Aaron Rodgers is the latest NFL quarterback to discuss the way Tim Tebow integrates his religion with football.
The Packers MVP quarterback is a religious man who has pondered how much of his beliefs he would invoke on the field or in interviews. He says he decided a long time ago that he would separate the two and let his actions speak for his character.
“Well I started playing before Tim, so these are things I’ve thought about for a long time,” Rodgers told Jason Wilde during his weekly radio appearance on WAUK. “I think one thing that I tried to look at when I was a younger player, I was always interested in seeing how guys talked in their interviews, talked about their faith, or didn’t talk about their faith.
“I know Bob Costas at one point was critical about a player thanking Jesus Christ after a win, questioning what would happen if that player had lost, or do you really think God cares about winning and losing. I feel like my stance and my desire has always been to follow a quote from St. Francis of Assisi, who said, ‘Preach the gospel at all times. If necessary, use words.’
“So basically, I’m not an over-the-top, or an in-your-face kind of guy with my faith. I would rather people have questions about why I act the way I act, whether they view it as positive or not. Given an opportunity at some point, then you can talk about your faith a little bit. I firmly believe, just personally, what works for me, and what I enjoy doing is letting my actions speak about the kind of character that I want to have, and following that quote from St. Francis.”
I’m sure people who are offended by Tebow’s constant praise of the Lord appreciate Rodgers’ approach. We know Jake Plummer, who says he’d like Tebow more if he chilled on the religious stuff, feels that way. And we also know that Kurt Warner thinks Tim Tebow would be more effective if he toned it down. But that doesn’t mean what Rodgers does is right and what Tebow does is wrong. They’ve just chosen different approaches.
We know without a doubt that Tebow has been able to successfully spread his message, and that he doesn’t plan to stop doing so. I’m not sure he should.
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