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Houston Texans running back Arian Foster, who is facing groin surgery and a lengthy recovery period, is now making headlines for a different reason.
He's an atheist.
...
Apparently, it's news?
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Foster is a smart, complex, thoughtful man who likely has spent more time in deep reflection than almost any NFLer of his generation. He reads philosophy, writes poetry and has slain those who deign to cross him on Twitter. He's also known to be headstrong and difficult, a young man who once spoke in dinosaur shrieks during an interview in college at Tennessee.*
So you go figure him out.
But Foster and his newfound take on piety are an interesting chapter to his story, as told by an ESPN The Magazine feature.*Here's an excerpt from the story:
Yes, Foster plays in Houston and played in college in the Volunteer State, the artery of the Bible Belt to be certain. Not everyone will relate well to Foster's admission, er, sorry ... confession.
But Foster is not just telling the world he does not believe in God, or a god, or any higher power, for that matter — he's spreading the word about it and about how it's OK to think this way. Having heard*testimonials from celebrity atheists such as Bill Maher and Penn and Teller (only one of whom speaks in public, for what it's worth), Foster has aligned with a group called Openly Secular,*a nonprofit aimed to spread the word of atheism, and the star running back hopes to*increase awareness and acceptance of nonbelievers, especially in the sports realm, per the ESPN feature.
So Foster, who was raised Muslim but renounced religion years ago, is now going to go all*Nietzsche/John Lennon and deliver his message. According to the Secular folks, this is a big deal.
Perhaps in the sports world, coming out and professing this stance will hurt from an endorsement standpoint. Foster seems to realize this. Maybe he can help break down walls for other athletes who fear revealing their stance outside of on anonymous government bubble forms. But are we talking scourge-on-society stuff here? Maybe we are, maybe we're not.
Foster says his experience has led him to believe there are true haters for what he's preaching.
Good luck, bro.
He's an atheist.
...
Apparently, it's news?
[Yahoo Sports Fantasy Football: Sign up and join a league today!]
Foster is a smart, complex, thoughtful man who likely has spent more time in deep reflection than almost any NFLer of his generation. He reads philosophy, writes poetry and has slain those who deign to cross him on Twitter. He's also known to be headstrong and difficult, a young man who once spoke in dinosaur shrieks during an interview in college at Tennessee.*
So you go figure him out.
But Foster and his newfound take on piety are an interesting chapter to his story, as told by an ESPN The Magazine feature.*Here's an excerpt from the story:
Arian Foster, 28, has spent his entire public football career -- in college at Tennessee, in the NFL with the Texans -- in the Bible Belt. Playing in the sport that most closely aligns itself with religion, in which God and country are both industry and packaging, in which the pregame flyover blends with the postgame prayer, Foster does not believe in God.
"Everybody always says the same thing: You have to have faith," he says. "That's my whole thing: Faith isn't enough for me. For people who are struggling with that, they're nervous about telling their families or afraid of the backlash ... man, don't be afraid to be you. I was, for years."
The headline, "The confession of Arian Foster," sounds a lot more ominous and foreboding than it should, really. The man has struggled with his belief system? He's challenged what he was raised to fear and worship? Interesting — yes. Relatable? Perhaps for some. But newsworthy? Gee, I don't know ...
Yes, Foster plays in Houston and played in college in the Volunteer State, the artery of the Bible Belt to be certain. Not everyone will relate well to Foster's admission, er, sorry ... confession.
But Foster is not just telling the world he does not believe in God, or a god, or any higher power, for that matter — he's spreading the word about it and about how it's OK to think this way. Having heard*testimonials from celebrity atheists such as Bill Maher and Penn and Teller (only one of whom speaks in public, for what it's worth), Foster has aligned with a group called Openly Secular,*a nonprofit aimed to spread the word of atheism, and the star running back hopes to*increase awareness and acceptance of nonbelievers, especially in the sports realm, per the ESPN feature.
“I have no ill will toward religion or religious people. I have no quarrels,” Foster said. “Believe what you want to believe.”
The irony? Foster's "Namaste" touchdown celebration — a simple bow, with hands pressed together in apparent prayer — came from a place of godliness, or at least that's what he told ESPN in 2010:
"Mine stems from the core or what I believe," he said. "It's a Namaste. It means respect. It just means, 'I see the God in you.' It's me paying my respect to the game of football."
(We've held back long enough; for the naysayers' sake, this absolutely is the time to make a The Big Lebowski callback and offer up the words of the venerable character of Walter Sobchak from the movie: "I mean, say what you want about the tenets of national socialism, Dude, at least it's an ethos.")
So Foster, who was raised Muslim but renounced religion years ago, is now going to go all*Nietzsche/John Lennon and deliver his message. According to the Secular folks, this is a big deal.
"This is unprecedented," says Todd Stiefel, chair of Openly Secular. "He is the first active professional athlete, let alone star, to ever stand up in support of gaining respect for secular Americans."
Let's start with that word: respect. It's an interesting launching point for just how important the discussion is. If there truly is a stigma against secular people, then maybe Foster's mission is not without meaning or function. If he and other atheists really are having dispersions cast upon them as non-believers, then, hey, more power to him.
Perhaps in the sports world, coming out and professing this stance will hurt from an endorsement standpoint. Foster seems to realize this. Maybe he can help break down walls for other athletes who fear revealing their stance outside of on anonymous government bubble forms. But are we talking scourge-on-society stuff here? Maybe we are, maybe we're not.
Foster says his experience has led him to believe there are true haters for what he's preaching.
"I get the devil-worship thing a lot. They'll ask me, 'You worship the devil?'" Foster says. "'No, bro, I don't believe there's a God, why would I believe there's a devil?' There's a lot of ignorance about nonbelief. I don't mean a negative connotation of ignorance. I just mean a lack of understanding, a lack of knowledge, lack of exposure to people like me."
It's an interesting story. It's worth a quick little chat — are atheists subject to scorn and ridicule for their beliefs the way practitioners of organized religions are? If so, Foster is willing to take them on and try to change those people's minds.
Good luck, bro.
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Eric Edholm is a writer for Shutdown Corner on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Eric_Edholm