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Hello St. John’s Family,
That’s not fair. Those weren’t the exact words used, yet that seems to be the gist. Apparently the “Brotherly Shove*” isn’t so brotherly, as there’s been a formal request to the NFL to ban this play. Increased injury risk and player safety are key reasons cited, yet no one seems to have an issue when scrums of players push a ballcarrier forward at the end of regular plays. The Eagles have developed a unique aptitude in executing a particular play, and it seems that some opponents feel this leads to an unfair advantage. To which many in our area – or at least Eagles coach Nick Sirianni – feels is unfair to the Eagles and the effort they’ve invested.
Fairness is a concept we develop early in life, somewhere around the time we first suspect someone else received a bigger piece of cake than we did. Or so I thought. About a decade ago, Karen Wynn and Paul Bloom, research psychologists at Yale, shared the results investigative research detailing moral development in infants and children. While I cannot do justice to their results in a short note, some of their insights are fascinating. Particularly interesting is the progression of fairness. Young children, well, they want more of a good thing. If they get 5 pieces of candy and someone else gets 2 – yay! If they get 7 and someone else gets 0, yippee-yay! The focus isn’t on fairness, the focus is on more.
This shifts, though, around age 8. At that point children start choosing the fairer or equal option more and more frequently. Then around age 9 or 10, children will often deliberately give the other kid a little more than they receive. The researchers suggested the generosity exhibited correlated with education and inculturation, and that ultimately there is some advantage to receiving a little less. And I’m sure that’s a part of the outcome observed.
I sense, though, experience plays a key role in this choice. By age 9 or so, most of us have found ourselves holding the short end of the stick more than once. That hurts, and it isn’t something we want to experience again. In fact, we’d rather willingly choose a little less so that someone else doesn’t experience the hurt we’ve felt. In other words, we want to do onto others as we’d have done to us. I see God’s image shining through in us, revealing and illuminating the wisdom of Christ’s teachings in these findings. God’s good image is our moral core; following in the way and teachings of Christ yields something far beyond fairness: the justice of God. That is something I believe we all yearn for, whether we recognize it or not.
While I’m not sure how that impacts Brotherly Shove deliberations, I sense it is a good reminder for us adults. It seems we have a tendency to revert back to the “more” stage of our early childhood at times… especially when someone on the other “team” comes out ahead.
This Sunday is the final Sunday prior to Lent, and is known as Transfiguration Sunday. We’ll hear of Christ’s mountaintop experience, radiating with God’s glory before Peter, James, and John. It’s a powerful picture; yet it pales in comparison to the coming days, when the full breadth of Christ’s glory will be revealed. I hope you’ll read Luke 9:28-36 and Exodus 34:29-35, then join me in worship!
Grace and Peace,
Pastor Brad
(*Note: I am selectively choosing the moniker “Brotherly Shove”, as the alternate “Tush Push” feels a bit too close to tabloid journalism ☺.)
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