a mere metaphor. He stated that, ‘shepherding
appropriately connects the identity and work of God and the caring work of
the church’ (p.xxvii). Biblical shepherds may be literal or metaphorical: those
literally in charge of sheep and those practically in charge of the spiritual over-
sight and guidance of people. Pastoral counsellor and renowned professor of
pastoral care and counselling Jay Adams defines a shepherd in contemporary
terms in the following manner: ‘One who provides full and complete care for
all of his sheep. The shepherd knows that sheep are helpless (Isa. 53:7), are fol-
lowers ( John 10:3–5), are likely to wander and stray (Isa. 53:6), but under the
watchful care of the shepherd they do not lack’ (Adams, 1975: 5). Furthermore,
Oglesby describes the shepherd as ‘one who knows the flock and is known by

98 Steven N. Waller and Harold Cottom

the flock. The shepherd genuinely loves the flock and is willing to sacrifice for
their welfare’ (Oglesby, 1990: 1164).

In his earlier book Pastoral Theology in the Classical Tradition (2001), Purves
similarly used the pastoral theology of Gregory of Nazianzus to anchor both
sound pastoral theology and the shepherding and pastoral role that some are
called to. Purves notes that in his Second Oration, ‘In the Defence of his Flight’,
Gregory refers to pastoral care or shepherding as ‘the art of arts’ (Gregory of
Nazianzus, Orations, 2.16) and that the shepherd directed by Christ, ‘a Shepherd
to shepherds and a Guide to guides’ is to guide the flock that Christ himself
presents, spotless and worthy of heaven (ibid. 117). Moreover, in the Second
Oration, Gregory draws a distinction between the ‘physician of souls’ and those
who treat the ailments of the body as emblematic of pastoral work. Through
the lens of Gregory, the pastor/shepherd is greater than the physician because
the pastor diagnoses and treats the maladies of the soul (Purves, 2001: 17). To
wit, the pastor/shepherd has the innately more difficult task of ‘the diagnosis
and cure of our habits, passions, lives, wills, and whatever else is within us by
banishing from our compound nature (body and soul) everything brutal and
fierce, and introducing and establishing in their stead what is gentle and dear to
God’ (Gregory of Nazianzus, Orations, 2.18).

Shepherd imagery in the Bible

In more than 200 biblical passages, the customs of shepherds are used to illus-
trate spiritual principles; for example, shepherds are compared to spiritual over-
seers (Num. 27:16–17; Eccles. 12:11; John 21:15–17), and ‘sheep without a
shepherd’ symbolize vulnerable people in need of leadership and protection
(Matt. 9:36; Mark 6:34). Ideally, the shepherd should have the traits of the shep-
herds alluded to in the Bible: strong, devoted and selfless.

The New Testament uses the term ‘shepherd’ 16 times. Some New Testament
references use a shepherd and sheep to illustrate Christ’s relationship to his fol-
lowers who, in turn, describe him as ‘our Lord Jesus – the great Shepherd of the
sheep’ (Heb. 13:20). Jesus spoke of himself as ‘the good Shepherd’ who knew
his sheep and would sacrifice his life for them ( John 10:7–18). In John 21, Jesus
exhorted and commissioned Peter to feed his sheep. Jesus is also referred to as
‘the Shepherd and Guardian of your souls’ (1 Pet. 2:25) and ‘the chief Shep-
herd’ (1 Pet. 5:4). Additionally, the Pauline writings apply the word ‘shepherd’ to
church leaders. While issuing a warning about ‘fierce wolves’ (false teachers), Paul
admonishes the Ephesian elders to oversee and care for the flock (Acts 20:28–30).

Implications for those serving in shepherding
roles in sport

Notwithstanding the rich biblical tradition of the shepherd and the task of
shepherding, it is incumbent upon all who are called to this facet of ministry

Reviving the shepherd in us 99

in sport to have an understanding of the biblical mandate that is assigned to
caring for God’s people in sporting contexts. Keeping the role and function of
the shepherd in mind – valuing the sheep, leading, guiding, protecting, carrying
the weak, locating the lost and, most important, being accountable to the great
Shepherd – is of paramount importance to the work of the ministry leader as
shepherd (Lartey, 2003).

