Is sports practice a sin?

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I thought about this and want an answer so I might be at peace with it. Is sports practice a sin?
 
coolcatholicguy said:
I thought about this and want an answer so I might be at peace with it. Is sports practice a sin?
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:confused: As long as it’s not done when you’re supposed to be at Mass, or when you’re supposed to be fulfilling other duties of your state in life, why would it be?
 
Yes, why would it be? I’d be curious to know what prompted you to ask if sports practice is a sin. And why “practice”, specifically, as opposed to an actual game? I’m a bit baffled.
 
Pregustator said:
Yes, why would it be? I’d be curious to know what prompted you to ask if sports practice is a sin. And why “practice”, specifically, as opposed to an actual game? I’m a bit baffled.
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coolcatholicguy has a lot of questions about what constitutes a sin.

I agree with the above. There is nothing inherently sinful about sports practice (provided, of course, that the sport itself is not inherently sinful ;)).
 
I would think practicing your sport would actually teach you discipline and responsibility.
 
It is certainly not “un-Catholic” to say that sports are sinful; one of the Doctors of the Church, St Peter Damian taught that competative sports such as Chess have evil effects on society.

Although there is no official teaching against sports in general; it is not necessarily bad to feel that they are a waste of time.
 
Well, it certainly isn’t “Catholic” to suggest that intrinsically-neutral things, like sports, are sinful or even can be. Puritan, maybe. But not Catholic.

Of course sports aren’t sinful; I’ve never heard anything so nonsensical. For heaven’s sake, even Lefebvrist seminarians play sports at their seminaries, and they’re about as close to being Puritans as Catholics can be.

Chess, incidentally, is hardly my idea of a “sport”. :rolleyes:
 
Pregustator said:
Well, it certainly isn’t “Catholic” to suggest that intrinsically-neutral things, like sports, are sinful or even can be. Puritan, maybe. But not Catholic.

Of course sports aren’t sinful; I’ve never heard anything so nonsensical. For heaven’s sake, even Lefebvrist seminarians play sports at their seminaries, and they’re about as close to being Puritans as Catholics can be.

Chess, incidentally, is hardly my idea of a “sport”. :rolleyes:
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John Paul II skied and played soccer as a youth.
 
Hi all,
I posted a thread on this very topic some weeks back. It threw up some interesting responses.
One which intrigued me was (sorry, I can’t recall the poster’s name) the idea of body worship. If this is taken to an extreme, it may be classed as vanity.
Another angle we explored was the spectators side: how parents live vicariously through their kids. Such pressure on children is plainly wrong in my book.
Yet another angle: in professional sports, stars are paid huge amounts. Does this make sport just another business where “sportsmanship” goes out the window?
High-energy food for thought!
God Bless,
Colmcille1.🙂
 
In those cases vanity is the sin, putting too much pressure on your children is the sin, and a lack of sportsmanship is the sin, not practicing the sport.
 
colmcille1 said:
Hi all,
I posted a thread on this very topic some weeks back. It threw up some interesting responses.
One which intrigued me was (sorry, I can’t recall the poster’s name) the idea of body worship. If this is taken to an extreme, it may be classed as vanity.
Another angle we explored was the spectators side: how parents live vicariously through their kids. Such pressure on children is plainly wrong in my book.
Yet another angle: in professional sports, stars are paid huge amounts. Does this make sport just another business where “sportsmanship” goes out the window?
High-energy food for thought!
God Bless,
Colmcille1.🙂
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Can people within sports get caught up in sin for many reasons (success, money, fame, etc) sure, but that can be done in almost any field, including ministry. For most people on this earth, practicing a sport is probably a virtuous endeavor, and one that could lead them closer to God. For others, at certain points it could be an addiction that takes away from their true vocations (family, others) taken to an extreme.

