READING REPORT

Introduction Trends, issues and debates in sports chaplaincy

Andrew Parker, Nick J. Watson and John B. White

Over the past 30 to 40 years, there has been a steady growth in the academic lit- erature concerning sport and religion. Within this genre, authors have explored a variety of topics and issues. There are books about sport and faith, sport and spirituality, sport and religious ethics. This is a book about sports chaplaincy and, more specifically, the major trends, issues and debates that have shaped (and continue to shape) the public outworking of Christian chaplaincy in sport- ing contexts. One of the things that stands out in the more recent academic literature on sport and religion is the way in which the specific relationship between sport and Christianity has developed over time, not simply because scholars have had the compulsion to delve deeper into the similarities between these two cultural entities but also because of the fact that the Church was one social institution among many which historically found itself caught up in the momentum surrounding the wider popularization of sport. Since then the relationship has ebbed and flowed, characterized on the one hand by a more general (and growing) Christian acceptance of sport as a ‘useful’ and ‘accept- able’ physical, moral and emotional practice, and on the other by an increasingly commercialized sporting world the values of which, as time goes on, appear to sit less and less easily with formal religion of any kind.

Of course, what all of this illustrates is that sport does not exist in a social vacuum. On the contrary, it evolves and develops in accordance with a variety of broader factors and forces whilst at the same time embedding itself fur- ther into the very fabric of everyday life. Modern-day sport looks like it does, because it has been (and continues to be) shaped and formed in line with the turbulence of social existence (politics, economics, culture etc.) which, in turn, makes it what it is. The sport–Christianity relationship is no different. This too is a reflection of the way in which sport has had an increasing impact upon wider society and has progressed from being a marginal social pastime to an established feature of daily living. It is neither the intention nor the remit of this book to debate the pros and cons of such matters, but what the following chapters do illustrate is the way in which this relationship has developed in specific social and cultural contexts and how we might think further about the connections between sport and the Christian faith in and through the work of sports chaplains.

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So, why this particular book and why now? Amidst the growth of publica- tions on the relationship between sport and Christianity, this volume is born out of a sense of momentum, a momentum which has gathered pace as a consequence of the expansion of sports chaplaincy globally and the growing interest amongst practitioners and scholars alike in analysing and interrogating what it is that sports chaplains do and how they might critically assess the pro- cesses and practices of their everyday work. The genesis of the book is rooted in three main aims: (1) to build upon and extend the personalized accounts of sports chaplaincy which already exist; (2) to further the establishment of a body of scholarly literature in this, as yet, under-researched and under-reported field; and (3) to uncover more fully what the role of the sports chaplain looks like within specific geographical and cultural contexts. The overall objective is to provide an academic resource from which students, scholars and lay readers may gain both a flavour and an overview of the variety and quality of previous and on-going work in this area. What transpires is a series of essays produced by a selection of writers who bring with them a wide range of experience in and around related fields and who, as a result, provide a series of informed and challenging essays in their particular areas of expertise. To this end, the book is divided into three parts which encapsulate the specific interests of the featured authors: Part I, international perspectives on sports chaplaincy (Weir; Boyers; Linville; Butler and Mitaxa; Green); Part II, conceptualizing sports chaplaincy (Watson; Uszynski; Waller and Cottom; White; Null) and Part III, sports chap- laincy: practice and praxis (Maranise; Waller et al.; Nesti; Egli and Fisher; Gam- ble, Parker and Hill).

Much has been said and written about sports ministry per se but little about the specifics of chaplaincy within sporting contexts, and kicking-off proceed- ings in Chapter 1 is someone who has a significant degree of oversight and influence across the sport–Christianity landscape as a practitioner, J. Stuart Weir. By charting a range of contexts within which sports chaplains operate, Weir’s portrayal of the evolution of sports chaplaincy globally serves to set the scene for the remaining contributors. Reflecting his extensive knowledge and experi- ence in this area, Weir tracks the evolution of sports chaplaincy at the elite sports level in relation both to individual sports and major sporting events. Accord- ingly, what Weir provides is a mapping of the global landscape upon which sports chaplaincy sits and the diversity of events and contexts which it serves.

Building upon the global picture put forward by Weir, in Chapter 2 John Boyers provides the first of four personal reflections on sports chaplaincy in different geographical regions and settings. Armed with over 35 years of expe- rience of working as an official sports chaplain at Watford Football Club from 1977 to 1992 and Manchester United Football Club from 1992 to the present and at over a dozen major sporting events, Boyers outlines the main historical and conceptual developments in the evolution of sports chaplaincy in the UK from the mid-1970s to the present day. In detailing this history, Boyers discusses some of the pioneers of UK sports chaplaincy and the contributions which they made to the evolution of that movement.

