Religion and Sports in Historical Perspectives

3 credits · Divinity School

The relationship between religions and sports has been complicated. Judging from the overtly religious elements in the ancient Greek Olympic games, one may conclude that religion and sports enjoyed a life-giving mutuality; however, judging from the languages of prohibition among the descendants of Calvinistic and Anabaptist Protestants, one may conclude that religion and sports were adversarial to each other’s flourishing. This course will survey the various ways world religions, particularly ancient Greek religions, Hinduism, Islam, and Christianity have sought to articulate their perspective on sports. Attention will be given to such factors as race, gender, adolescence, and politics as well as to the phenomenon of Sports as Religion. [3]