Two years ago I wrote about Arian Foster, a star running back for the Houston Texans football team, and discussed some advice he had written (and published) for his daughter. The telling item in “Six things I’ll try to teach my daughter” was the last:
6. The flying spaghetti monster. There are billions of people on Earth with hundreds of religions and sects that trickle off each other. I will never tell her what to believe in. I know parents are very influential on kids’ spiritual beliefs and that can be a positive or negative thing. I can give her a basic understanding of religions when she starts showing interest and asking questions. But I will remain silent otherwise. How can I make a young mind believe this is the truth for them when they don’t yet have the capacity nor the cognitive desire to delve into something like this? If she shows interest I would advise her to fully investigate a religion and see if it fits her. And if she chooses none of the above, I’ll be fine with that as well. The values I instill in her should guide her to her decision. What’s most important, I believe, is to support her decision no matter what.
Well, that was a clue to Foster’s beliefs, but he’s now made them far more explicit. That is, he’s just come out as an atheist. And although he won’t use that word explicitly (he says his model is Neil deGrasse Tyson), he still avers that he doesn’t believe in God. This is important because he’s the first active professional athlete in the US to openly profess nonbelief. Given the importance of sports in this country, and the pervasive religiosity of Americans (and athletes!), this is not only a brave admission, but an important one—especially because he plays for a team in deeply religious Texas.
This headline from the sports site ESPN, however, gives a clue about what it means to admit atheism in the U.S. (Click on the headline to go to the story, and do watch the video at the link.)
In other words, it’s a “confession”. Does one “confess” to being a Democrat or a Republican? This wouldn’t be the headline, I think, if a French soccer player said similar things.
Another sign of the importance of this move is that the ESPN article is very long, discussing his beliefs, the reason he abandoned faith, and the possible implications of the “confession” for his relationship with his fellow players. This is big news. I’ll give just a few excerpts from the piece, starting with this:
“This is unprecedented,” says Todd Stiefel, chair of Openly Secular. “He is the first active professional athlete, let alone star, to ever stand up in support of gaining respect for secular Americans.”
To me this represents yet another move forward in the un-demonization of atheists in America. The more often people like Foster stand up and profess nonbelief, the greater impetus it gives others to follow—and the more it shows people that we atheists aren’t minions of Satan, but simply normal people who can’t bring themselves to embrace superstition.
A few other excerpts (emphasis is mine):
Arian Foster, 28, has spent his entire public football career — in college at Tennessee, in the NFL with the Texans — in the Bible Belt. Playing in the sport that most closely aligns itself with religion, in which God and country are both industry and packaging, in which the pregame flyover blends with the postgame prayer, Foster does not believe in God.
“Everybody always says the same thing: You have to have faith,” he says. “That’s my whole thing: Faith isn’t enough for me. For people who are struggling with that, they’re nervous about telling their families or afraid of the backlash … man, don’t be afraid to be you. I was, for years.”
. . . he recently decided to become a public face of the nonreligious. Moved by the testimonials of celebrity atheists like comedian Bill Maher and magicians Penn and Teller, Foster has joined a national campaign by the nonprofit group Openly Secular, which plans to use his story to increase awareness and acceptance of nonbelievers, especially in sports. The organization initially approached ESPN about Foster’s willingness to share his story, but ESPN subsequently dealt directly with Foster, and Openly Secular had no involvement.
What I really like about Foster’s “deconversion” was his respect for and emphasis on science—in other words, he privileged fact over faith:
Foster stops short of calling himself an atheist, not because he isn’t — his language is the language of the atheist — but because someday he might not be. “I have an open mind,” he says. “I’m not a picket-sign atheist. I just want to be a happy human being and continue to learn.” He also has a visceral dislike of labels. (On June 28 he tweeted, “hop in the uber and the driver immediately turns it to the rap station. he’s absolutely correct, but don’t judge me, yo.”) “If I tell you I’m a Republican, your mind immediately starts telling you all the things I must believe,” he says. “Same with the word ‘atheist,’ and I don’t like people making assumptions about me. Neil deGrasse Tyson said any time you attach yourself to a group or an ‘-ist,’ you get all the stereotypical baggage with it. I’m not going to picket the White House lawn to get atheists a voice in Congress. But I have questions and concerns on our origins as human beings, and the best way to go about that is through science.
