Magic Science And Religion

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Jeffrey Boyd

Magic, Science, and Religion – 10 AM class

One of the bases of religion is the stories that develop as a part of it. Whether these stories are the parables of Jesus, or legends carried down through the ages, they cause religion to take on the character of myth. Mythology is defined as "A set of stories or beliefs about a particular person, institution, or situation, especially when exaggerated or fictitious" (Campbell & Moyers). However, the very essence of what mythology is, and what it represents to the group who passes on its stories, is that it is more than what exists on the paper. The significance of a myth is not whether or not it can be backed up by a source, but rather whether people believe that it is true, and by doing so, share this belief with other people, allowing the myth to pervade the culture, and thereby society. Finding one agreed upon definition for mythology is as complex as the groups the myths represent. A several year-long study asked college students how they defined myth, and turned up fifty distinct answers (Doty, 2000).

When discussing whether or not sports are a form of religion, one strong point of contention that they are is the strong importance and longtime existence of sports myths. Sports myths have been around as long as sports have been. The concept of the modern marathon comes from the ancient Greek myth that Pheidippides, a Greek messenger, ran 25 miles from Marathon (the namesake town) to Athens, to inform the general population of the Greek army’s victory over the Persians. As a result, this event was instituted at the first modern Olympics as an homage to the power of ancient Greece. Although the historical accuracy of this story is contested, its widespread acceptance, combined with Robert Browning’s 1879 poem Pheidippides, have led to the story being considered a historical legend.

Kyle (1990) argues that myths are divided into two categories, micro and macro, both of which are repeatedly demonstrated in sport. "Micro-myths are minor, specific, or local myths that are communicated through oral traditions, literature, art, and iconography. Conversely, macro-myths are widespread beliefs that are popular and readily acceptable" (Stated in Hartman, 2008, p.44). Kyle elaborates on the mythology of athletes as moral heroes- "Sport is seen as heroic and its stars as worthy of hero worship. Sport is morally didactic, teaching teamwork, initiative, and self-reliance. Sport is healthy, building body and character as well as moral well-being. Sport is refreshing – a temporary reversion to noble savagery with cathartic and enduring benefits and lasting moral elevation" (p.44).

To fully examine the importance of mythology in sports to American culture, specific myths of importance provide evidence to this effect. One of the biggest sports myths is rooted in "America’s Pastime," baseball, and one of its legends, Yankees slugger Babe Ruth. In a 1932 contest against the Chicago Cubs, Chicago players were heckling Ruth from the bench with regards to his on field performance. Ruth, as legend has it and rediscovered film has since backed up, pointed out towards the outfield, and proceeded to hit a home run off of Chicago pitcher Charlie Root to centerfield, where he had just pointed. Ruth jogged the bases to uproarious applause at his feat.

This moment has been immortalized in sports history and in a number of other media outlets since then. The Chicago based Curtiss Candy Company; makers of the Baby Ruth candy bar (although the candy bar was named after the daughter of former president Grover Cleveland) put a banner on their roof celebrating the home run. Films such as Major League and The Natural feature references to the called shot, featuring batters pointing to the outfield fence much as Ruth did. However, whether or not Ruth actually called his shot is a question that has not been answered definitively one way or the other.

While recovered footage has been found that shows Ruth pointing out past Root towards center field, his intent has been questioned through history. Some versions of the story state that Ruth was pointing towards the Cubs bench. Another version states that Ruth was pointing at Root, warning him to not thrown any more pitches inside, considered in baseball to be "warning pitches" to keep batters from crowding the plate. Later on, when Ruth and Root were re-introduced during the end of their careers, the following exchange, recounted by baseball scholar David Herman, occurred.

Root: "You never pointed out to center field before you hit that ball off me, did you?"

Ruth: "I know I didn't, but it made a hell of a story, didn't it?"

At the core of this story, however, it does not matter whether or not Ruth did, as he would adamantly defend in his autobiography, call his shot in that game. The pervasion of this myth into baseball lore is defined by, as all myths are, the fact that people believe it to be true, and can learn lessons, and draw facts from it. The myth has become part of Babe Ruth, a man who was rated by The Sporting News in 1998 as "The Greatest Baseball Player of All-Time" (The Sporting News) As long as people believe in this myth, it will live on in the annals of baseball and sporting history.