For as much as creating and managing sports ministries and serving the peo-
ple of sport is tantamount, perhaps the greatest challenge to us all is not to
lose sight of Christ, our sense of purpose or the people we serve. This is not
to devalue the other vital functions of contemporary sports ministry, it simply
suggests that we must keep ‘first things first’. Similarly, Patton (1993) urges the
recognition that an important element of shepherding is creating a ‘community
of care’ where ‘remembering’ is a part of the human condition and because
God remembers. Moreover, Jacobs (2012: 3) ardently suggests that all pastoral
care-givers/shepherds must create a ‘personal theology’ in order to effectively
serve those placed in their charge. This theology must be anchored in one’s
experience with God, thoughts about caring for others in different places in
the human experience, as well as one’s understanding of the vocation of pastoral
care. This personal theology should undergird all pastoral actions. In summary,
in sports ministries across the globe, our first priority must be the sheep and
executing the God-given task of shepherding.

Challenges to the shepherd in the twenty-first century

Some critics argue that the biblical and theological concepts of shepherding are
outdated and irrelevant in postmodern times. In Pastoral Theology, Thomas C.
Oden (1983: 51) argued to the contrary stating: ‘rather than prematurely rule
out pastoral images as meaningless to modern consciousness, we do better to
listen carefully to them so as to ask how they resonate vitally with contempo-
rary human aspirations’. There are several challenges that sports chaplains face
regardless of the geographic location of their ministry, including finding time
to shepherd effectively and the need for self-care toward the end of sustaining
the ministry.

Finding the time to shepherd

We live in an age where sports chaplains are often forced into a mode of multi-
tasking and prioritization of ministry efforts. In some cases, how we allocate
time to the various facets of ministry can be a challenge. In this age of busyness,
losing sight of key tasks may yield collateral physical and spiritual damage. One
of the most significant challenges to those shepherding people of sport is gain-
ing the time to watch over the many sheep that constitute the flock. A good
friend and consummate college sports chaplain at the University of Tennessee,
Knoxville, Roger Woods once elaborated on the difficulties of shepherding a

100 Steven N. Waller and Harold Cottom

large flock of National Collegiate Athletic Association Division 1-A athletes
while lecturing on our sport and religion course. He stated,

Pastoring athletes in a large athletic program like ours has its challenges.
One of the greatest challenges is watching over the more than 550 men
and women that play at a highly competitive institution like ours and in an
ultra-competitive conference like the SEC [Southeastern Conference]. The
pressures of academics, athletics, their faith and life in general can get to be
a bit overwhelming at times. This is why one of the biggest parts of my job
is making sure I have contact with the people I serve. Being present matters.

(Woods, 2013)

Shepherding, exercising the caring and watching over functions, as Woods notes,
is a crucial responsibility not to be minimized. For example, Paget and McCor-
mack (2006: 90) provide a meaningful account of the necessity of staying close
to high performing athletes as their shepherd in the following vignette:

It was the day after the game, and he was angry at the world. When you are
responsible for the play that cost your team the championship, what’s left for a
fired, 28-year-old athlete? Where are the fans now? When the chaplain came
over; he just sat in silence until the athlete began to talk about the embarrass-
ment and fears for his future. There was no resolution that day, but a suicide
was averted and young man knew he wouldn’t have to be alone in his pain.

Shepherding requires a large investment of time and personal attention to be
in tune with the needs of the athletes, coaches and families that are part of the
flock of the sports chaplain. In order for sports chaplains to be able to meet
the challenges that come with their ministries, they must strongly embrace the
need for self-care.

The shepherd and self-care

An important facet of pastoral theology is self-care, an area that sports chap-
lains often neglect. Chaplains and other professional clergy are expected to
be spiritually, emotionally and physically available to serve others when called
upon (Doehring, 2013). The same expectations are true of sports chaplains.
Withstanding the rigour of shepherding the people of sport in the twenty-first
century, the shepherd’s health may begin to dissipate. Long hours, stress, travel
with teams and attending to the needs of one’s own family can take its toll
especially if the need to care for oneself is not addressed. Moreover, the sheer
compassion required to care for the souls of players, coaches and families can
also be spiritually taxing. Ultimately, rest, proper nutrition and spiritual care of
self are required to sustain the pace needed to effectively serve. Even Jesus, the
Chief Shepherd, took time away from a burgeoning fast-paced ministry to care
of himself (Mark 6:30–31, 45–6). One of the greatest threats to sports chaplains
amidst the busyness of their working lives is compassion fatigue.

