A Virtue is an established and solidified proneness to do good (James, 2010). It encourages a person to give the best of him or herself by performing good deeds. Virtues act as a code of conduct that is dictated by faith and reason, building qualities such as self control, sense of duty, and responsibility geared towards a fulfilling and free life. Human virtues are realized and secured through emulating them in the good precedents of others and through tutelage in their value and methods to acquire them. Success in practicing ones virtues is paramount as the virtues act as watchtower in living a Christian moral life. Civic Responsibility is the body of behavior and perceptions that one associates with a democratic governance and social participation (Van Dam, 2004). An example of civic responsibility would be “a productive, responsible, caring and contributing member of society.
The following are some of the Christian virtues and civic responsibilities portrayed and expected of the society:
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Faithful
Faith is a deistic virtue where man believes in God and his teachings. By faith, “man relinquishes control of the self and is under God’s mercy”. Faith is a theological virtue that is the foundation of Christian morals; they practice it and give it its special character. Faith is when one holds something to be true based on the attestation of others, it is when someone tells another person something they couldn’t know on their own and they choose to accept it as accurate.
For example, a man leaves his wife for months on a business trip. Suppose further on, while the man is on a long distance phone call to her, she informs him that she is pregnant with his baby and expecting, of course, this is information that is beyond his direct personal experience. He was not there when she took the pregnancy test and did not see the test results but the wife assures him that they will be having a child soon and he chooses to believe her. As a result of his faith he has increased his own insight by sharing in hers; now he knows what she knows. This newly gained information has a huge influence on his life as he shall start making preparations for fatherhood.
Faithfulness inspires loyalty to others. Loyalty to athletes ensures that leaders and the athletic administration are passionate and focused towards an athlete’s development and growth in their particular field. Faithfulness proves a leader’s tenacity to push an athlete to his best potential ensuring that he is guided on the right steps to take.
Humble
Jesus Christ is the ultimate definition of humility. Humility is the virtue by which a man knows himself as he truly is, free from ego while behaving in a way that does not belittle or degrade oneself. Humility signifies lowliness and submissiveness to God and to others for God’s sake. Humility doesn’t call upon man to hold the gifts and graces that God has granted in a superior manner to other gifts. Simply, humility is void of pride; it bares cardinal virtues such as fortitude and temperance, which equips one to refrain from inordinate movements of our desires or appetites. It is repressing virtue as opposed to vain glory.
Take an example of mother Teresa, who displayed humility at its best in India when she chose to take care of the very sick and dying and living with the poor, rather than living in the convent where all her needs were catered for. “Perhaps the greatest feeling we experience in sports is freedom” (Marx J. 2004). A leader who is humble will understand that it takes teamwork for any sport to succeed. A coach is a leader who should value the input of the teammates in order to improve. Understanding that one’s knowledge does not surpass the rest frees a humble leader from the tangles of single mindedness, and empowers him to understand the value of acknowledging ones strength and weaknesses.“We in sports can be Trail Blazers when it comes to social justice issues” (Lumpkin, Stoll, Bella 2003). An athletic administration that upholds humility succeeds because it understands that its successes do not define it. A coach will be humble to ground himself from fallacies brought about from previous achievements.
Loving
Love is the most important virtue to a Christian. According to Jesus, the most important commandment is to ‘love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength,’ and to ‘love thy neighbor as you love yourself.’ Love is the foundation of all other virtues as it is the predominant characteristic of Christians. To understand God’s love, one shouldn’t contrast themselves to others but to the kind of love God gives to the world as shown in the familiar words of 1 Corinthians13. As a virtue love requires discipline because alignment to God’s grace is paramount. God is love, and all that he has done is as a result of his love. Paul compares hope, faith and love and concludes that the greatest of this love. Love refuses to become impatient even when it is wronged and treated unfairly. Love is generous and sympathetic; it is thoughtful of others and considerate. It has no ill will towards the success and ability of others that are greater than its own.
When someone wrongs his neighbor, love determines the reaction his neighbor shall have because love is the result of God. Out of love the neighbor shall choose to handle the situation with kindness, justice and honesty as he shall see him not as a product of his mistakes but as an individual who is equally and wonderfully created by God. The neighbor shall strive to react as God would.
Love will motivate a coach to be patient, kind, encouraging/supportive and fair in molding his team. “Good players inspire themselves, great players inspire others” (Brown B. 2003, p.20). Love enables a leader in the athletic administration, to view a team not out of results but as individual members who have come together to actualize the collective goal.
Service
Service is the virtue that guides a person to commit, provide and give themselves to others in a perpetual, sturdy and decisive way. Through service, people give the best of themselves and their talents for the good of others. It helps in understanding the importance of its impact on others happiness and what they choose to do will have a positive or negative consequence on those around them. Service is a witness on the importance of participation and unity as constant attitudes in life.
A teacher provides an example on the importance of the virtue of service as they cheerfully and willingly share knowledge to be applied by the students for their future benefit. A teacher is aware of the students needs and thus equips them with the necessary tools to face the world. By sharing their time, teachers listen attentively to the needs of their students and are ready to give the best of themselves to the help of others.
A coach should be actively involved in the campaigns and projects aimed at helping his athletes. Being enthusiastic to join in the activities of his athletes, the athletic administration ensures that its benefits are widely experienced by all. Not having the normal standard of selfishness and individualism will equip a coach to be fully involved in his teams development without materialism that would hinder motivation to give without expecting rewards.“Football, by its very nature, teaches everyone who plays it the greatest lesson of all: when you get knocked down in football, everyone eventually winds up on the turf; you must get up and give it another go. It may be a cliché, but if so it’s one for a reason: in life, all of us must learn to get up and play the next play” (Chris, 2003). Leaders as the Bible says should be servants, as only great servants become revered.
In conclusion Christian virtue and civic responsibility is important in any society including athletics and sports, as it governs the code of conduct amongst people and brings out the best in a society. Positive coaching molds athletes for their entire lives and it can be achieved if Christian virtues and civic responsibilities are acknowledged and followed.
References
Brown, B. (2003). Teaching character through sport. Monterey, CA: Coaches Choice.
Marx, J. (2003). Season of life; A football star, a boy, a journey to manhood . New York,
NY:Simon &Shuster.
Lumpkin, A., Stoll, S.k., & Bella, J.M (2012). Practical ethics in sport management.
Jefferson, NC: McFarland.
C. Van Dam, 2004. Defending Christian freedom: our civic responsibility. Retrieved from
http://www.canadianreformedseminary.ca/files/VanDam-Clarion%2055.16-Defending%20Christian%20Freedom-%20Our%20Civic%20Responsibility.pdf
James S. Spiegel, 2010. The virtue of patience. Retrieved from
http://www.christianitytoday.com/biblestudies/articles/spiritualformation/virtue-of-patience.html
