Trivializing worship (and God)

Rabbi Rick Jacobs makes an interesting observation about how entrenched the trivialization of God has become in our culture. From Reform Judaism:

The God-talk we hear most is hardly worth emulating. Watching athletes pointing to the heavens to acknowledge their savior after scoring a touchdown, you’d think God actually cared about which team won. While I hope God’s presence can be felt in all places, including football stadiums, I find it offensive to reduce the Almighty to a football mascot in the sky.

The Rabbi is correct. The spectacle of athletes making ritualized displays of "gratitude" for meaningless acts of physical prowess should be something everyone of faith questions.

No doubt some will want to say that any display of faith has value. Not if it sets a bad example.

Consider the athlete. What are they giving thanks and "glory" to God for? Having the physical ability to play a game? Being showered with wealth for performing acts that do nothing to enrich human existence? Gratitude for blessings does not require an audience. It is little more than performance art when a play or game goes their way. Or an act of superstition they hope will bring them even more successes in the future. More glory to me than to God.

Not to be outdone by overpaid athletes, politicians have also gotten into act by announcing that they have been "called" by God to run for office. In other words, I have been endorsed by God so you should vote for me. Even the disgraced politician cannot resist the temptation to invoke the sacred to plead for sympathy and mercy.

Rabbi Jacobs goes to the heart of the matter:

If this is what passes for religion these days, it’s no wonder that so many of us have trouble finding God in our midst.

Two thousand years ago, another Rabbi warned his followers against public displays of piety (Matthew 6).  God is found in the still, small voice we only hear when our mouths are closed and hearts are open.