Posted on 12/05/2011 11:54:58 AM PST by SeekAndFind
The question that forms the title of this post has been getting a good bit of play in conservative circles of late. It was hinted at in a segment of FOX and Friends on Friday that featured NFL Hall of Fame quarterback Fran Tarkenton. And it is the main focus of a column by National Review Online news editor Daniel Foster that appeared on Saturday.
“Tebowing,” should the term be unfamiliar, takes its name from another quarterback, current Denver Broncos play caller Tim Tebow. More specifically, the term designates the now-viral mockery of his habit of kneeling down and bowing his head after a touchdown to commune with his God.
As Foster writes with more than a hint of indignation, Tebowing his become an Internet phenomenon, with its own website, a Twitter account, and most recently a YouTube video titled “Tebowing for Dummies.” At such sites, Foster continues:
[Y]ou can see an act of communion with one’s creator rendered as a bit of pop-cultural ephemera, [complete with] pictures of folks striking the pose everywhere from Oxford to Istanbul, with that muddle of irony and enthusiasm that has become my generation’s trademark.
Foster’s obvious pique at these send-ups derives in part from the fact of Tebow’s wholesomeness (he is in Foster’s words “squeaky clean, in a sport that notoriously is not”). Wherein, Foster insists, lies the origins of Tebowing. It is, in short, “the power of Tebow’s evangelical-Christian faith, and the earnestness with which he professes it [that] seems to annoy so many people.”
I’m going to have toss out my red challenge flag here. Foster may be right that for some people, the problem isn’t Tebow’s religiosity but the fact that professional sports are “so filled with clichéd Jesus praise that” fans doubt his sincerity. But I submit that for many who prefer to spend their Sundays watching the exquisite choreography of a perfectly executed screen pass, the problem is Tebow’s self-absorption.
Tebow is free to give “mad respect” to his lord, but I’d rather he do it on his own time. A number of players cross themselves on every play, but they do it discreetly — and expeditiously. Tebow’s prayer timeouts, by contrast, are as gratuitously in-your-face as the most flagrant end zone dance. And they last as long. Yet, according to his supporters, all of footballdom is supposed to give him a pass because his purpose is holy. Isn’t that what churches are for?
Another, subtler, ingredient in the widespread antipathy toward Tebow is that he is an anomaly. His success as an NFL quarterback (he is 4 and 1 since replacing Kyle Orton at the helm of the Broncos offense) doesn’t make sense to diehard football fans. His passing numbers — he has a 45% completion rate — are awful. His team is winning through a combination of razzle-dazzle and offensive schemes that haven’t been used by college, let alone NFL, coaches in two decades.
I am predicting that “this too shall pass” (to cite a proverb that Tebow should appreciate because of its religious roots). Sooner or later all 31 remaining teams in the league will develop defensive strategies to counter Denver’s pre-Knute Rockne offense, and Tebow — and Tebowing — will be gone.
Mockery? Every time I’ve seen it, it’s been a sincere NFL player acknowledging the True Source of his athletic prowess.
"Dear Tim Tebow, You're welcome. Now shut up - I'm trying to watch the Packers game."
--God
Luke 9:26"For he that shall be ashamed of me and of my words, of him the Son of man shall be ashamed, when he shall come in his majesty and that of his Father and of the holy angels."
Nancy Pelosi and the CINO Dems would be proud!
“Tebow is free to give “mad respect” to his lord, but I’d rather he do it on his own time. A number of players cross themselves on every play, but they do it discreetly — and expeditiously. Tebow’s prayer timeouts, by contrast, are as gratuitously in-your-face as the most flagrant end zone dance. And they last as long. Yet, according to his supporters, all of footballdom is supposed to give him a pass because his purpose is holy. Isn’t that what churches are for?”
Hot Air is following the same path as Little Green Footballs and that Brock gay dude.
While I do admit there are real, concerted attacks from the left, sometimes we get too sensitive.
Let it go. It’s not coordinated. Take it as a compliment.
By the way, I am totally enjoying watching all of the experts be befuddled, and in some cases, irritated by Tim Tebow’s success. Since we don’t have NFL football in Cleveland, it’s one of the few bright spots in the season!
What an angry jerk. I couldn't stand Tebow when he beat my Jets but I respect him as a person and a player. Not this sour grapes creep.
Some gutless bastards can’t get enough just blaspheming God; they feel it is their responsibility to tell everyone else how to revere HIM.
How is Tebowing any different than planking?
I don’t care if they mock Tebow for this, he should continue to do as he wishes. Certainly I see no mocking of more deserving inane football celebrations.
I sincerely hope this secularist douche is getting it good from readers at HA.
Better title for this “article”:
Portnoy’s Complaint
(Howard Portnoy is the author. For our Freepers younger than 50, Google “Portnoy’s Complaint”)
Totally agree.
Updated:
The Broncos have won five in a row and are 6-1 with this guy — tied for first in the AFC West with Oakland.
This is one angry and spiteful person.
And then Tebow will find another way to beat them.
Here is the writer’s twitter account.
http://twitter.com/#!/howardportnoy
He is a NYU grad who writes about restaurants in NY.
Bwahahahaha!
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