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One of the things that both Weir and Boyers acknowledge is that North America has long been a hive of activity with regards to sports chaplaincy. That said, relatively few writers have explored either the denominational com- plexities or the broader evangelical nuances of the US sports chaplaincy model. Addressing all of these objectives, Greg Linville’s work in Chapter 3 seeks to uncover some of the characteristics of chaplaincy provision to US sports whilst at the same time mounting a critique of its generic methodology. Linville argues that the cultural and institutional conditions under which elite sports chaplaincy functions in the US often militates against its overall effectiveness and efficiency as a form of ministry. Emphasizing the need for a greater sense of connection between sports chaplaincy, sport-related para-ministries and the local church, Linville puts forward a series of propositions as to how the US model might be re-envisioned in line with specific theological and philosophi- cal principles.

Common to anecdotal and practitioner accounts of the sport– Christianity nexus is the sense that the 1970s and 1980s were a time when chaplaincy began to gain momentum across a range of sporting locales, and what Cam- eron Butler and Noel Mitaxa present in Chapter 4 confirms that Australia was no exception in this respect. Charting the birth and subsequent expansion of Sports Chaplaincy Australia, Butler and Mitaxa argue that as the pasto- ral needs of sporting communities have increased in Australia over the past 30 years so too have the opportunities for sports chaplains to serve and min- ister to unchurched groups. Demonstrating the practical application of some of the arguments put forward by Linville, Butler and Mitaxa articulate the way in which, in the face of unprecedented demand for pastoral care-givers in sports settings, the work of Sports Chaplaincy Australia seeks to empower the local church to release its members into ministry as chaplains in their local communities.

What these initial chapters clearly articulate is that by the late 1980s indi- viduals working in and around the broader orbits of sports ministry had come to identify major sporting events as an important setting for chaplaincy provi- sion. As Weir observes, formalized accounts of how mega-event chaplaincy is planned and organized are few and far between and so who better to pro- vide an in-depth commentary on how such provision takes shape than the person responsible for fulfilling this role at the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, Reverend Canon Duncan Green. In Chapter 5, Green maps his involvement in the bringing together of various faith communities to create the infrastructure for what he describes as a ‘radical and innovative chaplaincy programme’ at London 2012. Beginning with his appointment as the Church of England Olympics Executive Coordinator in November 2007, Green pro- vides a fly-on-the-wall account of the practical and political nuances of his role and how chaplaincy services were ultimately delivered at the Games.

Part II takes a slightly different tack and focuses on theological concep- tualizations of sports chaplaincy amidst the complex realities of modern life. Countering the dearth of academic literature addressing the specific impact

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of family breakdown on sport, in Chapter 6, Nick J. Watson demonstrates how sports chaplaincy might address the cultural phenomenon of ‘fatherlessness’. Examining the pandemic of fatherlessness in modern Western culture, Watson argues that the mystery and beauty of servant-hearted sports chaplaincy is its ability to reveal the heart of the Father to players (and staff) who are in a state of crisis or transition, experiencing failure, grief or stress or who are simply in need of a non-judgemental friend or mentor whom they can trust. Watson reflects upon the socio-cultural and spiritual context in which sports chaplains currently operate and offers a series of suggestions as to how they might recog- nise and deal with fatherlessness as and when it arises as an underlying issue in the course of their everyday work.

Discussions of the socio-cultural realities of modern life necessarily bring with them images of a move away from collective religious experience towards more individualized notions of spirituality, and, in Chapter 7, Ed Uszynski con- siders the implications of such a shift for sports chaplains. Uszynski argues that those who seek to minister within contemporary culture must contend with and understand this new social reality. Sports chaplains are tasked with stepping fully into this cultural moment prepared to act as a guide, a conductor equipped not only to understand the default spiritual mentality of the typical modern- day athlete but also to escort them toward an understanding of how the gospel intersects with their personal journey to shape their lives and identities.

Picking up on the offerings of both Uszynski and Butler and Mitaxa, in Chapter 8 Harold Cottom and Steven N. Waller further advance our broader conceptualizations by exploring the ‘shepherding’ responsibilities of the mod- ern-day sports chaplain. Locating their discussion within the specific context of US sports chaplaincy, Cottom and Waller examine the biblical and theologi- cal aspects of pastoral or ‘shepherding’ ministry whilst exploring some of the challenges facing exponents of such roles (that is, chaplains) within and across sporting locales. Cottom and Waller conclude that the presence of a coherent pastoral theology is an essential underpinning to the potential contribution which sports chaplains can make across the world.

Furthering considerations of the specific nature of sports chaplaincy amidst the vagaries of the contemporary sporting life, in Chapter, 9 John B. White poses two main questions: how are the convictions of the gospel fundamental to Christian sports chaplaincy and how should the good news inform and transform the way in which sports chaplains serve? White’s central claim is that the modern-day culture of sport requires sports chaplains to be shaped by the whole gospel and to view this both as a theological task and personal respon- sibility. Arguing the case for the prophetic voice of sports chaplaincy, White concludes that the gospel calls chaplains back to the work of Christ as definitive for how they care for the people of sport and that when sportspersons reflect and practise a distorted identity, chaplains must graciously speak in word and deed God’s perspective on sport and life.