Reviving the shepherd in us 101

Compassion fatigue

Compassion is a complex emotion that allows care-givers to hold and sustain
themselves in emotional balance while also holding an individual’s despair in
one hand and their hopefulness in the other. It requires an inner conviction and
resilience – a passion of personal ethics, and personal beliefs. In an attempt to
operationalize the term ‘compassion fatigue’, D.W. Stewart (2012: 2) suggests
that ‘the helper does not personally suffer the event but, because of the helper’s
empathetic interaction with the sufferer, the helper becomes overcome by the
trauma(s) as if it were his or her own’.

Compassion fatigue is progressive and escalates over time. Some of the com-
mon symptoms include intrusive thoughts, sleep disturbance, anxiety and loss of
hope (Stewart, 2012). Contributing factors are age, lack of on-the-job experi-
ence, history of previous trauma, lack of support, repetitive exposure to trauma
victims, co-dependency relative to those being ministered to, frequent exposure
to negative events in a short time and a lack of balance between work, rest
and play (Adams, Boscarino and Figley, 2006; Ferguson, 2007; Stewart 2012).
Compassion fatigue has been widely examined in the literature among military,
hospice, healthcare and corporate chaplains (Auld, 2010; Kruger, 2010; Stewart,
2012). To date, there has been no research conducted on compassion fatigue
among sports chaplains.

When left unattended compassion fatigue can lead to burnout. The inten-
sity that accompanies care-giving for people of sport can trigger compassion
fatigue, especially when the relationships with players, coaches and families are
close and personal. A similar scenario is that of the athlete or coach who fails
to perform up to par on a high visibility stage and where the sports chaplain,
in an act of compassion, begins to internalize the sense of failure and loss of the
individual concerned. For as much as the two are tied together by their faith
and sporting experience, failure to create a healthy distance from such circum-
stances can lead to compassion fatigue in the sports chaplain.

As sports chaplains, we may find that many demands are placed upon us –
demands which are often difficult to understand and which may lead to the
accumulation of pressure. These pressures often produce a physical, emo-
tional and spiritually strain on our lives which may lead us closer to burnout
(Thompson, Amatea and Thompson, 2014). Ultimately, it is important for us
to acknowledge that we need to take time out on a regular basis in order to
replenish our physical and emotional energies.

Strategies for self-care

How do we as shepherds sustain ourselves in the face of the many challenges
of sports chaplaincy? First, we must regularly make the effort to maintain our
spiritual resources through daily meditation, prayer, Bible reading and worship.
Without question, God wishes to minister to our needs and to be involved in
our experiences through these spiritual practices. Understanding His shepherd-
ing presence in our life can provide an incredible resource as we deal with

102 Steven N. Waller and Harold Cottom

stressful situations. Constantly reminding ourselves that God is in the midst
of our struggles and that He encourages us to let him bear the weight of our
burdens (1 Pet. 5:7) is a great source of comfort and strength. Second, we need
to care for our physical body. The stronger we are, the easier it is for us to cope
with tension created by the rigours of ministry. Small but often overlooked
things such as diet and proper nutrition, exercise, rest and engaging in healthy
leisure pursuits as time permits all help us to effectively manage the stresses and
strains of chaplaincy in the twenty-first century. Doehring suggests that the
beginning of the resolution to the problem of self-care among those in ministry
involves a heightened level of spiritual and theological integration, which has
self-care as a primary outcome (Doehring, 2013). In essence, shepherds must
intentionally care for themselves while caring for others.

Reclaiming the role of the shepherd

As we understand the biblical, theological and practical aspects of shepherding
the people of sport, we are acutely aware of the diverse range of challenges that
confront those involved in sports chaplaincy. Surrounding all of these issues is
the moral and professional imperative to uphold the key tenets of caring for the
souls of others including the traditional pastoral functions of healing, guiding
and sustaining. When this delicate balance of caring and managing ministry
becomes imbalanced, how do we find our way back to the primacy of minis-
try? North American sports chaplain and author Roger Lipe captures the need
to revisit and re-think the role of the sports chaplain through the lens of the
shepherd in the following excerpt:

The present world of sport and much of sport ministry is characterized by
three primary weaknesses. 1) The prevalence of compartmentalized lives;
that is a lack of integrity. This is easily seen in situations like the fall of
coaches, players, and even prominent Christian athletes. 2) The horrible lie
of performance based identity. A player’s sense of personal worth may rise
or fall based upon his most recent performance on the field of competi-
tion. A coach’s sense of God’s pleasure with her may ride on her team’s
win/loss record. Even worse, a sport chaplain’s sense of his or her being
in God’s will can be shaped by the relative success or failure of the teams
being served. Each and all of these scenarios are emblematic of the terrible
lie that assaults the hearts of sports people.

