"Winning isn't everything; it's the only thing."

Vince Lombardi

Loving your opponent

It is not good for man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him Genesis 2:18

One of the arguments against competition is that it hurts relationships. However, I was fascinated to find an article entitled, Competition and friendship, by a philosopher of sport, Drew Hyland, in which he argues, not writing from a specifically Christian perspective, that competitive sport has the potential to lead either to conflict and alienation or to friendship. He notes that we are often "at our most competitive while playing against a close friend" and that "this greater intensity enhances rather than diminishes the positive strength of the relationship."

With that understanding perhaps the way I love my neighbour is to give him the hardest tackle my body can produce - fairly and within the rules. By doing that I force him to be the best player he can be.

Similarly I need the opponent to nail me when I get the ball and to play the most brilliant tactical game she can so that I have to take my gifts and use them to the best of my ability against her. That is to love my opponent in the heat of the competition. It is wanting the best for your opponent, in order to get the best out of myself. It is playing hard but not seeking an unfair advantage.

That's why I can love my neighbour as myself in sport, since I understand God's desire that we please Him with our abilities and that we help each other to do so.

Of course it is hard to make an impact in one game. But if you play in a league, over a few seasons you will get to know opponents. They will respect you as a tough but fair opponent, who does not try to take unfair advantage on the blind side of the ref. Over the seasons, as you make time to socialise with them after the game, they may discover that it is your faith in Christ that motivates you to be the quality opponent you are, both in the use of your talents and the way you play the game.

Hyland argues that competition helps each participant achieve a level of excellence that could not have been achieved without the competition. He argues for friendship as a relationship where friends, rather than in his words "not hassling each other" are always pushing each other to be the best they can be. Thus he concludes that "the highest version of competition is as friendship".

As Christians we can take this to an even higher level as we seek to love our opponent as our self and push them to the highest level they are capable of.

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