Tim Tebow and cynical displays of religious piety

The Christian Post has an article that is embarrassing from start to finish ("Student Tebowed at Graduation, Diploma Withheld by Mother"). It in an embarrassment to our faith.

It starts with a misleading lede paragraph by reporter Daniel Distant.

A teen Tebowing during his graduation ceremony Saturday caused his diploma to be withheld by Florida school officials, who didn't want the high school senior's actions to be an "inspiration" for other antics.

That statement suggests that a young man broke into a spontaneous act of worship during his graduation ceremony and was punished by school officials for that expression of faith. That is not what happened.

The student was not engaged in prayer. He was mocking it.

Chuck Shriner, 17, of Bishop Verot's Catholic school, was bet $5 by his friends that he wouldn't go on stage and imitate the popular pose of the New York Jets' Christian quarterback. They underestimated him; he Tebowed on stage - dropping to one knee to pray - while parents and students erupted in laughter.

Here is a young man who mocked God by pretending to pray in public, took money to do it, disobeyed school rules, and disrupted the ceremony. The reality of the situation bears no resemblance to the implication that the young man was disciplined by the school for an expression of faith.

His mother, a teacher at the high school, was not amused by her son's stunt, and encouraged school officials to hold him accountable for his actions. In other words, she took her responsibilities as a parent seriously.

Far from being penitent, the kid was proud of his little stunt, posting his exploits on his Facebook page, and even pumping his fist during interviews.

"Moment in my life I'll never forget, getting my diploma taken away for doing the Tebow on stage in front of (Principal John) Cavell. So worth it," he wrote.

The comments to the story are also revealing.

About half the comments come are from people outraged that this event provides more proof that religious freedom is under attack in this country. You can really see the impact of the cynical claims by some religious authorities as they try to inflame passions. I cannot decide whether these commenters stopped reading after the first paragraph, read the whole article with no comprehension, or are just looking for excuse to bleat with indignation.

The other comments are from people telling the indignant to lighten up and recognize a good prank when they see it. They read the story and understood that kid was just punking the administration of his Catholic high school. They manage to overlook the fact that prank involving pretending to pray. In other words, it was a deliberately irreverent act.

And let's not forget the professional athlete whose name has become synonymous with ritualized "prayer" on the playing field. Tebow has become more famous for public prayer than his play. His gambit will even be "honored" by a place in the new edition of Madden's football video game. The people cheering him on for what they consider a "courageous" act of faith seem to have forgotten that Jesus condemned public prayer and displays of piety (Matthew 6:1-18). Suffice it to say that Tebow has served himself well with his public displays.

What we have here is cynicism writ large. From the religious authorities who have pushed the meme that religious freedom is under attack, which is magnified at every turn by publications like the Christian Post, to those among the faithful that see persecution at the drop of a hat. There is a remarkable absence of integrity. The moral of the story of Tebow is that his now signature ritual serves to denigrate the sacred. It is the perfect inspiration for Christians that want to be confrontational in their faith and for atheists spoiling for a fight in return. None of this spectacle respects the name of God and honors the teaching of Christ, yet too few of the faithful recognize the blasphemy.