“There’s no dogma in science itself. Scientists? Yeah, any human can have an ego, but if you take the human beings out of it, there’s no ego in science itself. It’s built on ‘prove me wrong.’ But religion can be like, ‘We’re right, and if you’re not in the boat, you’re going to hell.'”
Well said! Given that he’s a thoughtful man who’s pondered the issues for years, as well as having read the Bible and the Qur’an in an attempt to buttress his wavering faith, it’s demeaning and invidious, then, for ESPN to add this paragraph to its report:
IS THIS CASUAL rebellion? Does he provoke for a greater good or simply his own amusement? Is he somehow the conscience of a generation of athletes, the only one willing to say the things the ominous Sword of Pepsi has made virtually extinct? Or is he speaking to an entirely different audience, a counterculture that appreciates a man who stands on the sideline and sees the NFL’s embrace of the military-industrial complex as “the commercialization of everything — just symbolism, man, and it gets people pumped up and feeling good and takes everything to an extreme”?
If you read the article, you’ll find not the slightest indication that Foster’s doing this for “his own amusement”. What does he have to gain from admitting atheism as a football player in Texas? He’ll experience little positive reinforcement, and probably much opprobrium, from a league whose players often genuflect or give credit to God when they succeed—a league in which quarterback Tim Tebow would not only wear Bible verses on the black patches under his eyes, but drop to his knees and give thanks to God after throwing a touchdown. Tebow was much admired for that.
No, I believe that—especially given his advice of several years ago—Foster is absolutely sincere. And thank Ceiling Cat for his bravery and honesty. He’s got a hard road to travel.
Foster and his daughter:
h/t: Bernard
I don;t watch American football. But I might just tune in once to see Foster play.
Kudos for this as well; Arian thought college should be an adventure that demands adaptability and invites discomfort.
Thank you so much for this. I am a huge Jets fan, but I think my new favorite NFL player plays for a different team.
Very poignant, and thoughtful.
As you may all know by now, a 4th Bangladesh blogger was just killed by machetes, in his home this time, by islamists. As all the rest, the police accused the victim, wanted him to ‘protect himself’. It takes courage to be an atheist in some environments, and Foster is a welcome example on this day.
Oh, and cute family! I’m sure The-Daughter-In-Chief signs “for this, I want three ice creams”.
A 4th atheist blogger, and this year, naturally.
Would look forward to the day, a long time into the future, when this does not make headlines. But sadly today, it is a big deal and we are not likely to see it again soon.
Do not agree that this sport is the most religious but would be a close second to nascar in that regard. If they could hold their races inside a church they would do it.
100% correct about NASCAR.
The openness of religion in that sport is totally unrivaled. I went to a race once and a U.S. Navy chaplain lead the entire crowd in an organized and expressly Christian prayer.
The Minnesota Vikings player Chris Kluwe was very outspoken in favor of SSM in MN, and came “out” as an agnostic/atheist after he was cut by the Vikings. (He apparently doesn’t like the term “atheist”.)
On my first visit to Canada some years ago I went to a rodeo where there were several announcements inviting spectators to join the riders at the Christian cowboys service next morning. Destroyed my image of cowboys somewhat.
I would argue that baseball is currently #2 in annoying religiosity behind nascar. Have you watched any games recently? Players cross themselves and/or point skyward before they hit, while they hit, and after getting on base. Pitchers openly pray before starting each inning. Players kneel and point skyward every chance they get. I swear they are going to setup altars behind home plate pretty soon.
At which point someone will have to implement NOMA and bowdlerise all Steve Gould’s books by taking all the baseball references out… 😉
cr
Spanish League soccer, too.
If a footballer in the UK “came out” as atheist, the response, if any, would be along the lines of “who asked?”. Most of them only seem to worship their big headphones though.
In Britain the headline would be if a footballer came out as a christian.
Wayne Rooney is said to be a devout RC, and to pray before each game.
