As the first poster (so far) who is a minister (Baptist church), let me interact with some previous comments and then my perspective.
If he felt so strongly about this he wouldn't have played Sunday games for Eels and Sea Eagles. Why is it suddenly so much more important this year?
People come to different points of principle at different times. He obviously thinks that now this is something he has to do.
I love it in this day and age people don't believe... until something bad in their life happens they immediately blame god for not stopping it.... go figure?
Plenty of people (myself included) whose faith has not originated in a time of trouble, let alone started by complaining to God about what He did/didn't do.
I also love how Christians say "God helps those who help themselves"
errr that aint God, its you !!
If they say it, it's a false thing to say. Not in the Bible, attributed to Benjamin Franklin (IIRC). Doesn't mesh with the character of God at all.
He's got some real problems, he can't play Saturday either as a long long time ago, it was actually the last day of the week (Sabbath) before all the cults and nutters decided we should serve God on their Sunday(Catholicism).
Wrong. The earliest recording of Christians meeting was that they met on the first day of the week, as a way of commemorating the resurrection of Jesus. Jews meet (and still do) on the Saturday. Seventh Day Adventists meet on Saturdays too, believing that the Sabbath is still the day to meet. Many churches have Saturday night services, midweek services, etc.
What's the big deal? Faith is literally gullibility. Believing something with no objective evidence to do so. That's the big deal. If you want to believe in some made up stories, that's fine, but do so in your own home, in your own time, and acknowledge that it's made up bullcrap. Don't bring it into work or force it upon other people.
Where to start here? Saying that faith=gullibility does not make it so. As a Christian, my faith is in these things I profess to be true:
1. God is real (sure, I can't point to irrefutable evidence, but there is sufficient evidence for me to trust this to be true)
2. Jesus wasn't just an exemplary human, but God in human form (not just a son, but God Himself).
3. Jesus' death and resurrection are the basis of the forgiveness God offers to people.
If I profess this faith, then it should change how I live. I ought to no loner live for myself, but for God. That means living in a way that reflects the character of God (love for others amongst other aspects)
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So, what do I think of Hopoate's decision? The Sabbath principle (as the command isn't repeated in the New Testament, therefore doesn't bind in the same way for Christians as for Jews, hence the photo posted of all the things Last Week posted doesn't work) could be used as Hopoate has decided.
What I find strange is that Hopoate played on Good Friday, the most solemn day on the Christian calendar. It gets a little confusing, as I'm not exactly sure what Good Friday means for Mormons, as they veer from the majority of the Christian faith on a number of important aspects of the faith.
I've played sport on Sundays before (and probably will in the future at times), but the determining factor is whether it interferes with my ability to be part of my church's service that day (which I do for a number of reasons, none of them to hear some "psycho babble reheated bullshit" a la Johnnie Red's comment). So it's meant I've played one day of a two day cricket semifinal and been available for day 2 as a sub fielder for a time, as I needed to be at work (church) in the morning and evening. It's meant I've participated in cricket and soccer trials, because neither overlapped. If it were me in Will's position, I don't think I would have a problem. But he's communicated his desire, good on him for sticking with it.
