Morton: An open letter to Tim Tebow
“You see, if you love football and Jesus as much as I believe you do then the narrow and frankly ugly version of Christianity that Jeffress preaches wouldn’t even enter your mind.”
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Dear Tim,
Lets just get this out of the way. I am not particularly a football fan. I’m not a Tebow fan. I don’t attend church. I am Irish, short and homosexual … so depending on your point of view there may be several marks against me from the get go. (Mostly being short … which apparently means I’m part of the Lollipop Guild)
I don’t KNOW you, nor do I claim to have any insight into your personal character and point of view. I was raised as a Christian, and I have enough knowledge of Christianity to know that you seem to be a sincere guy.
When you were in Denver you were more of a novelty, and your devoted (some would say zealous) fanbase certainly did provide a national spark of … ummm … media to our little corner of the national sports landscape. All the while, you never stopped seeming sincere. Ever. There’s just a way to tell someone believes what they say, and usually that comes from the eyes. The eyes don’t lie. They are always the ultimate BS detector.
This is why I’m a little shocked that you would dive headfirst into speaking on behalf of Robert Jeffress and his First Baptist Church in Dallas. You see, as someone who was essentially raised doing missionary work, good deeds and evangelizing I am very surprised you’d speak on behalf of someone who preaches abject exclusion.
I mean, come on. You GREW UP reaching out to people. Maybe it’s just my interpretation, but I believe the teaching’s of Jesus Christ would require you to evangelize and preach to everyone. This includes those that Jeffress seems to dislike so much ie: Jews, Islamic people, Gays (like myself) and Catholics. You want to reach us right? Then why speak for someone who is antithetical to the very outreach in which you were raised?
You see, I have a theory. I think you a generally a sweet guy who loves football and Jesus. At your core that is who you are. I wholeheartedly believe there are elements around you that are pushing you to do things that may run in conflict with your simple world view. You see, if you love football and Jesus as much as I believe you do then the narrow and frankly ugly version of Christianity that Jeffress preaches wouldn’t even enter your mind.
I have absolutely nothing against you. I appreciate that during your short time in Denver the rather questionable organization that resides just south of Denver (Focus on the Family) wasn’t any more obnoxious than they pretty much always are. I believe that you try to lead by example (even though I believe you are too strident) and even if I don’t agree with your stances it is admirable that you stick to your guns.
Someone who loves Jesus and leads by example cannot subject himself, or be led, into speaking on behalf of someone who violates the own principals in which you were raised. That would be like me speaking on behalf of the Homophobic Bricklayers of America (no offense to any masons out there). It just doesn’t make sense, and I wholeheartedly believe that … if you think about it, you’d feel that way as well.
Remember who you are Tim. I don’t particularly care about your football career, but it would be a shame to violate your own principals because you can’t stand up to those who want to lead you around by the nose. That’s not leadership. Take the lead Tim and remember who you are. Don’t deny yourself the opportunity to reach out to a vast segment of the population.
That would be the ultimate shame wouldn’t it?