On the other hand, hard man Joey Barton has said he is a non-believer, has joined the National Secular Society, and has said that all religious instruction in schools should be banned. And the general reaction has been…big deal. Nothing resembling the ESPN comments about Foster.
The biggest stars in the Barclay’s are more akin to NBA players in the U.S. than NFL players. It’s a very different culture.
An NBA player whom actually played in a regular season NBA game after he came out of the closet wasn’t nearly as big a headline as Michael Sam, who never played a down in official NFL game.
“Does he provoke…”
Provoke?
I noticed that too.
I don’t have a pilot’s license, am I provoking those who do?
I just became a Houston Texans fan! I wish that everyone thought like him: “How can I make a young mind believe this is the truth …..when they don’t yet have the capacity nor the cognitive desire to delve into something like this?” Very well said.
As a huge sports fan, I was actually in the middle of recording a podcast about the upcoming football seasons (both the European and American varieties) when this story broke, I realize I might have a skewed perspective on this, but it’s hard for me not to interpret this as a watershed moment for non-believers in America.
Other than maybe a NASCAR driver, an active NFL player has the most to lose by coming out as an atheist and Foster is a top tier player at a very high-profile position. He’s risking far more in potentially lost endorsements than a seldom used back-up or anonymous lineman. In that league, offensive skill position players, which is what Foster is, are generally the stars.
There were some things in the ESPN article I found troubling, no, there is no such thing as an atheist fundamentalist, but overall the piece was far more fair and objective than I would’ve expected from ESPN or the sporting press in general, for whom I set the bar very, very low and am still routinely disappointed.
Oh boy! I just heard that Foster was severely injured and will miss a good portion if not all of the season! God’s will? 🙂
This is not good. The goddies likely WILL attribute this to supernatural retribution. The injury, a torn groin ligament, is severe. He might quite likely be done for awhile, if not for good, as far as Grid is concerned.
As a Texans fan, I’m pleased no end. I didn’t know.
A quick check in the comments sections of some of the other sports sites re-covering ESPN’s coverage shows most are supportive of Foster. There’s the predictable comments that he will, of course, burn in hell and that his injuries are likely god’s revenge, but all-in-all a lot of atheist support and even some goodwill from believers.
As Mark points out in #10, Foster is scheduled for groin-injury surgery and will be out for most of the up-coming season.
Only just noticed that his first name is Arian.
This must mean he believes that God and Jesus are of a like non-existent substance, rather than of the same non-existent substance.
No, it means he was born in late March, early April.:-)
I saw this story somewhere else yesterday – the version I read sneered at the announcement throughout. For example, at the mention of Penn and Teller, it commented that only one of them spoke publicly. The whole thing was really irritating.
I think that’s consubstantially wrong…
/@
There must be a brand of religious butter that can be purchased at stores every where for those inclined to spread it on real deep. Made myself watch a few minutes of that republican thing last night and it was high boots and over-shoes time as the butter spread all over. Looked more like a campaign for town drunk.
I’m waiting to see the lowlights of that ‘debate’.
My brother was staying with a Jewish friend in New York and used his butter to make a sandwich. The friend was pretty upset about it when he got home because it meant he couldn’t use the butter himself. So apparently religious butter is a real thing. My brother was completely bemused by the whole thing. (Yes, I know there are kosher foods and foods that can’t be eaten together etc if you’re an observant Jew.)
Food goes very deep. Perhaps food holds the impetus of the first religions. It seems it does…pork and shellfish come to mind. Myths and memes the same are strange. Something catches on. Religions must stop dictating food. Another skill where there adeptness is like a leaf on a high wire.
“their adeptness”…I will never get an A in grammar.
What annoying bullshit.
I don’t get it. Is it because the butter touched some other food?
He does have a hard road to travel given the number of NFL players who seem to think God watches every game and takes sides. Assuming they’re right, God is obviously malevolent, a huge Vikings fan, and hates the Bears. If will be interesting to see if ESPN pays as much attention to his atheism as they did to Tebow’s superstitions.
An older meaning of the word “confession” is simply an avowal of one’s beliefs as in “confession of faith” (the Lutheran Augsburg Confession for example).
