Right: many Christian organisations actively promote resistance to the idea of AFL football on Christianity's most sacred day. Found a word you're not familiar with? Double-click that word to bring up a dictionary reference to it. The dictionary page includes an audio sound file with which to actually hear the word said. |
Further implications
The predominant argument used to support the playing of ALF football and other sporting events on Good Friday is that the day no longer holds sufficient significance for a majority of Australians to have it given over exclusively to religious observance and reflection.
Some social commentators have noted that if that is the case, the question should not be, ‘Do we play football, open shops or otherwise continue normal activities on Good Friday?’ The question should rather be, ‘Do we continue to observe the Good Friday holiday at all?’
This point has been discussed at length by Bazza Lencko in an opinion piece published in The Roar on April 8, 2012. An extract from Mr Lencko’s argument follows.
The full text can be accessed at http://www.theroar.com.au/2012/04/08/afl-makes-good-decision-on-good-friday-football/
‘Diverse as we are, Australia currently identifies as a Christian nation. Good Friday does not hold significance in most non-Christian cultures thus they do not have a Good Friday public holiday.
In Australia it is a holiday because as a nation we recognise the significance of the day, even if individual residents may not. If we schedule a game during the day on Good Friday, we are asking people to attend that game instead of the events the day is held sacred for. If we cease to revere the day for its religious significance, we remove the very reason for the holiday.
The only acceptable way would be to schedule the game at night. It would allow time to attend religious events, for those who so choose. However, if the argument for a Good Friday game is based on increasing numbers of people not observing the day, we are catering for a crowd who do not acknowledge the day whilst allowing respect for those who do. If those who do are truly in the minority, then the public holiday becomes redundant.
When we reach this point, scheduling a Friday night match on Good Friday is no different from any other Friday. When attendances and revenue dropped for the Royal Melbourne Show, the public holiday was removed. Those in regional Victoria and other states do not receive the Melbourne Cup holiday because even if they support it, they do not attend in high numbers regularly. Yet enough people support and participate in the day’s main event to justify the holiday.
The debate for a Good Friday game therefore is not about whether a game should be scheduled but whether the day itself still holds enough reverence to enough people that a public holiday is justified. If attendances for Good Friday services drop to insignificant rates, perhaps it would be justifiable to eliminate the public holiday. Like less popular religions in Australia, people could use an annual leave day to observe the religious significance of Good Friday while the remainder of Australians could work as normal and wander over to the MCG for the routine 7pm night game.
To challenge the reverence of the day is to challenge the need for the day itself…’