Skip to main content

What’s With All the Name Calling?

  You may have heard about how the Cleveland Indians Baseball franchise is removing the longtime mascot Chief Wahoo from its logo. For some, the caricature was a racist stab at Native Americans. Some wonder if it won’t be long till the club changes its nickname as well since some view it as an offensive term. They might have ground since it started that way.

 The story begins with a player Louis ‘Sock” Sockalexis.[i] He was a teenage phenome from Old Town, Maine. He was a member of the Bear Clan where his grandfather was a chief. He was recruited to play baseball at Holy Cross College and then Notre Dame until he was stolen away by a scout to play for Cleveland. His legend preceded him in Cleveland. Many, even to this day, argue he was one of the best to ever play the game. He added to the legend on his first game when the opposing pitcher flatly stated he was going to “strike out the Indian”, Sock rather slapped the pitcher’s first curveball over the fence. He ended his first season, only playing half of it, with a remarkable .338 batting average.

  It, however, wasn’t enough for the fans.

  At home the Cleveland fans expected him to go yard at every at bat and voiced their displeasure when he didn’t. On the road, fans mock his native heritage. Sportswriters expected to him to be the team, calling the club the Indians. (That name would stick so well it evenly replaced the Spiders as the official nickname.) The expectations were too much for the young man and he turned to the bottle, eventual drinking himself to death. The possibly best ever never finished a full season of baseball[ii].

  Expectations can be funny things. People can love and hate you in an instant. When we speak of judging, we think of looking down on a person but it can also be holding them to too high of a standard. We are quick to lash out when a person we claim to hold in high regard doesn’t do everything exactly the way we think is right. It’s sad how many good people have been ground to dust simply because they were not good enough in other eyes.

Who are you to judge the servant of another? To his own master he stands or falls; and he will stand, for the Lord is able to make him stand.
Romans 14:4

 Let’s never forget the only person we have to live up to is our Lord. And He is faithful and just and forgiving (1st John 1:9). Instead of picking other people apart, let's leave a little room for kindness, tenderheartedness, and forgiveness (Ephesians 4:32).

  Before we start with the name-calling, let remind ourselves whose name we are supposed to be living up too.   



[i] Ironically he hated the nickname “Sock”
[ii] Source: That’s Not In My History Book by Thomas Ayers
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Mysterious Ways

    William Cowper didn’t see any reason to live.   He decided that he’d jump off the bridge over the Thames. So, he called a cab to take him there.   But that night in 1763, a thick fog enveloped London. It was so thick the cab driver couldn’t find the bridge and couldn’t even find the way to take William home. In frustration, he ordered the driver to stop and get out to get his bearings. He walked up to the nearest house to read the number and it was William's house. Gone now were William’s thoughts of suicide and instead a new idea came into his head. So, he went in and wrote these words: God moves in mysterious ways His wonders to perform. He plants his footsteps in the sea And rides upon the storm.  You fearful saints, fresh courage take; The clouds you so much dread Are big with mercy and shall break In blessings on your head.     I sometimes wish we could see all the ways God watches over us when need it. There are...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Gift You Give Yourself

    I always hated buying gifts for my Mom. If I got her something like a new set of pans, it was like saying “Here’s something you can use to go make me something to eat”. A gift for her was seemingly a gift for me.   There are however gifts you give that benefit you more than the receiver. For example, forgiveness. When you give it, you are giving it to yourself as much as you are giving it to them. Jesus said that when we forgive others it means God is forgiving us our wrongs (Matthew 6:14-15).  I once read: “ Heaven is where everyone's forgiven. Hell is where nobody's forgiven.  So, when we forgive we pull heaven down into our lives.  When we withhold forgiveness, we pull hell up into our lives ” Give yourself something nice today, Forgive.
Post a Comment
Read more

Canned Faith

  As Dale Jenkins wrote: “Faith is a little like paint. As long as it’s in the can, it isn't much. Left in the can long enough a gallon of paint will ruin. Faith left unpracticed and unexercised will too….  You can’t just talk about faith.  To be effective, you must be living it out. So take the paint out of the can and start painting.”   The Bible says in James 2:18,”  But someone may well say, "You have faith and I have works; show me your faith without the works, and I will show you my faith by my works . " Faith is something that only works when it is used. If our faith doesn’t do anything, is it really there at all?   Truly “ living by faith ” isn’t just a proclamation we make but one we live in how we walk and talk, how we live and interact, and what we say but also what we do.  Is our faith canned? Is it something we have if we go looking for it? Or is it something that is being used daily in our lives?   Does your faith color eve...
Post a Comment
Read more