In Praise of God
Sport as Worship in the Practice and Self-Understanding of Elite Athletes
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4313992 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Robert Ellis (0000-0001-6305-2121), Robert J Ellis (0000-0002-3590-614X, University of Oxford, corresponding author), J Stuart Weir (Verité Sport, Oxford OX2 7YP, UK) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 11 |
| Issue | 12 |
| Pages | 677 |
| Publication date | 2020-12-17 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religions (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/rel11120677 |
| OpenAlex | W3110920681 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 4 |
| References cited | 6 |
The relationships between sport and religion have been examined from a number of perspectives, and parallels between sporting activity and worship are often observed, positively or negatively. Elite sports participants often perform religious gestures and many speak of their sporting performance in terms of their religious faith, including the assertion that it constitutes an act of worship. The authors begin by considering the nature of Christian worship, examining worship as a phenomenon, key biblical and theological ideas, the relationship of worship to sacred places and times, and the relation of worship to everyday life. The self-understanding of elite athletes of faith is then considered, as articulated in interviews collected over several years with one of the authors and in other published statements. This data is then mapped back on to the previously considered ideas of worship. The article suggests that, while the correspondence may not be complete or exact, there is good reason to take seriously the claims of elite athletes of faith that their sporting performance should be regarded as an act of worship
Aesthetics · Athletes · Elite · Epistemology · Faith · Parallels · Political science · Politics · Praise · Sociology · Theology · Worship · Doping in Sports · Law · Medicine · Philosophy · Psychology · Religion and Society Interactions · Social Psychology · Sports, Gender, and Society
| Unique citing works | 4 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2022 - 2025 (4) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 4 |