(Lipe, 2013)

The genesis of reclaiming and reviving the shepherd for sports chaplains is to
revisit the personal call to this facet of ministry. Prayerfully seeking the will of
God about one’s calling into sports chaplaincy can be rejuvenating. It helps to
locate or re-locate where we are in ministry and understand why we remain
involved. Withstanding all of the entanglements and distractions of sport min-
istry it becomes relatively easy to lose focus and not hear the directive voice
of God clearly. Additionally, making sure that the call, ministry activity and

Reviving the shepherd in us 103

journey are anchored in Christ is equally important. As the apostle Paul wrote,
‘in him we live and move and have our being’ (Acts 17:28). Christ must be at
the very nexus of everything done in sport chaplaincy.

Second, a re-examination of the pastoral theology we bring into ministry is
essential. As we operationalize our pastoral theology as shepherds there must be
an on-going integration of our experiential location and theological reflection.
The continued transformation of the individual as a shepherd should be a by-
product of this integration. New insights and revelation about the shepherd-
ing aspect of sports chaplaincy should also emanate from this process. Neither
theology nor the shepherding (pastoral ministry) may function in isolation if
pastoral theology is understood correctly.

Third, a loving but critical examination of our personal practice of shepherd-
ing by respected and qualified peers and colleagues can be exceptionally useful
in helping us to re-engage and refocus properly. Proverbs 27:17 provides useful
insight into the value of others in this sub-field of ministry: ‘As iron sharpens iron,
and one person sharpens the wits of another’. Periodically, we miss some of the
intricacies related to sports chaplaincy that can be can detrimental to the people
we serve and the overarching ministry. Seeking wise counsel (Prov. 1:23; 20:18)
and truth from trusted colleagues about everyday working practices can help to
reinvigorate the individual and the specific ministry to which they are called.

Finally, having the ability to get fresh ideas from other shepherds can help
revive the spirit of the sports chaplain. Conferences, training seminars, profes-
sional development institutes, as well as a growing body of contextualized lit-
erature that integrates Bible, theology and reflective practice, continue to prove
useful in the professional and personal lives of sports chaplains. Moreover, tak-
ing advantage of opportunities to enhance one’s professional identity (Dzikus,
Waller and Hardin, 2012; Waller, Dzikus and Hardin, 2008, 2010; Waller et al.,
this volume) and elevate the field of practice through available professional
certification programmes will help the practice of shepherding.

But what if all of the aforementioned are not enough to re-calibrate the
ministry given to us? If the sports chaplain can no longer embrace the primacy
of the pastoral or shepherding role then should his or her ministry be permitted
to continue by the entity responsible for oversight? This raises further serious
questions about why the ministry exists at all and where it is heading. Perhaps
the crucifixion and subsequent resurrection of the ministry born after the name
of Jesus Christ is necessary to recreate it anew.

Crucifying and resurrecting the ministry
of sports chaplaincy

What happens when the sports chaplain loses focus and begins to drift from
his or her charge? What guiding, yet corrective action can be taken to re-
orient a ministry that becomes leader-focused as opposed to Christocentric
and people-focused? For as much emphasis we place on building ministries and
shepherding people, the stark reality is that our ministries are not redemptive
in their own right.

104 Steven N. Waller and Harold Cottom

In The Crucifixion of Ministry, Purves (2007) discusses two specific areas on
which we as shepherds need to concentrate. The first is conceiving ministry as
our own ministry and the second that ministry must be understood as a shar-
ing in the continuing ministry of Jesus Christ (Purves, 2007: 12). Periodically,
shepherds become so attached to their ministry and the pay-off (positive or
negative) they cannot see that their focus is displaced. In a pathological sense
when there is more ‘me’ than ‘thee’ in ministry, a level of caustic toxicity exists.
Subsequently, as Purves (2007: 13) elucidates, ‘all that we think we should do
and can do and are doing in ministry must be put to death . . . . Even when we
conduct them from the best spiritual, therapeutic and moral motives, they are
not redemptive. Only the ministry of Jesus is redemptive’.

