{"product_id":"9781469670065-passion-plays","title":"Passion Plays","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHow Religion Shaped Sports in North America\u003cbr\u003eOne of the most insightful writers on American religion trains his focus on that other great passion - team sports - to reveal their surprising connections. From baseball to basketball and football to ice hockey, Randall Balmer explores the origins and histories of big-time sports from the late nineteenth century to the present.\u003cbr\u003eRandall Balmer was a late convert to sports talk radio, but he quickly became addicted, just like millions of other devoted American sports fans. As a historian of religion, the more he listened, Balmer couldn't help but wonder how the fervor he heard related to religious practice. Houses of worship once railed against Sabbath-busting sports events, but today most willingly accommodate Super Bowl Sunday. On the other hand, basketball's inventor, James Naismith, was an ardent follower of Muscular Christianity and believed the game would help develop religious character. But today those religious roots are largely forgotten.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHere one of our most insightful writers on American religion trains his focus on that other great passion—team sports—to reveal their surprising connections. From baseball to basketball and football to ice hockey, Balmer explores the origins and histories of big-time sports from the late nineteenth century to the present, with entertaining anecdotes and fresh insights into their ties to religious life. Referring to Notre Dame football, \u003ci\u003eThe Catholic Sun\u003c\/i\u003e called its fandom \"a kind of sacramental.\" Legions of sports fans reading \u003ci\u003ePassion Plays\u003c\/i\u003e will recognize exactly what that means.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":55119543632246,"sku":"9781469670065","price":20.16,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/orig_38184076_7fa64145-b7d6-452f-b825-eb6c525393eb.jpg?v=1763787254","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9781469670065-passion-plays","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}