Manute Bol was a freakishly tall specimen, even in the NBA, standing 7’ 7” tall and looked like he weighed about 125 lbs. I remember watching him play back when I still watched the NBA and recall how odd he looked on the court but man it had to be hard to shoot over him. He died recently and most people remember him as a curious anomaly, a super tall guy in a league of tall guys. He is also remembered as a humanitarian but as an editorial today points out what drove Manute Bol was a radical Christian faith.
Bol reportedly gave most of his fortune, estimated at $6 million, to aid Sudanese refugees. As one twitter feed aptly put it: "Most NBA cats go broke on cars, jewelry & groupies. Manute Bol went broke building hospitals."
When his fortune dried up, Bol raised more money for charity by doing what most athletes would find humiliating: He turned himself into a humorous spectacle. Bol was hired, for example, as a horse jockey, hockey player and celebrity boxer. Some Americans simply found amusement in the absurdity of him on a horse or skates. And who could deny the comic potential of Bol boxing William "the Refrigerator" Perry, the 335-pound former defensive linemen of the Chicago Bears?
Bol agreed to be a clown. But he was not willing to be mocked for his own personal gain as so many reality-television stars are. Bol let himself be ridiculed on behalf of suffering strangers in the Sudan; he was a fool for Christ.
During his final years, Bol suffered more than mere mockery in the service of others. While he was doing relief work in the Sudan, he contracted a painful skin disease that ultimately contributed to his death.
I think that is amazing. Bol gave away everything, wealth unimaginable to most Sudanese folks and even most Americans. No one would have begrudged him living the good life in America with his wealth. Instead he used his wealth to help others, he turned the gift he had been given and used it to enrich others instead of himself. I don’t know a thing about Manute Bol’s theology but I know that the way he lived his life puts me to shame.
Finally this…
It is of little surprise, then, that the sort of radical Christianity exemplified by Bol is rarely understood by sports journalists. For all its interest in the intimate details of players' lives, the media has long been tone deaf to the way devout Christianity profoundly shapes some of them.
I would agree that it is of little surprise that this sort of radical Christianity (which is not so much radical as it is simply Biblical) is not understood by sports journalists. I am deeply troubled that it is not understood by very many Christians.
Bol reportedly gave most of his fortune, estimated at $6 million, to aid Sudanese refugees. As one twitter feed aptly put it: "Most NBA cats go broke on cars, jewelry & groupies. Manute Bol went broke building hospitals."
When his fortune dried up, Bol raised more money for charity by doing what most athletes would find humiliating: He turned himself into a humorous spectacle. Bol was hired, for example, as a horse jockey, hockey player and celebrity boxer. Some Americans simply found amusement in the absurdity of him on a horse or skates. And who could deny the comic potential of Bol boxing William "the Refrigerator" Perry, the 335-pound former defensive linemen of the Chicago Bears?
Bol agreed to be a clown. But he was not willing to be mocked for his own personal gain as so many reality-television stars are. Bol let himself be ridiculed on behalf of suffering strangers in the Sudan; he was a fool for Christ.
During his final years, Bol suffered more than mere mockery in the service of others. While he was doing relief work in the Sudan, he contracted a painful skin disease that ultimately contributed to his death.
I think that is amazing. Bol gave away everything, wealth unimaginable to most Sudanese folks and even most Americans. No one would have begrudged him living the good life in America with his wealth. Instead he used his wealth to help others, he turned the gift he had been given and used it to enrich others instead of himself. I don’t know a thing about Manute Bol’s theology but I know that the way he lived his life puts me to shame.
Finally this…
It is of little surprise, then, that the sort of radical Christianity exemplified by Bol is rarely understood by sports journalists. For all its interest in the intimate details of players' lives, the media has long been tone deaf to the way devout Christianity profoundly shapes some of them.
I would agree that it is of little surprise that this sort of radical Christianity (which is not so much radical as it is simply Biblical) is not understood by sports journalists. I am deeply troubled that it is not understood by very many Christians.
1 comment:
Most believes are involved in a systemic form of church that justifies devoting 75 - 85% of their "giving" to buy goodies for themselves. This is said to be God's plan. Jesus said "where your treasure is, there will your heart be also". This axiom of where the heart will be helps us understand that unless we unlock the heart from it's systemic form of church, there will be little understanding of true giving - that which goes beyond yourself to meet deep needs of others.
Post a Comment