Moreover, every now and then some have the propensity to develop a
‘messiah complex’. Essentially, we begin to feel that we must carry the burden
and solve all of the problems of those who we have been called to engage
and shepherd in ministry. We fail to realize that our ministry is a privilege and
that we are partakers of the ministry of Jesus Christ. The sometimes neces-
sary crucifixion of ministry is the prelude to our audacious confidence in
the power of the resurrection. We crucify it on two levels: (1) to self, letting
Christ’s ministry rule and abide, and (2) to the distractions that draw us away
from our primary call – caring for the souls of those we serve. God, with full
intentionality, will slay our ministries when we move away from the centre,
Jesus Christ. The joyful aspects of crucifying ministry are in finding an incar-
nate Christ and anticipating the power and presence of a resurrected Christ
at the very centre of a resurrected sport ministry. In this process, the chief
Shepherd rejuvenates and restores the ministry shepherd. The simple truth is
that we cannot enjoy a resurrected ministry unless we are willing to suffer the
painful death of the ministry.

In the follow up to The Crucifixion of Ministry, The Resurrection of Ministry,
Purves (2010) endeavours to show how living in the hope of Jesus’ resurrec-
tion can help those involved in pastoral ministry (regardless of the context),
subdue the mourning, discouragement and sense of regret that comes from a
slain ministry. In essence, Purves argues that God establishes our ministries on
their proper ground in the ministry of the resurrected and ascended Jesus, and
subsequently we minster in the joy and hope of life in Him. Through the power
of the Spirit we become inextricably joined together with Jesus, and we share
in both his resurrected life and his resurrected ministry. Invariably, the end can
be a new, relevant and exciting pastoral ministry anchored in sport that is re-
aligned with Christ at the very core. The renewed ministry becomes alive and
is permeated with Jesus’ ministry. The shepherd sees his responsibility clearly
through the eyes of the chief Shepherd and views the people and the ministry
he or she is steward over in a new light. The re-birth of ministry in the power
of Christ re-focuses and re-energizes those that are associated with the ministry.
From the vantage point of the shepherd, he or she can now stand steadfast in
the fulfilment of their duties, knowing that their sense of empowerment to care
for sheep has been renewed. Sports chaplains that are fuelled by resurrection

Reviving the shepherd in us 105

power can go about the work of shepherding with a new confidence in the
healing power of Christ working in and through them.

Conclusion

Sports chaplains in the twenty-first century are uniquely qualified to address
many of the issues with which people of sport are confronted. If we will lov-
ingly lead and go about the work of being ‘shepherds after God’s own heart’
that are led by him ( Jer. 3:15) and led by the caring, resurrected ministry of
Jesus, we can make a meaningful impact on the lives of the people of sport. If
we rely upon the work and office of the Holy Spirit ( John 14:25–6) to remind
us of the significant shepherding duties associated with such a role – sustaining,
guiding, healing and reconciling – we can make a tremendous difference.

Lipe (2013) eloquently and poignantly reminds us that the challenge to
those currently working in sports ministries globally is threefold: (1) to con-
duct ministry, regardless of the level or venue, with a Christ-centred heart, and
to fully integrate the presence and power of Christ in all of life: sport, ministry,
family, all of it; (2) to guard against a performance-based identity on multiple
levels; and (3) to make a meaningful difference in the lives of the people of
sport through the gospel in order to positively influence, teams, communities
and global society. For athletes and teams performances and results matter; for
sports chaplains pastoral and spiritual effectiveness is the goal, but neither is
the ultimate end. Medal counts, records and personal bests are great moments
in time; self-sustaining ministries that flourish represent the work of Christ
in the arena of sports, but salvation, growth in Christ that yields ‘good fruit’
(Matt. 7:17; Luke 13:6–8), and guarding the very souls of those in our charge
is everything.

Sports chaplains can protect their resurrected ministry by focusing on God in
their ministry, understanding and doing pastoral theology in a sporting context
and re-establishing a roadmap for their work. The great hope for sports chap-
lains, as shepherds and stewards of the sporting world, should not be rooted in
the success or experience of their ministries per se, but in the gospel message of
Jesus Christ.

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