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 Tim Tebow will now be "Tebowing" for the New York Jets.
March 21st, 2012
02:28 PM ET
Denver Christians mourn Tebow’s departure, say they’ll root from afarBy Dan Merica, CNN (CNN) – When star quarterback Peyton Manning signed with the Denver Broncos this week, Denver pastor Jim Mackey signed at the thought that Tim Tebow probably wouldn’t be wearing Broncos blue and orange next season. The Broncos don’t need two star quarterbacks and the New York Jets announced Wednesday that Tebow is now theirs. “It was a topic of conversation last night,” Mackey said in a phone interview Wednesday, describing Tuesday night services at his Next Level Church. “It is an emotional thing and a bit more emotional for people who have connected with Tebow’s expression of faith,” Mackey said. “Rather than just a QB controversy, which is not unique in the NFL, this does seem to have hit more of a personal nerve for those in the Christian community.” Mackey’s church meets Tuesday nights, not Sunday mornings, because Mackey believes Sunday is a day for people to do Colorado things – skiing, hiking and Broncos games. Tebow, who helped turn the bottom-dwelling Broncos into a playoff team last year, transcended sports with his overt professions of faith and his late game heroics, which led some to believe that God was on the young quarterback’s side. CNN's Belief Blog – all the faith angles to the day's top stories Throughout the season, Tebow’s jersey was flying off the racks and “Tebowing” – the act of getting down on one knee and praying while everyone around you does something else – became to be an internet meme and widely recognized symbol. Tebow quickly became the public face of FRS Company and Jockey; for months, it was hard to click on ESPN without hearing his name. “Tim Tebow seems to have won the hearts of not only football fans in Denver but the people here at large,” said Rob Brendle, pastor at the evangelical Denver United Church. “One of the most exciting aspects of last season was that casual sports fans and those who aren’t even interested in football, like my wife, became captivated by the influence of Tim Tebow.” “Around the water cooler and in church, there is sadness at the likelihood of his departure,” Brendle said, a few hours before the Jets announcement. Though Tebow cashed in with endorsements, he also lent his face and celebrity to causes he believed in, many in the Denver area. Like many players, Tebow invited individual fans to his games. In his last game with the Broncos, a playoff face-off with quarterback Tom Brady and the New England Patriots, Tebow hugged Kelly Faughnan, a 22-yard old female who had been diagnosed with a brain tumor and whom the Tebow Foundation had invited to the game. Brendle said that Tebow showed that you can be both good at sports and good at giving back. “It is hard not to cheer for the Christian kid,” Brendle said. Jim Daly, president of the Colorado Springs-based evangelical group Focus on the Family, teamed up with Tebow for antiabortion Super Bowl ad last year. The spot illustrated how comfortable Tebow is trumpeting his Christian beliefs, even on a polarizing issue. “I think there is going to be this period of mourning for Tim Tebow’s departure,” Daly said. “I think that that affection that people have for Tebow goes well beyond Denver and his ability to play football.” Daly says Focus still hopes to work with Tebow in the future. “Regardless of where he is, he is a national celebrity and it would be great to work with him again – even if he is in New York,” Daly said. Matthew Ware, Executive and Worship Pastor at Victory Church in Denver, said Tebow fans were hoping for the quarterback to stay local even after the Manning announcement. “I think most people were hoping for a "both/and" instead of an "either/or" situation,” Ware said. “We love the idea that perhaps Manning could ‘disciple’ Tebow into greatness in the next few years.” Many believers in Denver will now have to balance being a Broncos fan with rooting for a New York-based Tebow. “Tebowmania has a magnetism and loyalty that's undeniable,” Ware said. “While most people will ultimately support their home team, once in a while a player comes along that wins your heart. Tebow is that kind of player. He'll have Denver fans no matter where he plays.” soundoff (1,423 Responses)« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 Next »
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The CNN Belief Blog covers the faith angles of the day's biggest stories, from breaking news to politics to entertainment, fostering a global conversation about the role of religion and belief in readers' lives. It's edited by CNN's Daniel Burke with contributions from Eric Marrapodi and CNN's worldwide news gathering team.  |
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Fitting that he was sent straight to hell.
Does that mean Denver won't win a game anymore without divine intervention?
Conversely, if Denver signs a devout Muslim – will Allah now provide victories?
This whole business is stupid beyond words.
It"s all PR and CNN and ESPN and the like eat it up.
mama said...mama said. mama said ...the Jets are the devil....
so sick of hearing about Tebow and his stupid christianity... WHO GIVES A CRAP!?!?!?
