No, no, no, no, not for telling the truth but for poor judgment in the expression of it, yes, and no.
But if you don't believe in God, then God and Superman are the same thing to you, so why would one upset you and the other not?
God and Superman are the same thing to me, both irrelevant fictional superheroes. I wasn't upset or offended, personally. I don't take God any more seriously than I do Superman. You're right about that. But a lot of people do. And our culture does. I was spotlighting someone held up by everyone including me as a model of superior character demonstrating a character flaw--a certain arrogance, lack of humility, and sensitivity to those who might be hurt by the suggestion that their deity loves them less.
Drive, determination, and talent are qualities we humans have in varying amounts, qualities that determine winners and losers, but God is supposed to love us all the same, at the very least to love all believers the same. It seems to me it's tackier to point out a deficit of God's love (to someone who seriously cares about being loved by God) than to point out a lack of determination or skill, that there's a special arrogance in saying that God favored oneself in a contest.
You're usually logical, but I don't think you've thought this one through.
Perhaps I'm taking this God thing too seriously. As someone to whom a concern about what God thinks is alien, I may not be a good judge of the level of offense. The author, who I presume is a Mormon, took offense. Like I said, I didn't take offense, but was sensitive to those on the receiving end of the insult. I've been in situations before where I've been apparently overly concerned about religious sensitivities.
In addition to the character thing, the other part of my concern is his reinforcing the unfortunate notion in our culture that God is on anyone's side in contests, be they basketball games or wars. I don't think that's healthy. God can appropriately play favorites in moral questions, favor the victim over the criminal, for example, but not basketball games. |
