10/16/2011 - by Chuck Monan, Preaching Minister

The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.
~ Mohandus Gandhi

The popularity of professional football in America is immense.  The Nielsen Co. estimates that 111 million people watched the 2011 Super Bowl.

The popularity of dogs in America is also immense.  The American Veterinary Medical Association estimates that there are 72 million pet dogs in the U.S. (Inexplicably, there are even more pet cats at 82 million ... but that is a discussion for another time).

Given the runaway popularity of football and dogs in this country, it is no wonder that there are few more controversial and polarizing figures than Michael Vick.

Unless you have been living in a bomb shelter, you likely already know all about Vick’s story.  A star quarterback at Virginia Tech, Vick was the #1 pick in the 2001 NFL draft by the Atlanta Falcons.  His football career seemed finished, however, when he pled guilty in 2007 to federal charges in a dogfighting investigation.  Vick’s behavior, in the words of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was “not only illegal, but also cruel and reprehensible.”  He was banned from the NFL and sent off to prison.

Of local interest, the new Atlanta coach who had been counting on Vick to be his star player was so upset with this development that he quit after less than a year on the job.  His name was Bobby Petrino.  No one seems to know what happened to him. 

Since his release from prison and reinstatement by the NFL, Vick has beaten the odds and become an even better football player, and was voted the 2011 NFL Comeback Player of the Year.  More importantly, he seems to have become a better man.  He has done everything asked of him, has honored every commitment, has been effective in speaking out against cruelty to animals, and has become a good teammate and citizen.    For many, this is not enough.  They refuse to forgive him.  When ESPN The Magazine put Vick on the cover of its 2011 NFL Preview issue, the backlash was predictable.  Many hate him and will never accept him, no matter how many changes he makes in his life.  Letters to the magazine assailed the decision to put a convicted felon on the cover.  The Mag explained their decision:

If you want to understand the current state of the NFL warts, and everything, all you need to do is study Vick.  He’s not a prepackaged, market-tested cliché.  He’s real and raw and flawed, and like the rest of us, probably not as bad as you imagine, or as good. In that sense, the visor Vick wears inside his helmet acts like a mirror: When we glare at him for answers and insight, what we mostly get back is a reflection of ourselves.   Some see his comeback as a story of humbled redemption.  Others see him far more darkly: as a criminal who got what he deserved, a pathetic waste of talent and time, just another athlete derailed by a sense of entitlement.

Jesus tells us, “Unless you repent, you too will all perish” (Luke 13:3).  Vick seems to have repented.  He says, “If I could go back and change my life, I would not change going to prison.  I was never gonna change.  I was never gonna stop what I was doing or acting the way I was acting.  In prison, that’s where I became a leader.”

For all of us unwilling to forgive, we need to make sure we don’t make any mistakes ourselves.

Ever.