I guess Jesus likes the Jets more than the Broncos. The Jets have not had a prayer in years. Let's see how that works for the Jets.
Now now, that's okay. After Tebow is gone you can still passionately hate gays.
That is humourous......
i prefer deism. i believe in an intelligent creation however i also think that "creator" doesn't interfere the outcomes of football games.
The "blind clockmaker".
Speaking as a Christian, so many Christians in America really need to regain their focus and stop trying to be the "cool kids on the block" to draw others by looking like a worldly success story. Tebow is a spotty football player at best, not the Messiah. Would that they get that excited by people of faith like Dorothy Day, Oscar Romero, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Cesar Chavez and Brother Roger of Taize, who lived out the gospel of Jesus Christ without making millions and basking in a ton of publicity while playing a game that doesn't really add anything good to society or make the world a better place.
Sensilble Joe, I guess God using someone like Tim Tebow to spread his Word doesn't compute with you? Get you head out your butt and in the Word....."How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ."
Stop bashing a messenger that God's using and be big enough to pray for him.
Wow Jim G, telling someone to "get their head out of thier butt". How mightly Christian of you.
I want to watch football, not some religious twit make a statement,
Completely agree. The whole Tebow thing is such a joke. People were embarressing themselves.
All I can say about this is LOLOLOLOLOL HAHAHAHAHAHAH LOLOLOLOLOL, Am I glad I'm an atheist.
Top Ten Signs You're a Christian
10 – You vigorously deny the existence of thousands of gods claimed by other religions, but feel outraged when someone denies the existence of yours.
9 – You feel insulted and "dehumanized" when scientists say that people evolved from other life forms, but you have no problem with the Biblical claim that we were created from dirt.
8 – You laugh at polytheists, but you have no problem believing in a Triune God.
7 – Your face turns purple when you hear of the "atrocities" attributed to Allah, but you don't even flinch when hearing about how God/Jehovah slaughtered all the babies of Egypt in "Exodus" and ordered the elimination of entire ethnic groups in "Joshua" including women, children, and trees!
6 – You laugh at Hindu beliefs that deify humans, and Greek claims about gods sleeping with women, but you have no problem believing that the Holy Spirit impregnated Mary, who then gave birth to a man-god who got killed, came back to life and then ascended into the sky.
5 – You are willing to spend your life looking for little loopholes in the scientifically established age of Earth (few billion years), but you find nothing wrong with believing dates recorded by Bronze Age tribesmen sitting in their tents and guessing that Earth is a few generations old.
4 – You believe that the entire population of this planet with the exception of those who share your beliefs – though excluding those in all rival sects – will spend Eternity in an infinite Hell of Suffering. And yet consider your religion the most "tolerant" and "loving."
3 – While modern science, history, geology, biology, and physics have failed to convince you otherwise, some idiot rolling around on the floor speaking in "tongues" may be all the evidence you need to "prove" Christianity.
2 – You define 0.01% as a "high success rate" when it comes to answered prayers. You consider that to be evidence that prayer works. And you think that the remaining 99.99% FAILURE was simply the will of God.
1 – You actually know a lot less than many atheists and agnostics do about the Bible, Christianity, and church history – but still call yourself a Christian.
Another bigot heard from.
WiscBadger- What part of the bigot's comment would you like to refute?
You know you're an atheist when...
1- you're a pompous d.ouchebag
2- you're a hypocrite – railing against Christians evangelizing, while that's exactly what you're doing
3 – you contribute nothing to society – atheists, many of whom are Darwinists, believe in "survival of the fittest", so they relegate the weak and the unfit to the edge of society, to fend for themselves. Atheist charities? None, or few. Christian charities? Many.
4 – promote the 60s' ideas of free love and doing what you please, and as a result, abortion is legal, gay marriage is becoming legal, and overall, morals have been defenestrated
5 – you promote science as your god – the very science that, while it has helped billions, has also produced things like machine guns, nuclear weapons, chemicals which cause birth defects and mental retardation.....
What we NEED is for Christianity and her ideas to have a STRONGER foothold in the world. That is the only thing that can help us.
Badger huh? Just like a good Christian. You can't refute anything I post so you call me names instead. Simple minds....
Ten Reasons You Know you are an Atheist.
1. You were likely brought up a theist (probably a Christian if you live in the USA) and had to do your own thinking to rise above the beliefs that still occupy the mind of the believer. This usually involved being smart and working hard at school and college so as to get a good, accurate view of the natural Universe and overcoming significant social pressure to dumb yourself down and conform. In short, you had the guts to ask the hard questions and the brains to spot the weak answers. The more you came to understand the Universe, the less reason there was to believe in a god and the more you came to appreciate human nature, the more you understood why billions of us still do.
