We've been saturated in the coverage of the Penn State football scandal that broke a little over a week ago. In short it goes like this: Long time assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky was arrested for multiple counts of sexually abusing young boys. It appears from the charges that Sandusky is a predatory offender who has been doing this for years. That was the crime. The scandal is that many people in the football program and the athletic administration knew it and did not take proper action. In this case there was even a (rare) eye witness to the abuse who failed to either stop the incident, or call any legal authorities. This witness was, himself, an assistant football coach.
As the facts emerged it became clear that the venerable head coach Joe Paterno knew this and did precious little about it. For that Paterno was fired, which set off an immediate campus riot in support of the beloved JoePa. Paterno is the dean of college football- the winning-est coach in the history of the game and an institution in and of himself. He occupies a god-like status. Others were fired too, but at Penn State they are minor people compared to Joe Paterno- even if you're a university President. Make no mistake, Penn State football is the master of College Station, Pennsylvania, and Joe Paterno its lord.
The fact of this happening should not surprise us. We have all just witnessed this happening in the Catholic Church Sex Abuse scandal. It is virtually identical, and for all the same reasons. In the Catholic Church we discovered that young children were being abused over a period of many, many years by some Priests. That was the crime. The scandal was that many Bishops and other high church officials knew it and did not take proper action to stop it. In almost every case the Bishops moved the offenders to other communities, hushed up and covered up the offenses and went on about the Church's business, as if to suggest that was the Church's policy. But just like the deplorable inaction at Penn State, this behavior only led to more victims.
Why does this happen? The actual offenders are defective people. They exist all around us, more than you may know. They often place themselves in positions of trust to victimize children because their deviant desires overwhelm their lives. Unfortunately, no one has discovered an effective way to stop them or treat them. These offenders must be locked up. But, the true villains are the institutions that find these deviants in their midst, and decide it is more important to protect the institution than to protect the victims.
I cannot think of any institution more protective of itself than the Catholic Church. The Church has existed longer than any current government on earth. Though it is not the oldest religion, it is the dominant religion of the western world, and for several centuries it was the strongest political power in the western world. All of that adds up to power and wealth, well beyond the tenant's of the religious faith it was built on. Therefore the Church has a tremendous stake in maintaining its position in the world. As we saw, the Church would abandon its own values to protect itself from threats to its power and prestige. So the very institution whose founder and deity said "suffer the little children on to me" served them up in sacrifice to protect itself. That's an undeniable example of the ultimate seduction of institutional power.
What do we see in football? Actually many of the same attributes. We worship sports and our sports heroes. We have built up institutions around these new god-like figures and programs. Witness that even in the middle of the bible-belt (Alabama), the late Bear Bryant is more popular than God himself. Our culture has elevated this game of football to ridiculous heights. If you don't believe that, look at the salaries we pay athletes compared to the salaries we pay the President of the United States (for example). This includes college football too. To my way of thinking college football is even worse because the big programs pretend to be something they are not. That is, institutions that promote the values of higher education, when clearly football is king. At Penn State the revenues from football are near $80 million a year.The football program has a $58 million PROFIT. So, is it any wonder that normally good men would easily toss aside their values to protect this institution? If, as Marx said, "religion is the opiate of the masses", then surely football is the crack cocaine of the masses in our culture. It hypes us up and causes us to crave nothing more than a game- nothing more than a form of entertainment. It induces us to spend our money on their "licenced products" and in some extreme cases becomes the passion in our lives-blurring our values along the way. I admit entertainment is a good thing. I too, enjoy the game, and played it in high school with some modest success. But, for too many, this institution of football has become a compulsion, far beyond the simple enjoyment of a game. Witness now that our new cathedrals are the massive stadiums, mainly built on the backs of tax payers.
I'm certain in coming weeks more grisly details about Sandusky and the staff at Penn State will come out, just as they did with the Church. Once the dam breaks, the flood comes. And we can't count on anyone to regulate these matters. The Catholic Church has no over-seers, except its own High Priests. In college football the NCAA has proven itself to be as corrupt as the institutions it regulates- because they all have the same stake in the outcome. Take note that NCAA football has a major scandal every year. Last year it was Ohio State players selling off their school, and the shameless bidding for Cam Newton between Miss. State and Auburn. It all disappeared with a wink and a nod, and a dad taking the rap so he can get the big payoff the next year. Auburn got a National Championship and Newton is in the NFL. And all's right in the football world.
There is another common thread to these institutions, now so crippled by the same scandal. They are both controlled entirely by men. The Catholic Church simply doesn't allow women any say in the workings of the church. Yes, there are religious orders of nuns and sisters in the Church- but they are entirely subservient to the Church establishment. Women can be members- women can devote themselves to the church- but women can never minister in the church or achieve positions of leadership or influence in the church. It is nearly identical in the football world. Men control all of it. They play the game- they coach the game- they own the game- and they control every aspect of football. Every icon and every "legend" is a man. This is a critical point in understanding these two scandals. It is well established in human behavioral science that cultures (and sub-cultures) where women have equal or near equal standing with men are less likely to victimize both women and children. So, in these exclusive male institutions we can almost predict that the need to preserve the power structure becomes the overwhelming priority. Women and children beware.
As we look back on the many victims of both scandals, we should take stock of our priorities. We should always be wary of institutions built on power, money, and control. If there is a lesson to be learned, it is that when the needs of institutions to insulate and protect themselves conflicts with the needs of innocent victims- the innocents will likely be sacrificed. It is so clear now that many of these high priests and football coaches are not to be trusted as our guides in moral leadership or character building-they too are seduced by the very thing they built. We have to ask just how important these institutions are in our culture, and if it isn't time to re-think what is really important. I believe that time has come.
Thanks for looking in.
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