October 1, 2025 “There was no hype.” My son, Jake, and I traveled last weekend to Foxborough, Massachusetts, where we watched our beloved Pittsburgh Steelers win an ugly football game. That was stadium 13 in our effort to visit all 30 NFL stadiums. That was by far the most boring stadium we’ve been in so far. The stadium itself was nothing remarkable. It’s 25 years old and showing some signs of wear, but that’s not what made it boring. It was boring because there was no hype. At most games we attend, the crowd shouts predictable phrases as set times (yelling “first down” after a cue from the announcer is a common one). There’s normally some song that all the fans look forward to playing (“Renegade” by the Styx is the song for the Steeler Nation, the name given to the fan base of our team). Most stadiums have some fun entertainment during TV time outs and halftime – quiz games, baby races, dog stunt shows are all things we’ve seen. There was very little of any of that. The team’s cheerleaders were the main entertainment, and even they were dancing to mostly older music, and no one seemed to get very excited by it. Jake and I decided, “there was no hype.” It took away from the fun of the game. We couldn’t understand what kept fans coming back to cheer on their team in a place that offered so little fun, excitement and joy. Thinking about it on the long ride home, it occurred to me that there’s no hype in my Catholicism. I’m not saying I think we should have rally songs and quiz games (though that could be fun), but I don’t think a visitor sitting near me at Mass would see much joy in me or see that I enjoy being there and that I am happy to worship our Lord. I don’t think a visitor would see that much in a lot of our churches. I’m much more “hype” when I’m smiling at someone and or greeting them. We have the best news that has ever existed – we have a loving God who sent His only son to die for us and rise from the dead so we can have eternal life. We should want to share that news and that happiness with everyone. Maybe we need a little more hype. |
|||||
|
|||||||||