2. While rejecting the supernatural elements of the Bible, you nevertheless retain a large amount of the morality taught today by mainstream Christianity. To the extent you reject Christian morality, it is where it is mean spirited – such as in the way it seeks to curtail freedoms or oppose the rights of $exual minorities. In most other respects, your basic moral outlook is indistinguishable from that of the liberal Christian – you just don’t need the mother of all carrots and sticks hanging over your head in order to act in a manner that you consider moral.
3. You know a great deal more about the Bible than most believers. This is because you took the time to read it yourself and did not rely on the primary-color simple stories you learned in Sunday school. You have also probably done some research into the historical Jesus and have a good handle on where he REALLY fit in to the broader picture of the Middle East at the time. Needless to say, his miracles and other magic powers soon started to look pretty unlikely.
4. Your knowledge of basic science and history is much stronger than that of your average believer. You likely have a basic working knowledge of physics, astronomy, evolutionary biology and cosmology and a good idea of the history of life on this planet. This acc.umulated knowledge puts you in a position to judge the claims of the Bible in a critical light and they are almost always found wanting. To the theist, this makes you “elitist” and ‘arrogant”.
5. You relish your role as a religious minority in the USA, as this gives you an impetus to fight and you understand how others with unpopular, but doubtlessly correct views have felt throughout history. There is something altogether satisfying to you about having a deep conviction you are right and being viewed with disdain for your views by the errant majority. You feel a quiet confidence that future generations will look back on you as a member of a class of trailblazers, as religious supersti.tions go into inevitable decline in popularity.
6. You are likely more environmentally aware than your theist friends and colleagues and unlikely to fall for claims of industry and wind-bag politicians concerning the impact of man’s activities on the environment. You could no more act in an environmentally irresponsible manner because “god will keep us safe” than you could jump of a ship, believing King Neptune will keep you safe.
7. You generally have a live and let live atti.tude, but will fiercely defend any attempts by theists to thrust their views on you or your children, directly or through control of school boards, the legislature or the executive. While you are prepared to debate and argue passionately with the theist on an intellectual level, you would never wish them harm or ill will. You know you are likely to be smugly told you will “burn in hell for all eternity” for your healthy skepticism. This highlights what you despise about religion, as you would not wish a bad sunburn on another, simply because they have a different religious view to you. You have never heard of an evolutionary biologist strapping a bomb to himself and running into a church yelling “Darwin-u akbar”.
8. You likely know more about other religions than your average theist. This makes you less fearful of them and enables you to see parallels. You realize that, if you were born in India, you would have been brought up with a totally different religion. You realize that every culture that has ever existed has had its own god(s) and they always favor that particular culture, its hopes, dreams and prejudices. They cannot all exist and you see the error all faiths make of thinking only theirs exist(s). This “rising above” the regional nature of all religions was probably instrumental in your achieving atheism.
9. You likely have a deep, genuine appreciation of the fathomless beauty and unbelievable complexity of our Universe, from the 4 nucleotides that orchestrate every aspect of you, through to the distant quasars, without having to think it was all made for you. You likely get more out of being the irrelevant ant staring up at the cosmos than you do in having to pretend that it was all made to turn in majestic black-and-white pirouette about you.
10. While you have a survival instinct, you cannot fear death in the way the theist does. You know that the whole final judgment story, where you may be sent to hell if you fail, is Dark Ages nonsense meant to keep the Church’s authority. You also know that you were dead for 13,700,000,000 years before you were born. It is impossible for you to fear death, for the simple reason that you know the capacity to fear (or to feel pain or discomfort) itself dies. You will not even know you are dead. Fear of death is as meaningless to you as is the fear of a vacuum, the fear of not being born. You feel a lot more secure, and indeed a deep comfort, in this knowledge, than you would in trying to yoke yourself to some quasi-hope that every part of your intellect tells you is untenable.
How do you know you're an atheist or agnostic ?: You agree with martog's list.
Curious isn't it? That all the atheists that dwell on this blog proclaim how hateful all Christians are, yet they are the ones whose vitriol constantly pollutes these discussions. They are bullies,the insecure kid in the school that makes fun of everyone else. Their vile hatred so evident it comes through the pores of their skin. Like fascists they seek to silence and put down anyone who does not subscribe to their beliefs, or rather lack there of. Like their unholy idol Bill Mahr, you seek to find only the most superficial aspects of people of faith so you may make sport of them. But has any of them, a single one actually ever LISTENED to a Christian? It is not about all the crap this blogger writes, but about following a just and loving God who preaches compassion, forgiveness, kindness and most importantly love. While it is tough not to hate in return, we as Christians most love them and give them or other cheek to slap.
