What is the role of athletics at Habersham? As Christians, we know that everything we do should be done for the ultimate purpose of bringing glory to God (I Cor. 10:31), so, the short answer is, we “do” athletics at Habersham to bring glory to God. But are there other reasons that intertwine with our classical approach to education and with our mission to help young men and women grow as image bearers of Christ? Yes, there are, and I would like to share them with you.
Pictured here is a rendering of the different aspects of classical Christian education in the form of a tree diagram developed by Adam Lockridge and published in The Liberal Arts Tradition: A Philosophy of Christian Classical Education written by Kevin Clark and Ravi Scott Jain.
You will notice that in this diagram, one of the two pillars forming the base of the tree trunk is gymnastic. Why is that? Grounded in piety, “The gymnastic and musical educations trained the bodies and tuned the hearts of the young and were the next stage following the early development of piety. Developing the virtue of an athlete was an essential element of the gymnastic training,” (The Liberal Arts Tradition: A Philosophy of Christian Classical Education written by Kevin Clark and Ravi Scott Jain pg. 19).
At Habersham, we want to create a culture on our teams in which our student-athletes are encouraged to grow in virtue and character as they grow in skill. Human nature tends toward selfishness, but a truly excellent team culture will direct the athletes’ minds and hearts toward selflessness. It will give them the opportunity to put team before self by learning that the value of a player to a team is rooted in that player’s realization that everything they do from filling water bottles, to participating in drills, to urging their teammates whether on the court or on the sidelines can make the team better or prevent it from being its best. At Habersham, our goal is for the team to be the best it can be because its members are coached to be the best they can be in terms of skill and character.
We do this by trying to teach our student-athletes what excellence truly looks like. Our understanding of what is excellent must not be limited to something as simple as numbers on a scoreboard or a win-loss record. We believe it has much more to do with process than with results. Do not hear me saying that we do not want to win, or we do not pursue championships – we very much do, but we don’t stop there. To do so would be to set a very low bar for excellence indeed. What we want to help our students realize is that there is something beautiful and transformative to be found in the striving when it is done with an eye that appreciates what it sees in the here and now but also looks forward to the ultimate triumph found in eternity. There is soul development that can take place when our ultimate goal is to be the best we can be not because we want to win a contest but because we want to give our best in everything we do in order to glorify the God who gave us His best. Therefore, we strive to be better today than we were yesterday and better tomorrow than we are today. We do not settle. That would be mediocre, and there is nothing virtuous about the pursuit of mediocrity!
There is, however, much virtue and nobility to be found in the striving. In the Republic Plato states, “the united influence of music and gymnastic will bring [the reason and the passions] into accord, nerving and sustaining the reason with noble words and lessons,” (The Liberal Arts Tradition: A Philosophy of Christian Classical Education written by Kevin Clark and Ravi Scott Jain pg. 21). There truly are noble lessons we can learn in sport. There is tremendous value in learning the fact that just because something is hard does not mean it is bad. Athletics can teach that the hard can lead to the good when we do not give up, when we stay faithful, and we discipline ourselves. “… Physical discipline produces self-control, while perseverance through difficult activities produces patience and creates habits of hard work in attaining goals – virtues that are as invaluable in the classroom as they are in an athletic event…persevering through difficult physical tasks provides the imagination with metaphors for overcoming other difficult tasks as well,” (The Liberal Arts Tradition: A Philosophy of Christian Classical Education written by Kevin Clark and Ravi Scott Jain pg. 24).
I would go further and say that the noble lessons strike a chord within people from all walks of life because of the fact that God is. It is why, Christian or not, people are inspired when they see an athlete extending themselves to the limit to make a play for their team. When a basketball player sacrifices his body to draw a charge, when a runner pushes herself past the point of exhaustion to give one more sprint at the end of a race, when a player dives on the court inflicting bruises on their body so they can save the ball for their team – we are drawn to our feet pumping our fists. Why? I believe it is precisely because we are made in the image of God, whether we know it or not. And being made in the image of a God who made the ultimate sacrifice to give us life, causes something to resonate deep within us when we see someone else literally lay their body out in an effort to sacrifice for others. God is real and He made us to know Him and to love the things He loves – this is true and powerful, and it stirs our image-bearing souls to push ourselves and give all we have and to revel in that giving when we see it.
At Habersham, we want our athletes to be coached with these concepts in mind and with this culture surrounding all they do. In this way, our athletics truly can intertwine with our classical approach to education and our mission to partner with God as His servants in seeking the restoration of His image in our students through education.
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