There is also simple autobiography as in “The Confessions of Jean-Jacques Rousseau” [or Lindsey Lohan’s song “Confessions of a Broken Heart (Daughter to Father)” if I may move from highbrow to lowbrow]),
So sure in both those senses you can call this a “confession”, and even be a confessing Democrat.
I normally avoid posting inline links with avatar to videos on this site, but I think I would like to make an exception here.
With due respect to Foster’s desire to avoid the label “atheist” (my position is exactly the same as his on this), I post this
“If Football players were atheists”
“This lower case ‘t'”…that was good.
Post Game Press Conference
+1
Chris Kluwe was openly agnostic when playing for the Raiders: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2013/08/07/chris-kluwe-to-speak-at-american-atheists-convention/
Kluwe was also an advocate for LGBT rights that landed him in hot water. He’s also a well spoken, thoughtful football player.
I think this is huge for two reasons: In general, US football has a deeply ingrained religious (Christian) tie going back decades. Jerry has highlighted some of the High School football examples of crossing the church/state line in the past. Secondly, due to the pure statistically probabilities of play outcomes, and the natural tendency of the human mind to connect cause and effect, sports players tend to be more superstitious then the general public. Full disclosure; when I played US baseball in school, I would switch bats if I hit two foul balls in a row (didn’t change my batting average). I truly think that a first rate player like Foster coming out, could very well set a trend.
Andrew Bogut, star center for the NBA champion Golden State Warriors, has been an out atheist for a long time. But he’s a native Australian, so perhaps he doesn’t count.
Take it from a NZer, Australians don’t count, especially when it comes to sports. 🙂
Every Kiwi is enjoying your latest cricket “achievement” Australia, alongside the English! 🙂
Roll on tonight (Saturday). The All Blacks are in fine form, as usual. 🙂
Is All Blacks a common term for all NZ national sports teams? I thought it was just the rugby team.
Speaking of, US vs NZ rugby is September 5th, Soldier field. If I knew anything about rugby I’d go.
If I were anywhere near Chicago, I’d go.
If I were a betting man, I’d wager that the popularity of Rugby as a spectator sport in the US will increase in the near future as the popularity of soccer and lacrosse as spectator sports has increased over the last few years, relatively speaking, of course.
7s rugby is in the Olympics now, which has made it more popular. It’s really exciting. The US has a fairly good 7s team too, which is improving all the time.
Women’s rugby is already a popular women’s sport in the US at the college level. It’s kind of like how baseball (rounders) is a popular women’s sport in the UK.
The All Blacks is the rugby team – NZ vs Australia tonight (it’s Saturday here already).
All national sports teams have similar nomenclature: hockey- Black Sticks; women’s rugby – Black Ferns; wheelchair rugby – Wheel Blacks; Netball – Silver Ferns; Basketball men – Tall Blacks; Basketball women – Tall Ferns; Soccer – All Whites; cricket men – Black Caps; cricket women – White Ferns; Softball men – Black Sox;softball women – White Sox; Surf Life Saving – Black Fins; Ice Hockey men – Ice Blacks; Ice hockey women – Ice Fernz etc.
Thanks.
These are the kinds of things I need to keep on top of if I am to retain my giant sports nerd status.
Hint of sarcasm, or recognition of a fellow nerd? 🙂
100% recognition of a fellow nerd. I do a sports-talk podcast as a hobby.
“Tall Black” — Love it!
/@
+s
Probably a stupid question–but why the “black” in the first place?
I’d always thought it was because they play in a all-black strip – shirt, short and socks. (Presumably because no-one else did.)
/@
I think that’s correct (and that’s about 500% more knowledge of r*gby than I ever wanted to know). It has nothing to do with the ethnic make-up of the team, as might be assumed from the name.
cr
“strip?”
I suppose there are no All Lavenders then.
A quaint britishism. See Wiktionary, etymology 1, sense 7.
/@
I assumed as much, thanks to the handy context you provided.
It’s a New Zealand rugby team and I can’t stand the overhyped bastards. Black this, black that, every sporting thing’s gotta be ‘black’.