Bravo!!
That's PERFECT and SO true.
@ Jerry – some replies,
You know you're an atheist when...
1- you're a pompous d.ouchebag
– Not very christian of you
2- you're a hypocrite – railing against Christians evangelizing, while that's exactly what you're doing
– Good point, we can hate each other equally on that one
3 – you contribute nothing to society – atheists, many of whom are Darwinists, believe in "survival of the fittest", so they relegate the weak and the unfit to the edge of society, to fend for themselves. Atheist charities? None, or few. Christian charities? Many.
– Any facts for that one? Just because a charity claims it is christian doesn't make it a good charity. This is beyond weak, just because you are atheist or agnostic does not make you a socially uncaring individual. Being atheist or agnostic does not make you amoral, as much as you would like to believe.
4 – promote the 60s' ideas of free love and doing what you please, and as a result, abortion is legal, gay marriage is becoming legal, and overall, morals have been defenestrated
– You have no right to tell women what they can do with their bodies. Period. Gay marriage should be legal. One of the biggest flaws of religion is how it can mask it's own bigotry with righteousness.
5 – you promote science as your god – the very science that, while it has helped billions, has also produced things like machine guns, nuclear weapons, chemicals which cause birth defects and mental retardation.....
– "while it has helped billions", probably you also. And shouldn't god have kept us from producing the machine guns and nuclear weapons? Can't he just fix those birth defects with a little prayer? Never mind, we'll just abort those.
What we (don't) NEED is for Christianity and her ideas to have a STRONGER foothold in the world. That is the only thing that can help us (further down the brainwashed garbage shoot our country is traveling down).
The truth is often not pretty.
Could not have said it better myself. "Christians" are some of the most bigotted and intollerant people I've ever seen.
Martog – beautifully stated, honest, humble and accurate.
Peruna...do you even know what "turn the other cheek' Really meant in Roman times? Of course you don't. You have never read the whole COMPLETE bible or studied the history of religion(s),or the history of western civilization, yet you claim to 'know' what religion is all about. It's no wonder religion,churchs, televangelists have such an easy time controlling you. BTW, turn the other cheek meant, if you slap BOTH sides of my face it's A-s Kickin Time. The christians of course turned it to their own devices......Thank gawd I'm an Atheist!
Please don't post this anymore. It has been posted to death and frankly it is getting old. Find another witty way to bash christianity. I am getting bored with this one.
SLP...maybe you wouldn't be bored with it if you stopped reading it. What a novel idea eh?
@Jerry: the stupid, it burns! It's fairly well established that atheists / agnostics contribute much to society – in many cases, more than christians who give 10% to church and that's it (and that 10% stays in the church – gotta pay those electric bills somehow). It's also established that morals don't come from a god or other supernatural source. After all, your god ordered the slaughter of nations in the OT, so he seems to have no problem with murder; yet for us, it's immoral to murder. Does that make your god immoral? Or does it make morality purely arbitrary, depending on god's whim that day? Your statement about 'promoting science as god' only shows your own backwards ignorance. Funny how you have no problem using scientific gains to improve your lifestyle, yet still think "science = bad". And you wonder why it's so easy for a non-believer to reject your faith...
Wrong....try this:
You've had a supernatural encounter with Jesus and your life has been changed as a result of it. Without the power of God's Spirit and the presence of Jesus Christ, Christianity is just another "religion".
But as Jesus said...."they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead". Right here, right now....if God was to do an amazing miracle...most who think Christianity is BS would still claim it was BS. And that response is disturbingly sad.
Martog.......You say the Romans stated that slapping both cheeks meant an As-s Kicking and Christians turned it into their own device........isn't that the whole point? Christ turned things on their head so we may LOVE our fellow man and know a loving God. And, btw, my mind, my intellect and my heart are the only thing that control me and certainly not bigoted bullies like you.
It's interesting when one side feels enti.tled to spew hate, yet, when the other makes valid points, they are tagged as "bigots".
peruna, I state the obvious truth and I'm a bigoted bully? How am I bullying you? Can you refute ANYTHING in either of my posts are you too just going to call me names? Oh yea, I forgot, Christians just get angry because all they have is emotion, no logic, no reasoning, no rationale. But then, that's why you still beleive in a Bronze age fable.
I'm just glad I have been saved....FROM religion. Best form of crowd control and racketeering ever invented. You never know it's a sham until you're dead, then you can't do anything about it. Brilliant!
