Reviving "Muscular Christianity": Gil Dodds and the Institutionalization of Sport Evangelism

About a century after its British origins, muscular Christianity was revived by American Protestant fundamentalists as they recovered from the religious depression of the 1920s-1930s. The muscular Christianity developed by Gil Dodds and his fundamentalist associates differed from the British origina...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Sociological focus (Kent, Ohio) Ohio), 1990-08, Vol.23 (3), p.233-249
Main Author: Mathisen, James A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Archives
Basketball
Christianity
Churches
Evangelism
International cooperation
Olympic games
Proselytism
Protestantism
Religious Fundamentalism
Running
Seminary
Sports
United States of America
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Summary:About a century after its British origins, muscular Christianity was revived by American Protestant fundamentalists as they recovered from the religious depression of the 1920s-1930s. The muscular Christianity developed by Gil Dodds and his fundamentalist associates differed from the British original by favoring attitudes that were individualistic and Salvationist toward religion, extrinsic about sport, and positive toward culture - not unlike the British variant of C. T. Studd in the 1880s. Following the formation of groups such as Sports Ambassadors and the Fellowship of Christian Athletes in the 1950s, the International Sports Coalition has sought to institutionalize further the activities of dozens of sport ministry organizations by seeking to enhance sport as a means of religious proselytizing while looking toward the twenty-first century.
ISSN:0038-0237
2162-1128
DOI:10.1080/00380237.1992.10570566