New Zealand just has one religion and that’s sport. Half the ‘news’ (not the sports news, which follows afterwards, but the regular so-called ‘news’) is taken up with who did what to who in some rugby game or other. A huge number of people act as if it actually matters who won what.
[/rant]
cr
You laugh now Kiwi, but we’ll get our revenge, even if we have to bowl under-arm to do it!
Bah! Let’s see yous play hockey! Actually, I think the All Blacks did once and there was video. Eg at least did the Haka on ice anyway.
Well, he is probably the most famous American athlete to “come out” as an atheist (and it’s a bigger deal in American football than in most other sports, certainly), but he is not the “first” to come out. Along with Chris Kluwe’s avowed agnosticism and outspoken support for very progressive movements there are, to name a few American athletes who were avowed atheists while still active: Diana Nyad (long-distance swimmer), Lance Armstrong (bicyclist/doper), Frank Mir (MMA fighting), Alex Honnold (free climbing), CM Punk (pro wrestling, which, yeah, is more an “entertainment” than a sport, but still . . .). And there was Pat Tillman (American football), who was quite famously an out atheist when active as an athlete, come to think of it (and who quit the sport at the height of his fame to join the military after 9/11, being killed by apparently friendly fire later while serving in the special forces in Afghanistan). I suppose Foster’s coming out has caught so much attention because he is making a point of advertising his stance quite strongly, rather than for his being “first”, per se.
I’ve found it interesting that my own favorite sport, ice hockey, is almost completely devoid of open religiosity. You almost never hear players attribute victories to God, or see religious actions during goal celebrations, etc. There are openly religious players, of course, but they rarely display their beliefs on the ice or in interviews. I wonder if this is because such a large percentage of players are from Canada and Europe, where religious sentiment is less pronounced than in America. I suppose it may also have something to do with the sport’s preferred image/ethos as a sort of blue-collar, humble, team-before-self sort of endeavor, but I’m sure country of origin plays a role.
I was going to mention CM PUNK too (I’m an MMA fan).
Recently there was a public brouhaha over the remarks of a winning MMA fighter from Brazil, Yoel Romero, after winning a fight.
It was right after the vote for gay marriage and Romero took the mic to seemingly castigate America, saying “what happened to you USA” “Go for Jesus” “Don’t forget Jesus.”
There was quite a bit of commentary about those remarks, and about fighters in general thanking God in the UFC octagon.
CM Punk, a famous Pro Wrestler from the WWE who is going to make his debut in MMA in the UFC, was asked about his view on fighters thanking God (he’d made a sly tweet in reference to Romero’s comments).
CM Punk is a smart, articulate guy and stated in the video interview plainly that he was an atheist, and also that he was for free speech, but that he thought people should thank their coaches, not God. And that fighters should be free to talk about their religion and he is free to make fun of it. Snippets of the interview here:
http://www.mixedmartialarts.com/news/453174/CM-Punk-Thank-your-coach-not-Jesus/
I was pretty shocked and pleased to actually see such a big name state so plainly he was an atheist. So refreshing after hearing so many fighters thank Jesus in the ring (which brings much eye-rolling among the crowd who watch the UFC at my house – I don’t think religious fighters are doing their religion any favors given the context).
I believe Jesse Ventura is also atheist.
I just posted a comment about Kluwe below, along with Ted Williams and Pat Tillman. Perhaps Foster is the best known current athlete, but he’s not the first.
And in fact I think, a few decades ago, it wouldn’t have made news because it wasn’t considered so outré. There really was a time in the US, not that long ago, when we were FAR more liberal and accepting.
Okay, we all need to buy a Foster jersey. Let capitalism rule.
This is really refreshing to see! Though I’m almost positive that within a week, I’ll be seeing outraged emails and/or Facebook posts from my wingnut relatives. They’ll probably be contrasting Foster with Tebow, who they think was persecuted, and throw in a “we have to take our country back.”
Reblogged this on dyke writer and commented:
it is sad that declaring yourself a responsible adult is a danger to one’s career
I’m not a sports ball fan but huzzah for the atheist!
