Religious Athletes: Top Ten Prayerful Players

For the love of the game, or the love of the Lord?

While sports may be religion for some spectators, the athletes who play them often submit to a higher power.

Tim Tebow's miraculous overtime victory with the Denver Broncos in the AFC Wild Card game brings to mind a holy host of faithful players in recent sports history.

Comments

[Rogerio Penna]

12:28 AM on 05/08/2012

these are the top religious athletes in the US, but you guys should check out some christian soccer players, like Kaka...

[Aaron Gillego]

03:21 AM on 03/23/2012

This is yet another stupid list without real criteria. I would argue Manny Pacquiao should top this list. His accomplishments are far greater than Tebow's and his faith as a devout Catholic is unmistakable, especially since as an elected Congressman in the Philippines he legislates his faith. Just this past year, he voted against and was publicly outspoken against the Reproductive Health bill in the Philippines which would have provided for access to birth control. Pacquiao sided with the Catholic Church on the issue.

[dobieman0488]

02:11 AM on 01/22/2012

Drew Brees is a Christian

[bridgeman]

10:04 PM on 01/19/2012

Fail...

[gclafontaine]

04:17 PM on 01/19/2012

I went to a Lutheran college and played on the baseball team. We always had a pre-game prayer. This was all new to me, coming from a very non-religious background. When our coach called us together for the first prayer of the season my freshman year, I was shocked when the captain actually included in the prayer the request for us to win. As time went on, and other players were chosen to give the prayer, though, I realized that that was actually the norm. I don't know if people did this just to conform to the precedent set by the captain or if they really believed that our winning was something worth praying for. When it was my turn, though, I left that part out.

[reciprocat]

01:37 PM on 01/19/2012

Ummmm....what makes these athletes the "top Ten Prayerful"?

[Tolerant]

07:49 AM on 01/13/2012

Interesting read:

"What if Tim Tebow were a Muslim", at http://www.salon.com/2012/01/12/what_if_tim_tebow_were_muslim/singleton/

[Ron Weaver]

08:58 PM on 01/31/2012

He wouldn't be the second coming of christ that's for sure.

[Cody Harding]

09:13 PM on 01/12/2012

Muhammad Ali and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar didn't go to all fours and touch their head to the ground after a victory.

Tiger Woods and Sandy Koufax didn't shill for an organization that defended a man who gunned down a doctor in a church.

The Williams Sisters and Demitriy Salita don't use their position to prosthelytize their religions in front of millions of people who really could care less. Nor do they try to focus on their scores as 'Biblical signs'.

[yankees]

08:03 PM on 01/12/2012

Anybody that watches a fair amount of Baseball games will see players crossing themselves before
setting into the batters box, nothing said on them.
Muslim athletes, I guess most of your HP readers are to young to remember Ali and Jabbar and their views?
There is nothing wrong to pray, praise or make religious symbols in the pursuit of a game. People who have never played professional or amateur sports don't understand that Athletes are some of the most superstitious people in the world!!!! WHATEVER WORKS!

[wolfdancer]

07:03 PM on 01/12/2012

Can we please stop with the 3:16?

Here is the other side of the coin with Tebow's 2011 statistics:

6 lost fumbles
6 interceptions
33 sacks (3+3=6)

666 - what does that tell you?

[reciprocat]

01:33 PM on 01/19/2012

Turn it up side down and you get 9-9-9! Tebow is channeling Cain!!

[farmilyman]

02:59 PM on 01/12/2012

Show boating doesn't make someone more religious than the next one.

[evansrc717]

12:15 PM on 01/12/2012

The problem with Tebow is not his religion...that's what the Fox news watchers would want you to believe. People don't care how much anyone loves Jesus. Faith like love should remain a private affair. Tebow can love Jesus- there are plenty of athletics that also love Jesus and maybe as much as Tebow does- if you recall a guy name Reggie White who was also an ordained minister. But just by professing to the world through symbolic Christian gestures and shouting to people that your a follower of Christ doesn't make you a better Christian than someone else.

