Tag: football


Taylor Swift, Gameday, and Church

Taylor Swift in green dress on stage with backup singers at Eras concert, fans in background

Taylor Swift’s concert tour has generated significant attention with heartwarming stories of supportive parents, marriage proposals, and the like, along with lots of memes. One author compared the experience with group singing in worship settings, calling the concert “The Church of Taylor Swift”. The post certainly touches on an important element within both Taylor Swift concerts and congregational worship, the experience of group singing. However, thinking critically about who creates the comparison, based on what assumptions, and for what ends […]

Read More from Taylor Swift, Gameday, and Church

“I Can’t Believe It”

Sometimes ordinary language tells us far more about social life than we at first realize. For example, take two common phrases: “I can’t believe it” and “Let it sink in…” What’s going on when we say that? Or, better put, when do we say that? And what does it tell us about the word “belief” — a word we usually use as if it names some pristine interior realm that’s only secondarily projected out and expressed in public. […]

Read More from “I Can’t Believe It”

What Does “Omaha!” Mean?

Photo: Craig Hawkins via Flickr Peyton Manning loves Omaha. Or at least the Denver Broncos quarterback loves to yell “OMAHA!” just before the start of a play. Omaha is just one of the many words he and other quarterbacks yell just before the ball is snapped. Sometimes these words are audibles, quick changes of the play the team is about to run. Sometimes they are meaningless verbiage meant to confuse the other team. […]

Read More from What Does “Omaha!” Mean?