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I'm Krista Tippett. Today we'll playfully explore the sacrament of sports and the metaphysics of baseball

Joe Price, a theologian and a passionate sports fan. Susan Sarandon, Michael Novak and Nat King Cole will also chime in.

From American public media this is speaking of faith, public radio's conversation about belief, meaning, ethics and ideas.

Today in praise of play.

Here's a swing and a high five on going deep to life this may do it. Back to the one of those barriers.

Hold on to sacrament on the pilot.

When we reflect on sports in moral terms these days, we're likely to focus on drug abuse or excessive commercialization.

My guest today Joe Price doesn't dismiss those problems but he does provide a more generous one might even say soulful perspective for considering them.

He spent much of his career as a theologian exploring the religious character of sporting events and the holy endeavor of loving sports as a fan.

His personal devotion began early.

On I believe it was October of 1956 I had a conversion experience. I became a Yankee fan. I grew up in a preacher's household.

So basically I was always inundated with religious language and expectations about what was a religious pious lifestyle.

One of those infacies was perfection. So when I read in the newspaper that Don Larson had pitched perfect game in the World Series I figured that since I had been called to be a baseball fan I must be a Yankee fan.

And my devotion has been uninterrupted now for more than 40 years.

At Whittier College in California Joe Price teaches an undergraduate course called Sport Play and Ritual which includes some fascinating historical perspective.

Baseball football and basketball may have been invented in America but as late as the turn of the 20th century our Puritan Protestant culture widely held leisure activity especially sports to be sinful, certainly prohibited on Sabbath days.

The corner was turned by innovators like Amos Alonzo Stagg who sought to reconcile his passion for sports with his sense of vocation to Christian ministry.

As that kind of fusion took place football got quite a bit of prominence especially from Amos Alonzo Stagg who was himself a devout Christian even though he invented things like the deceptive plays of the statue of liberty

in the hidden ball trick. And those were thought to be somewhat sinful coming from this very pious man. James Naesmith invented the game of basketball in the late 19th century.

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