Church Fun Not Benched By NFL
By Leigh Landini Wright, The Paducah Sun, Ky.
Feb. 3– — Boyd Smith has two words for the National Football League — spiritual warfare.
The NFL quashed plans by Fall Creek Baptist Church in Indianapolis to host a “Super Bowl Bash,” citing copyright laws and set off a national outrage in online forums set up by newspapers. NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told the Indianapolis Star that the league has a policy banning “mass-out-of-home” viewing of the big game. It also has restrictions on the use of the words “Super Bowl” in promotional materials, and the television screen must be 55 inches or smaller. The policy also bans admission fees and showing the game in connection with events “that promote a message.”
Smith, youth minister of First Baptist Church in Murray, expressed disappointment with the NFL’s rules. “I call that spiritual warfare,” he said. “The secular world doesn’t want the church to be involved.”
The Murray church has hosted a Super Bowl party for youth for the past 12 to 13 years, Smith said. The game is projected onto a screen, but Smith laughed and said he’s sure the 55-inch rule won’t affect the party because the projector is so old it wouldn’t allow for that large of a picture. The party is free.
Stefan Jagoe, youth minister at Grace Episcopal Church in downtown Paducah, said the youth party there will go on as planned. The television screen is 51 inches, and only 15 to 20 people are expected. Another 51-inch television will be set up elsewhere for those teens that want to watch a movie.
“I guess I can understand the copyright laws, and the ones who keep the Nielson ratings. They can’t do the Nielson ratings if they’re not home,” he said. “I don’t see where it hurts them (the NFL) all that much. You’re still going to watch the advertising.”
Aiello also told the Indianapolis paper that exceptions are made for bars, restaurants and businesses that show sporting events daily. The NFL approves of broadcasts when they are shown on a single television screen, but it objects to events in an auditorium setting or the use of several oversized monitors.
Zach Browning, pastor of Reidland Christian Church, said the rules probably won’t apply to his church because the game will be projected onto a wall, not a television screen. Admission is free, and the game isn’t the prime activity. Most of the people who come to the party come for the annual chili cookoff, he said. He expects 45 to 50 congregation members to attend.
“The legal implications really aren’t there,” he said. “I can’t see any harm being done. We’re not pirating the signal. We’re getting it for free.”
News of the NFL’s actions first were reported in Thursday’s edition of the Indianapolis Star, prompting more than 600 replies from readers. Many pointed out that the NFL allows bars and restaurants that normally show games to show the Super Bowl, yet churches are not allowed.
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Copyright (c) 2007, The Paducah Sun, Ky.
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