I thought we had dealt to the Springbok tests (actually they dealt to us!) and the potential for any great collective religious enthusiasm that might arise from such group participation. Call it an epiphany if it helps. It recognises that the spirit is “a corporate reality, a shared possession of the whole people of God.” Laymen might call it the “shivery jims”.
Something similar — though on a smaller scale — was recently trundled out by one of NZ’s most experienced journalists – Joe Bennett, a professed non-believer but in the case of his enthusiasm for rugby, prepared to make an exception. Here’s what he said – “Not knowing” the rugby result (i.e. watching the replay at more sociable hours) “brought a fluttering nervousness to the body, as if the blood were over oxygenated. It is hard to explain. I know the game didn’t matter, but somehow, through the publicity, through the natural partisanship of a male, through an atavistic love of conflict, through intuitive tribalism, through the wish to belong to an entity larger than I am I have allowed the All Blacks to become my representative. What happens to them effectively happens to me. When they run, or tackle, or leap, I twitch in sympathy on the sofa. I tried to imagine tackling one of these Springboks and failed. It would be like trying to stop earth moving machinery. It is hard to imagine a better name for a prop than Ox Nché. I felt much as David’s supporters must have felt when they caught a glimpse of Goliath.”
Now none of this is anywhere near a religious experience, but it definitely qualifies as an enthusiasm.
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