I think a Chris Kluwe qualifies as a previous athlete, he spoke at an atheist convention though he calls himself agnostic.
Going back further, Ted Williams , a man who many still say was the greatest hitter who ever lived was an atheist, and a war hero to boot (so much for no atheists in foxholes). Also, Pat Tillman, the NFL player who quit to fight the Afghanistan war after 9/11, and was killed by friendly fire was openly atheist.
Here’s an old article I commented on a few years ago; you’ll see the “football-connection” at the end! Sorry if it’s too long.
From “2theadvocate”- Baton Rouge, La. 7/24/2010
(My comments in parentheses)
SCHOOL BOARD MIGHT OK TEACHING CREATIONISM
LIVINGSTON, LA.- The Livingston Parrish School Board will begin exploring the possibility of incorporating the teaching of “creationism” in the public school system’s science classes.
During the Board meeting Thursday, several Board members expressed an interest in the teaching of creationism as an alternative to the theory of evolution, in Livingston Parrish public school classrooms.
The discussion came up during a report on the pupil progression plan for the 2010-2011 school year, delivered by Jan Benton, director of curriculum.
Benton said that under provisions of the Science Education Act enacted last year by the Louisiana legislature, schools can present what she called “critical thinking and creationism” in science classes. (Shows where she’s at- putting “critical thinking” and “creationism” in the same sentence.)
Board member David Tate quickly responded, “We let them teach evolution to our children, but I think all of us sitting up here on this School Board believe in creationism. Why can’t we get someone with religious beliefs to teach creationism?” (Let’s see- instruction by a religious authority in a state-sponsored school- hmmm.)
Fellow Board member Clint Mitchell responded, “I agree…you don’t have to be afraid to point out some of the fallacies with the theory of evolution. Teachers should have the freedom to look at creationism and find a way to get it into the classroom.” (Fallacies: facts that oppose what you believe: “Creationism”, of course, is without fallacies. All teachers would be eager to push this “new” idea, if they just get the chance to look at it- QUESTION: Why isn’t it called “The theory of creationism?”)
Board President Keith Martin, while reminding the members that a decision had been made in the past not to teach creationism, suggested that now might be the time to re-examine the issue. (Now is the time because… the world’s ending in 2012 ?; Jesus may be coming at any time?; or we’d better act before we lose what little credibility we have?)
Martin said that one problem with the teaching of creationism versus evolution is that “You don’t want two different teachers teaching two different things.” (So one’s gotta go, you see?)
Martin, noting that discipline of young people is constantly becoming more of a challenge for parents and teachers, agreed. “Maybe it’s time we take a look at this.” (I’m trying to understand why the teaching of creationism would improve discipline- will there be a section devoted to hellfire and damnation?)
When Martin suggested the Board appoint a committee to study the possibility of introducing creationism into the classroom, his opinion met with general, if unofficial approval.
(The committee will be Jan, David, and Clint; they will meet after Bible study. Don’t they need an official motion on this? )
“We shouldn’t jump into this thing, but we need to take a look at it,” Martin said. “The American Civil Liberties Union and even some of our principals would not be pleased with us, but we shouldn’t worry about the ACLU. It’s more important that we do the correct thing for the children we educate.” (The “correct” thing would be for you all to resign, immediately.)
The Board then unanimously endorsed Benton’s progression plan. (NOTE: The Board also approved spending between $700 and $900,000 refurbishing the football field at Denhem Springs High School. (Praise Jesus! Hut one! Hut two!)
sub
The article has a very obnoxious ending:
“The question will be asked: “How could God allow such a thing?” And God’s mysterious ways will once again be invoked. The congregants of the church will draw strength from their faith and express their truth through words of forgiveness for the shooter. At the time the murders occur, Foster will be in an auditorium in Houston, listening to Neil deGrasse Tyson give a lecture on the cosmos, an entirely different set of mysteries, equally unknowable.”
Equally unknowable? Really?
So he’s got an alibi. Just as well.
(Maybe the author of the article didn’t mean it that way, but it struck me as a bizarre juxtaposition to make).
cr
To Understand Religion, Think Football
/@