But, the op really should dedicate his effort to God and discuss any concerns with a priest.
 
angelerulastiel said:
In those cases vanity is the sin, putting too much pressure on your children is the sin, and a lack of sportsmanship is the sin, not practicing the sport.
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However, what then distinguishes sport if it is open to all the abuses which can dog any human endeavour?
Does the Olympic ideal really hold true today? What’s to be said about sports heroes whose private lives besmirch their status as role models for many kids?
And does the competitive nature of sport with all it’s attendant pressures appeal to our baser instincts? Teams “battle” it out, one side “triumphs”, the minnows claim a big “scalp” by beating the favourites. The very jargon is adversarial.
Some may say sport sublimates aggressive impulses. It is still aggression nonetheless.
God Bless,
Colmcille1.🙂
 
colmcille1 said:
However, what then distinguishes sport if it is open to all the abuses which can dog any human endeavour?
Does the Olympic ideal really hold true today? What’s to be said about sports heroes whose private lives besmirch their status as role models for many kids?
And does the competitive nature of sport with all it’s attendant pressures appeal to our baser instincts? Teams “battle” it out, one side “triumphs”, the minnows claim a big “scalp” by beating the favourites. The very jargon is adversarial.
Some may say sport sublimates aggressive impulses. It is still aggression nonetheless.
God Bless,
Colmcille1.🙂
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I don’t think it is distinguished from other endeavors, however, there are few things immune to those abuses, includiding apologetics and ministry. Do athletes get a disproportionate amount of praise for the benefit the bring, probably.

Do the provide benefit compared to many endeavors, yes. Can the be teaching tools for life, yes. Are there people in sports who need Christian teammates competitors to share the gospel with them, yes.
 
All this time I thought Notre Dame’s big sin was having Obama speak there. Turns out, it’s having a football team! Which will come as a surprise to generations of devout grads, members of the Congregation of the Holy Cross, and assorted Irish wannabees.

If St. Peter Damian thought chess to be evil, wonder what he’d say about - gasp - Monopoly?

Seriously, questions such as this trouble me, because I feel for those who seem to find sin everywhere. Reminds me of that old monk in The Name of the Rose who thought laughter was sinful.
 
Tarpeian_Rock said:
All this time I thought Notre Dame’s big sin was having Obama speak there. Turns out, it’s having a football team! Which will come as a surprise to generations of devout grads, members of the Congregation of the Holy Cross, and assorted Irish wannabees.

If St. Peter Damian thought chess to be evil, wonder what he’d say about - gasp - Monopoly?

Seriously, questions such as this trouble me, because I feel for those who seem to find sin everywhere. Reminds me of that old monk in The Name of the Rose who thought laughter was sinful.
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Hi Tarpeian Rock,
With respect, I think you’re being a bit harsh on what is merely an exchange of ideas.
We are speaking in general terms and not in specifics with which your gag about Notre Dame relies.

I’m not familiar with St. Peter Damian but what I can say is that this (i.e. philosophising) is what great Saints and mystics “do”. They are blessed by God with great intelligence and put it to use to ascertain insights into the human condition. Everything comes under their philosophical microscope, as it were. While their ruminations may seem comical to a somewhat jaded 21st century mindset as ours, they nonetheless show us, in totality, how great minds work. Therein lies their true value.

May I suggest that you may have missed the point of the old monk’s irascibility in ‘The Name of the Rose’? He was resentful of a “detective”(Connery) snooping around after the mysterious death(s), so his blasting laughter was another stick with which to beat our hero
off the trail.
God Bless,
Colmcille1.🙂
 
I’m not familiar with St. Peter Damian but what I can say is that this (i.e. philosophising) is what great Saints and mystics “do”. They are blessed by God with great intelligence and put it to use to ascertain insights into the human condition.

With all due respect, Colmcille: no, no, no. God created all of us out of the same stuff: dirt. And that’s what we all are: dirt. That includes every man or woman who bears an “St.” in front of his or her name. They were not all blessed by God with great intelligence; some weren’t very bright at all (St. John Vianney, for example). On the contrary, there have been many people blessed by God with great intelligence who were not saints, many of whom were and are downright wicked.

A saint, being just dirt like the rest of us, is capable of believing and speaking utter nonsense…just like Peter Damian did if he actually believed and said that chess was sinful. Of course chess isn’t sinful; it’s absolute nonsense to suggest otherwise. Anyone with a shred of common sense can see that. The fact that one is holy doesn’t make one genius; it certainly doesn’t make one infallible.

Someone pointed out the fact that Pope John Paul II was an avid skier. Pope Pius XI, I know, was an avid mountain climber. And I’m sure you could probably name about 1000 saints who enjoyed a game of chess from time to time. The fact is that there is nothing wrong with sports or with playing sports, intrinsically speaking. For any saint you can point out who thinks sports are sinful, I’m sure I can throw 20 back at you who were sports fans.
 
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