In a church worship setting, the display of a solitary flag ‘up the front’ invites and condones idolatry. If God’s heart is for the nations of the world – and it is – and if his mission is to reach all of those nations – and it is – how in God’s name can we single out one flag for the front of the church? It is the idolatry of nationhood and the only way it might possibly be permissible is if the identity/security of a given nation is under serious threat. God does not look down from his heaven and see national borders and nor should we. When I see a solitary flag up the front of a church as I walk in, I wince at the offence it causes. If you must have flags, have multiple flags rather than a solitary flag. Nationalism is evil and, although people often challenge me on it, I can’t see too many redeeming features in patriotism either. I am with John Stott when he stated that every Christian should be a “committed internationalist”.
But is what is true for a worship setting also to be true for a sporting occasion?
The Cricket World Cup starts later this week. Yippee (although, yet again, I am travelling and will miss virtually all of it until the semi-finals). I’ll be cheering passionately for New Zealand but not in a way that diminishes the opposing team. [NB: I hate the NZ-Aussie banter, the Aussie-England banter and all the other banters. It can draw so very close to the precipice of racism…].
The World Cup is a 10 team tournament and a cricket team has 11 players, with a ’12th man’ as a substitute. So before the tournament even starts, I am nominating my tournament team. These are players in whom I take such delight when they play well. I love their skill and the way they play the game. I have chosen one player from each country, with two from New Zealand and then two from England, as the hosts.
Aaron Finch. After the mess they made with sandpaper in 2018, this guy has been reminiscent of Allan Border. A stable, sensible leader. I hope he excels.
Kane Williamson. What can I say? An all-time favourite. Cool, calm, skilled. Nothing better than watching him in full flow. My pick for top run-scorer.
Angelo Mathews. Yes, I’m still grieving Sangakkara’s retirement and the passing of the Lankan glory years, but so admire the smile and skill of this guy.
Jos Buttler. Goodness deary me, what is there not to like? From the cheeky grin to that outrageous ability. England is not beaten until his bat falls silent.
Shakib Al Hasan. A leading all-rounder across all the formats and doing it for many years. I hope he bats and bowls with style and success one final time.
Jason Holder (c). Installed as captain of the late, great (dysfunctional) West Indies team at just 23 years of age. What a difference he has made. Love it.
Rashid Khan. Afghanistan is in the World Cup!! How exciting is that? And this 20 year old is their best player. Even the best batsmen can’t work him out.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar. My favourite player from the country of my childhood. Love the suave manner in which he plays the game – and the lad can bowl.
Kagiso Rabada. Seriously, how cool is this guy? Michael Holding 2.0. Just glides into the crease. My pick for the top wicket-taker at the tournament.
Trent Boult. Kumar. Rabada. Boult. The trinity of cool. Plus in those first few overs, no batsman in the world has any idea what is going on when he bowls.
12th Man: Joe Root. My team is a little lite on batting and so we’ll add a 12th man who can come in for one of the bowlers when necessary.
Being a cricket-lover, if I was a pastor then I’d be tempted to hang up these flags around the auditorium and pray for two of these countries each week for the duration of the tournament (using Operation World’s prayercasts as a starting point, wherever possible). But the church leadership team might have other ideas…?!
In terms of my ‘picks’ for the tournament…
It is a more even field than usual, with England and India as favourites. The England batting unit with the India bowling unit win the tournament easily, but that is not possible. Although they are the most talented, I wonder about England when it is placed under pressure and I am not yet convinced about India’s ‘away from home’ ability, even though they are progressing in this area. Nevertheless, I’d be happy to see England win it for the first time. New Zealand looks more vulnerable than usual to me. Australia has something to prove and I expect them to be in the semis and be my pick for a surprise winner. But I’d love to see other surprises, with the likes of the West Indies, Pakistan, or New Zealand in the semis – and with Afghanistan winning more than one game.
nice chatting
Paul
About Me
the art of unpacking
After a childhood in India, a theological training in the USA and a pastoral ministry in Southland (New Zealand), I spent twenty years in theological education in New Zealand — first at Laidlaw College and then at Carey Baptist College, where I served as principal. In 2009 I began working with Langham Partnership and since 2013 I have been the Programme Director (Langham Preaching). Through it all I've cherished the experience of the 'gracious hand of God upon me' and I've relished the opportunity to 'unpack', or exegete, all that I encounter in my walk through life with Jesus.
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Love it…but Joe Root as 12th man?! He'd have preferred a Yorkshire flag no doubt, which also takes away from the nationalism 😉
Well, it was a choice between Root or Buttler and in ODI cricket that should be an easy choice, even for a Yorkshireman!