[DeuxExMachina]

08:13 PM on 01/13/2012

"Faith like love should remain a private affair."
Like the word "Christmas" and related greetings should be relegated to the background as well??? Pseudo-liberals like yourself, claiming moral superiority, don't only want religion made private but removed both from the public domain and histrory as well.
If Jesus kept His mission private, He would not have gathered the Apostles and His disciples together to spread the Word. If the Apostles and disciples, post-Pentacost, didn't go out and preach in Jerusalem and the cities of the Roman Empire, there would be no Christianity today..
Sports managers, trainers, psychologists all know that half the success in a game is owing to a good mental approachby the various team members. If Tim Tebow finds it a comfort to pray before a match and he thinks it helps his performance then why not. The further benefit is that his example can perhaps encourage fellow Christian believers and make others more aware of Christianity,and perhaps look into it.
cont...

[DeuxExMachina]

08:13 PM on 01/13/2012

cont...
In addition, religious conviction amongst atheletes is nothing new. See the great movie, "Chariots of Fire" which is based on real people and events. Eric Liddell, while boarding the boat to Paris for the Olympics learns the news that the heat for his 100 metre race will be on a Sunday. He refuses to run the race because his Christian convictions prevent him from running on the Sabbath. His religious convictions made headlines around the world at the time. Because of collegiality among team members his teammate, Lord Andrew Lindsay. yields his place in the 400 metre race on the following Thursday to Lidell who wins gold.

[evansrc717]

09:18 PM on 01/13/2012

I appreciate the well thought out reply; you make some valid points-I don't agree with them at all because I really am an agnostic yet freedom loving Liberal who really could care less if Tebow says Jesus in his interviews or even puts the John 3:16 on his eye liner. The question of who is claiming moral superiority is pretty clear to me. To know this all you have to do is change Tebow's religion- say instead of professing a faith in Jesus Christ he touted the greatness of Allah or the wonders of being Buddhist during after game press conferences- I wonder what your opinion would be then be of Tebow- if not the same- then I think you know the real truth about moral superiority.

[NUS2ME]

11:01 AM on 01/12/2012

I would like to say that all the people who are against Tim Tebow and do not believe he has a right to Pray, then I suggest you turn off the games he plays in and change channels. Maybe watch some TV programs that depict blood, violence and openly murdering innocent people. If this is your cup of tea then by no means should you be compelled to watch Mr Tebow.

[wolfdancer]

05:33 PM on 01/12/2012

blood, violence and murder... wait a minute. Isn't that the NFL?

[richdibo]

04:15 AM on 01/12/2012

I just love reading a Fluff Huff Post "Top 10 List". You can always expect that they are well researched and . . . . - ACCURATE!

[Keith Cozart]

01:39 PM on 01/19/2012

LOL almost as funny as the SEVEN things you should be wasting your time on

[Debbie338]

04:51 PM on 01/11/2012

What's truly interesting is that it is ONLY the Christian athletes who make their show of faith public during their sports competitions. The others all do it privately.

[shirlcare]

08:56 PM on 01/11/2012

Frederick (Oumar) Kanoute is a Muslim who plays International football, aka soccer. He is outward with whom he worships. Some players are more demonstrative than others, depending upon their zeal and enthusiasm for their faith…Some point their fingers in the air after a touchdown, and others are vocal; such as Tebow. He is also a quarterback, and the spotlight is more on him. Furthermore, some fans shout from the top of their lungs at a sporting event, while others are more docile…Different strokes, for different folks...IF it doesn’t violate anyone, but shows something positive, why not? Whether one faith does it more expressively than another is irrelevant. The reverence and appreciate for the Spirit is just being outwardly expressed. I am SO glad that we are able to express oneself openly, as far as faith is concerned. We do it with everything else-tattoos, t-shirts, bumper stickers, beer, Politics, cars, bars, gambling, parties, tail-gating, clubs, etc. So why does faith have to be offensive?

[Debbie338]

01:42 AM on 01/12/2012

Faith is offensive when people attempt to make it law, which is the case with many Christians in the U.S.

A Muslim being demonstrative anywhere outside the U.S. might be tolerated. But, I can guarantee you that if any Muslim football player in America got down and bowed to Allah after a pass, his house would be firebombed.

[sweethonesty7787]

11:39 AM on 01/12/2012

If I followed a false god instead of Christ Jesus, I would probably practice my faith privately, as well.

[John Shuck]

06:39 PM on 01/26/2012

Aren't you supposed to put a comma in there when you reverse the names? As in, Christ, Jesus. And you wouldn't practice it privately because your perception is that your faith is the correct faith no matter what it is. There are plenty of believers of other religions just like you.