Evangelical Christian Footballer Tim Tebow Questions His Own Faith And Jesus After Last Chance In the NFL Crumbles
Published September 3, 2012
By BUTCH WITT
Devout Christian Tim Tebow Struggles With His Faith After Last Chance At NFL Roster Spot.
A Heisman Trophy, a riveting playoff game, an international following.
Tim Tebow won all that in his football career, but he was hoping for something more. His failure to win a spot on an NFL team has the devout Christian questioning his once unshakable faith.
On Saturday, Tebow lost his third NFL job in 18 months. It will be nearly impossible to find another.
The quarterback with two big problems — throwing the ball and reading defenses — was cut by the New England Patriots less than 12 weeks after they signed him and just five days before the season.
As Tebow sees it, his faith has not fulfilled its role in his life.
“It is devastating to me that God has not pulled through on my third attempt to make a pro team,” he tweeted Saturday afternoon. “The way I see it, I did my part by practicing every day, eating right and praying to my Lord. My Lord did not do His part. My Lord did not give his 110-percent.”
Coach Bill Belichick gave the player whose profile was higher than his production what may have been his last chance when he signed him June 11, the day the Patriots’ three-day minicamp began. And Tebow is grateful to Belichick.
In his follow up tweets, Tebow thanked the “entire Patriots organization for giving me the opportunity to be a part of such a classy organization.”
Tebow was not so charitable to his Evangelical Christian faith or his pastor at First Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida. “[Senior] Pastor Blunt promised me that if I stuck by my faith and supported his church, including financially, that I would at least achieve a back up quarterback position [in the NFL].”
Tebow added that he was “exploring all options” against the church, which usually implies legal action.
“He had a great college career and I think it’s probably time for him to admit that no supreme being will make him NFL material.”
Legal analyst and former prosecutor Rita Sharpe-McAllister said that lawsuits against churches are rare. “The First Amendment gives broad protections to religious organizations,” said Sharpe-McAllister. “Tebow may have more trouble with a lawsuit than reading a zone defense,” she said.
NFL.com analyst and former NFL executive Gil Brennan wasn’t surprised by Tebow’s religious about face.
“He had a great college career and I think it’s probably time for him to admit that no supreme being will make him NFL material,” Brandt said. “Perhaps he should embrace the notion that there is no god and the universe will eventually collapse on itself into an infinitesimally small point in space.”
A friend of Tebow that wished to remain anonymous said that recently Tebow has been questioning whether Jesus “was really something special” or whether he was just really adept at garnering followers by “talking good smack.”
Tebow was a devout Christian throughout his career at Florida, where he won the Heisman and two national championships while surrounded by talented teammates.