Our concluding sojourn into the conceptualization of sports chaplaincy is provided, in Chapter 10, by Ashley Null who, drawing on many years of

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experience as an Olympic chaplain, raises the question: what should be the chaplain’s approach to ministry to the sporting elite? Through examples and anecdotes of his work at this level, Null depicts the highs and the lows of ath- letic life positing the gospel as the antidote to the ‘shame culture’ of the world of elite sport. Reiterating the sentiments of Uszynski and White, Null coun- ters the personal identity problems experienced by many high-profile athletes with the gospel truth of unconditional love. The task of any chaplain in such circumstances, Null argues, is to help athletes learn to separate their personal identity from their athletic performance and to make them aware that only love (and not sporting achievement) has the power to make human beings feel truly significant and to make them emotionally whole.

And finally to Part III, which discusses the practicalities of sports chaplaincy and investigates emerging connections with wider academic disciplines and discourse. First up is Anthony M.J. Maranise, who, in Chapter 11, draws on his expertise as a chaplain within the Catholic faith to discuss six primary responsi- bilities and practices common to all sports chaplains, regardless of their country of origin or nature of service. Contemplating the civil and moral threat posed by the ‘win-at-all-costs’ nature of elite sports participation and media report- age of the lives and lifestyles of modern sports stars, Maranise locates chaplains as ‘first responders’ to personal and moral emergencies in the sporting world. This discussion leads to the conclusion that sports chaplains provide a valuable resource – both to athletes and to the people whom they regularly encounter – by assisting in the holistic growth and development of those entrusted to their care and that the greater role of the sports chaplain is the implementation and continual maintenance of an ‘ethical mentality’ in sport.

Recent years have witnessed an increasing amount of discussion around how best to facilitate and organize the training and accreditation of sports chaplains thereby bringing a sense of standardization to the role and suitable preparatory (and on-going) support to those who are called to undertake its duties. Several key individuals have progressed such debate, none of which have been more influential than Steven N. Waller, Robin L. Hardin, Lars Dzikus and James H. Bemiller at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. In Chapter 12, Waller and colleagues provide a comprehensive overview of their thinking on this topic that ultimately comprises a framework within which the ‘professionalization’ of sports chaplaincy can be situated. These authors argue that such debates are important not least because there is no single organization that serves to credentialize sports chaplains globally and, moreover, because in a world where certification and accreditation are the hallmarks of occupational identity, a myr- iad of administrative, theological, ethical and legal risks emerge.

Taking on board the disciplinary principles outlined by Waller and col- leagues, the final three chapters of the book provide in-depth considerations of the possibilities and potential offered by the relationship between sports chap- laincy and sport psychology. In Chapter 13, established academic Mark Nesti presents his experiences of working as a consultant sport psychologist in the English (football) Premier League and examines the stereotypes and viewpoints

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attached to both psychologists and chaplains within this setting. What Nesti argues is that sport psychologists operating inside elite football have much to gain from developing their professional relationships with club chaplains. That is not to say that sport psychologists should be asked to provide religious or spiritual support to their clients, rather that collaboration between the two has the potential to assist sport psychologists in their broader understanding of the people with whom they work, whilst also allowing them to reflect more deeply on their own philosophy of practice.

Progressing the work of Nesti one step further, in Chapter 14, Trevor J. Egli and Leslee A. Fisher investigate how sport psychologists might engage with faith and spirituality issues during consultation. Beginning with an exploration of how the field of applied sport psychology has traditionally engaged with notions of faith, spirituality and religion, Egli and Fisher go on to present a series of practical steps that sport psychology consultants might consider before working with athletes who express an interest in (and affinity for) faith and spirituality issues. The authors conclude by putting forward suggestions as to how sport psychology consultants and sports chaplains might work together to better facilitate the needs of athletes who consider spirituality a salient compo- nent of their identity.

All of which leads nicely to Chapter 15, where Richard Gamble, Andrew Parker and Denise M. Hill provide an empirical depiction of the way in which the relationship between sports chaplaincy and sport psychology might work in practice. Drawing upon the findings of a small-scale, qualitative research study into the potential connections between those inhabiting these two distinct prac- titioner disciplines in English Premier League football, the chapter reveals a significant degree of overlap between the work of psychologists and chaplains, whilst at the same time identifying a number of barriers that may restrict the kinds of support which they collectively offer the players with whom they work.

In sum, Sports Chaplaincy: Trends, Issues and Debates aims not only to reflect on the ways in which the underpinning principles of the Christian faith might allow us to consider and challenge the values and practices of modern-day sport, but also how they might enhance the way in which we see the future of sport both in terms of its participatory and structural formation. We believe that it is by way of such reflection that our understandings of the role of the sports chaplain can continue to thrive and that the desire for on-going scholarship in this area will be stimulated and encouraged. Needless to say, we trust that this book will be both a stimulus and an encouragement to our readership.