Tim Tebow & Job i wished i could tell Tim that the later end of Job was better than the beginnin Tim you stay the course and God will deliver unto you. Remember even noah had his nah sayers and the three hebrew children shadrak,meshak abindgo never bowed down and they where thrown into the fire but when they walked out unhurt and not even a smell of smoke on them keep your eyes upward fear not what man can do unto you God will lead his children and you will be what god has planed for you keep the faith Tim we are prayin for you
Greg: Oh brother. Spare me please with the silly justification. For merely likes his Sunday football and has pity in the jets. So he's decided to muck it up a bit. Way to go, god! How about looking at the NHL and making some changes there?
Thrown into the fire and walked out unscathed not smelling of smoke. What IQ does it take to believe this stuff?
Try putting Tebow in a cave for 3 days and see if he comes back to Denver.
Maybe now he can focus on football instead of his faux-Christianity. Jesus doesn't want a silly showman parading his banner around. Get grounded and get your job done Tebow. Allow your faith to inform your life in ways other than a signature move.
Matthew...poor poor Matthew..."faux-Christianity. Jesus doesn't want a silly showman parading his banner around. " Where have you been? Tim Tebow is exactly what Jesus wants...the ability to stand up for one's faith without fear of being considered "silly". Really Matthew...REALLY! This young man is one of the most genuine individuals to have burst into the sports limelight in a long time not just because of his abilities but because of the courage he has to display his faith full knowing that people like you are around that will display such petty contempt and jealousy toward him. Who are you to judge so harsly Matthew? What's the matter Matthew? Your mommy didn't tuck you in last night or didn't sprinkle enough sugar on your coco puffs?
Matthew, you've hit the nail on the head. Jesus taught nothing about making millions and becoming a celebrity while trumpeting one's religion. His gospel clearly teaches loving God, loving neighbor and treating others the way one wants to be treated in humility and privacy, even secrecy and anonymity. It's obvious from a lot of these comments that many self-identified "Christians" have never read the gospels, or else they wouldn't be saying what they're saying and wouldn't be so entranced by Tebow rather than Jesus.
"Jesus taught nothing about making millions"
It can be argued that he taught exactly that in the parable of the talents. Remember, a talent is/was a unit of currency (ie a talent-weight of gold or silver) – a silver talent would be worth about $6,500. And what happens in that parable? The one who invests his money and makes a killing gets rewarded, and the one that doesn't gets punished. Unfortunately many modern 'christians' interpret the word talent in the modern sense – i.e., something you're good at – and thus miss the point of that story.
So what happens if Peyton gets that seemingly innocent hit and is gravely injured? Talk about putting all your eggs in one basket.
I agree BG, if the season started today or in two months he wouldn't play. Yes, Tebow was a bad quarterback, but the TEAM believed in him. If I were DB's GM I would have done the same thing, but it's a huge risk.
Denver is taking a huge risk here. Last medical report on Manning said the nerves in his neck are not regenerating. He worked out for teams, but that wo was limited. I don't know man, there's a chance he will never step onto the field again.
As far as Tebow, I don't get it. He's not involved in street fights, hitting women, killing people, raping women, making it rain on h.o.e.s. or trying to have 20 kids with 20 women.....he spends his time with pediatric cancer patients.....and people bad mouth him. His fans are nuts, but the guy himself seems like a good kid.
He definitely seems like a great person, but I think a lot of the angst comes from his belief. I honestly don't have anything against people who believe in religion, but when you are so overt in your brainwashing it's a bit of a put off.
Here's how I see it. These folks need some celebrity to affirm their irrational and delusionary beliefs. It gave them great comfort when a sports hero confessed to believing in an imaginary invisible guy who lives in trhe sky. The logic that they used is, if he does it publically (and they didn't throw a net over him and haul him away to the looney bin), then it must be true.
Nice trolling, Jesus.
Your bigotry is like a rash around here. I'm sure you don't see your hatred of relgion as bigotry but it is.
These folks need some celebrity to affirm their irrational and delusionary beliefs. It gave them great comfort when a sports hero confessed to believing in an imaginary invisible guy who lives in trhe sky. The logic that they used is, if he does it publically (and they didn't throw a net over him and haul him away to the looney bin), then it must be true.
Let's see now..... NASCAR has a televised prayer......so does baseball, and yes football as well. Sports that involve a persons safety and strong possibility of getting hurt or injured. Your darn right someone better pray for their safety. Tebow is a good role model and has lived up to the calling God has placed on his life. Good job Tim and stay encouraged.
how do you that this is the calling God gave to him?