Thank God for Football! The Illustrated Companion

Product Information

This week I attended the launch of Peter Lupson’s new book* on the Christian origins of football clubs at Liverpool Cathedral. These verses seem relevant. Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. This is what the ancients were commended for...By faith Abraham...was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. Hebrews 11:1,2, 8,10 urn:lcp:thankgodforfootb0000lups:epub:dffaac8b-2f56-49eb-b3cc-54091becceb1 Foldoutcount 0 Identifier thankgodforfootb0000lups Identifier-ark ark:/13960/s25hh602gdt Invoice 1652 Isbn 1902694309 Mr Lupson explained that values such as fair play and self-control were key to both Christianity and football when the sport first emerged. He cited amateur club Corinthian FC, which was founded on the basis of fair play and moral values.The team, he said, historically never argued with the referee or took part in matches involving cash prizes. Overall, Thank God for Football is a thoughtful and insightful look at the relationship between faith and football in England. It highlights the importance of spirituality in the lives of footballers and how their values and beliefs can shape both their careers and personal lives. The show is a must-watch for anyone interested in the intersection of sports and spirituality or the history of English football.

Of course no one in the 19th century set out to found a 21st century Premier League Club. Churches formed sports clubs, many existed for a short time and many remained church teams all their lives but a few evolved into professional clubs. While the influence of faith on football has sometimes been seen as divisive, many of the country’s clubs emerged from church groups, according to Peter Lupson, author of Thank God for Football. Published in 2006, his book charts the religious roots of many big clubs, among them Aston Villa and Barnsley.

Discover

The book’s title is based on the following quotation from Lord Arthur Kinnaird, who played in nine FA Cup Finals between 1873 and 1883 – as well as being a leading Christian statesman of his era. “I believe that all right-minded people have good reason to thank God for the great progress of this popular national game”. Many of us regularly and sincerely thank God for football. When you go on the field you concentrate on the game but there’s so much more going on besides,” he added. A chaplain’s role was best summed as “pastorally proactive and spiritually reactive”. I found that something like a quarter of all clubs that have played in English football over the past five years have a close connection with the church.” She said: “He has said very publicly that he’s driven by his personal experience of growing up in poverty but also by his faith.It isn’t just for the headlines. There are a lot of other players putting their faith into practice at a local level really quietly, but really brilliantly.”

He said the book stemmed from his own efforts to set up a church team in Merseyside.“A lot of the boys were being ridiculed for playing for a church club and many left because they couldn’t cope with those comments,” he added.“So, I wrote Thank God for Football to tell the boys in the club, ‘look, you’re not freaks, you’re part of a rich tradition’. Comparing that with religious belief, she added: “When you have religious belief, you’re a participant in something, you have those beliefs. Christianity calls upon you to act on those beliefs and, as a football fan, I’m called upon to not just watch but to really get behind the team.” How could the members of the Young Men's Bible Class who decided to found the Aston Villa (Wesleyan) Football team or the boys of the All Hallows Church Bible class who founded the Hotspur Football Club, for example, possible have guessed that two of England's finest clubs, Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur who emerge in later years? The FA says the project aims to make the game truly inclusive. Arran Williams, diversity and inclusion manager at the FA, told the webinar that other upcoming events include an Iftar and call to prayer at Wembley stadiumand events for Vaisakhi in the West Midlands. Strong affiliations in football have sometimes been linked to religious rivalries, but Ms Pepinster hopes such sectarianism is disappearing.Peter Lupson’s academic credentials have been put to excellent use in the intensive research undertaken to compile this unique volume. He is the author of a number of successful school and university French and German text books, as well as Across the Park: Everton FC and Liverpool Common Ground (Trinity Mirror Sport Media, 2009). He is honorary life president of a semi-professional club in North Wales and the founder of a thriving church youth league on Merseyside. He currently combines part-time English teaching with writing. Review It is often said that football is like a religion in Britain, inspiring passion, belief and devotion that most spiritual leaders could only dream of. Access-restricted-item true Addeddate 2022-01-29 11:09:29 Bookplateleaf 0004 Boxid IA40331008 Camera Sony Alpha-A6300 (Control) Collection_set printdisabled External-identifier Mr Primus believes the Christian message of ‘love thy neighbour’ can help to stamp out racism in the stands.“How about finding out about that person next to you and understanding that shouting out racist terms or to discriminate isn’t right?”

Retired professional footballer Linvoy Primus, who played for Portsmouth, Reading and Charlton Athletic, saw a change in his career after he converted to Christianity.“Playing football was my dream, but at 27 or 28 I realised it wasn’t giving me everything I hoped it would give me,” he said.

Wikipedia citation

The original Thank God for Football! was published to great acclaim in 2006. This new edition, with abbreviated text, contains almost 120 illustrations. It gathers together a huge number of rare images of founders, founding churches and early teams. It includes contemporary photographs of streets where players lived, pubs in which they socialized and churches where they gathered. Furthermore, it offers images reflecting the impact of Thank God for Football! the restoration of founders’ graves, the inducting of Christian founders into Halls of Fame, and features in match programmes and club magazines. Aston Villa Barnsley Birmingham City Bolton Wanderers Everton Fulham Liverpool Manchester City Queen’s Park Rangers Southampton Swindon Town Tottenham Hotspur The FA’s Faith and Football programme will see special events take place with other faith communities in the coming months. As part of the initiative, it held an online webinar with the Religion Media Centre to discuss the links between football and Christianity. Other Christian footballers who harness their faith as a power for good include poverty campaigner and Manchester United star Marcus Rashford, according to Hannah Rich, senior researcher at Theos think tank. Peter Lupson interviews key players, including former professionals and managers, who share their personal experiences of how their Christian faith helped shape their careers. Lupson’s interviews reveal fascinating insights into how these individuals were able to reconcile their religious beliefs with the pressure and challenges associated with being a top-level footballer. My Christian faith is based on making a difference, of serving that model we have of Jesus during his 33 years on this earth.”

Thank God for Football also explores the underlying values that football has instilled in its players over the years. Lupson examines the core principles of teamwork, loyalty, respect, and humility that are fundamental to a successful football team. He discusses how these traits are linked to Christian values and how the integration of faith into football can help shape the future of the sport.

Thank God For Football

This is an unusual weekly devotional but I hope you share my encouragement that those of us who are seeking to represent Jesus Christ in football (or sport generally) are following in the footsteps of many generations. Matt Baker has been chaplain at Charlton Athletic since 2000 and is national director for England at Sports Chaplaincy UK. While footballing has a reputation as a glamorous career path, players often struggle to cope with the transition to life in the spotlight, he said. The show delves into the lives of several inspirational Christian footballers who helped pave the way for future generations. These players share their stories of how their faith grounded them and gave them a newfound purpose both on and off the field. Viewers are given an unprecedented look into how these players overcame adversity to achieve greatness in the sport they loved. If we want to win the World Cup, we need to get more young people playing football on the streets, then playing football on the pitch, then playing football up the levels,” he said. “And the only way of doing that is actually working with communities because they have a great organising power. It is a little known fact that of the thirty seven clubs that have played in the English Premier League since its inception of the 92/93 season, twelve can trace their origin directly to a church. However, many of these famous football clubs know little about their origins or their founders. This book, which is the fruit of seven years intensive research, features chapters on: Aston Villa, Barnsley, Birmingham City, Bolton Wanderers, Everton, Fulham, Liverpool, Manchester City, Queen’s Park Rangers, Southampton, Swindon and Town Tottenham Hotspur. This book is a must read for football fans everywhere! About the Author