There is a problem that comes with labeling athletes as mythic heroes. This problem lies in the reality of scandal in sports, where athletes, formerly seen as heroes, fall from grace, leaving their fans wondering how they should move on and deal with the incongruity. Hartman (2008) discusses this specifically in regards to the steroid scandal in Major League Baseball that began in the 90’s, and has been dealt with since. This issue began to emerge when star players, such as 1996 National League MVP Ken Caminiti, former Home Run Champion Mark McGuire, 2003 American League MVP Alex Rodriguez, and many others admitted to using performance enhancing drugs (PEDs) to aid their performances, which were some of the best of all time. In McGuire’s case, it was a season that saw him set the single season mark for home runs, in a competition with Cubs outfielder Sammy Sosa that saw ratings increases for the league, as fans tuned in to see who would set the record.

Prior to these allegations arising, players such as Barry Bonds were viewed as heroes in their sport. ESPN writer Rick Reilly described Bonds in his 2003 article "Say Hey Again" as follows: "Maybe later I'll deny I ever said this, but it's time to thank Barry Bonds. Thank him for being 11 feet tall and achingly human at the same time. Thank him for pulling off feats that make not only our pulse race but his--to the point that he had to be hospitalized. How does a man keep breaking windows and fences and records while his own heart is breaking?" (Reilly, 2003) In this quote, Reilly exhibits language constant of mythology. He exaggerates the features of Bonds, notably his height, in a way to make him seem superhuman. Reilly also talks about the performance of Bonds that was so great and dramatic, that he even made his own heart skip beats, and ended up hospitalized. While establishing that Bonds is like the fan, getting caught up in the action, he is also above the fan, performing feats of superior physical performance.

After the steroid accusations came out in the media, the mythology attributed to Bonds, and other athletes involved, clashed with the reality of the facts. Reilly wrote another article on Bonds in 2004 entitled "The Goods on Barry." In this article, Reilly says "Bonds is a suspected steroid cheat, has the personality of an unfed water buffalo and treats his teammates like Jehovah's Witnesses at the door. He is three of my least favorite people" (Reilly, 2004). This statement reflects a drastic change from the views Reilly discussed having about Bonds roughly a year previous. Here, it is shown what happens to a fan when the myth of the hero is disrupted, and they cannot be placed on the high pedestal where they once stood.

Louisiana State University professor Karen Hartman discussed different ways in which the fan can resolve the issues that arise when these conflicts occur between myth and reality. Her research states that there are three ways in which sports fans can resolve their internal conflict regarding heroes who fail them. They can argue against the effectiveness of performance enhancing substances, they can state the athletes have the right to do anything they wish, or they can choose specific players as scapegoats. "This suggests that fans can still keep their notion of the athlete as hero and that the myth of the hero morphs in order to keep the myth alive." (Hartman, 2008 p.138)

Reilly’s second article exhibits the second method, that of scapegoating certain players. The following quote from a 1999 Reilly article on the infamous home run chase between Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire exhibits the first characteristic of resolution, by saying that steroids did not affect his talent level. "I don’t think a single dinger McGwire hit last year can be directly traced to andro [androstenedione a steroid], the testosterone-producing supplement that he takes before workouts and is banned by the IOC, the NFL, and the NCAA. I think it was a raptor’s eye, a killer’s swing and al XXL heart, not andro that produced all those homers" (Reilly, 1999). These examples show the different ways that fans can keep their mythic heroes in sport, and also, that these ideas are not exclusive, and can intertwine on a fan to fan basis.

The mythology of sport is not limited to these examples, nor is this phenomenon limited to American culture. Sports worldwide are filled with mythic heroes; from ancient Greek gladiators in the Coliseum, to Jackie Robinson (whose exploits will be expounded on later in this paper), to Brazilian soccer legend Pele, etc. Myths of sport permeate culture and are passed on from generation to generation, carrying with them lessons to be learned. When there are discrepancies between the myths and other facts presented to an individual, they may resolve those issues in a few different ways. These myths, while not always based in concrete fact, are significant due to the fact that people believe them to be.