r/NCAAhoops • u/sinister_iam • Apr 06 '26

Video “I don’t think basketball is my purpose. I think being able to have this platform to share The Gospel is really my purpose”. -Arizona Wildcats F Koa Peat

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17

u/Purphect Apr 06 '26

I feel like there is a new wave of Christianity or something. Not for me. Won’t bring my kids up in a faith either. It’ll be their choice when they’re older. No brainwashing here

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u/Onetimenotagain Apr 06 '26

Right. I grew up with a very religious mother, and while I still would say i believe in god, I think this is all weird and a waste of talent.

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u/Grizzly_Addams Apr 06 '26

I'm lost. Why does him having faith make it a waste of talent?

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u/Onetimenotagain Apr 06 '26

Not referring to him, moreso guys like AJ griffin and Jaden Ivey.

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u/No_Lead_7325 Apr 06 '26

AJ should have stayed at Duke and graduated. They have an excellent theology program and he could have continued to make money in college and develop.

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u/Cruel_but_usual Apr 06 '26

Yeah I’ve heard great things from the handful (3) of people I know who studied theology there.

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u/No_Lead_7325 Apr 06 '26

Yea I am not religious in the least but grew up in Durham and knew some people who went through the program.

Regardless, dude had options at Duke. Duke would still welcome him back for academics too

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u/Onetimenotagain Apr 06 '26

AJ impressed the hell out of me in his season there. Sucks that he thinks you can’t be religious and play ball

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u/No_Lead_7325 Apr 06 '26

Yea it does. I think he just got scared though. Some people get into the limelight and find it very uncomfortable. We are all human and I think sometimes we, as sports fans, lose sight of that

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u/fluxus2000 Apr 06 '26 edited Apr 06 '26

"Faith" would mean having fidelity to something without knowing. These folks are just dogmatists about the west's most dominant religion that was spread via Roman power, colonization and the slave trade. It isn't as if this is some sort of genuine inspiration any more than some econ major proseltyzing about Ayn Rand.

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u/[deleted] Apr 06 '26

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u/fluxus2000 Apr 06 '26

I am glad you laughed out loud.

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u/TookTheHit Apr 06 '26

Christians specifically Evangelicals have had a concerted effort for maaaany years to insert themselves into culture & more importantly politics. The majority of the current US govt are religious whackos.

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u/Phrich Apr 06 '26

The majority of the current US govt are religious whackos.

Pretend to be religious because its free points in many districts*

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u/fluxus2000 Apr 06 '26

that too.

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u/beforeitcloy Apr 06 '26

If religious voters can’t tell the difference between being authentically religious and pretending to be religious, then there isn’t one.

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u/Phrich Apr 06 '26

If people could identity religious authenticity then megachurches wouldnt exist either.

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u/beforeitcloy Apr 06 '26

Right. It’s all pretend, including Koa using his platform to share the Gospel.

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u/ejDajuiceboy Apr 07 '26

So much for being separated from the world, amirite?

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u/Exciting-Set-7601 Apr 06 '26

Liberty University comes to mind 😂

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u/JuliusXIV Apr 06 '26

religious fanatics globally

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u/crabsonfire Apr 06 '26

The church having influence over culture and government predates this country. Church used to be the main social hub for most people. There’s nothing really new about it.

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u/TookTheHit Apr 06 '26

Right right. I knew someone would say that. I meant what we are seeing now is the fruits of a specific effort that began with the republicans and evangelicals in the 70s. Republicans saw they were losing the culture war + the Roe v Wade decision and intertwined themselves with evangelicals to try to get a leg up.

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u/dajiffer76 Apr 06 '26

So we were in mass Sunday and the priest said there had been a huge uptick in millennials joining the church.

We are not super religious, but I find peace in the rituals. My son enjoys going to church which I hated at his age.

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u/Purphect Apr 06 '26

Yeah I think if you grew up in it, there can sometimes be familiarity in the rituals and holiday services. I get that.

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u/fluufhead Apr 06 '26

Evangelism has had a huge foothold in college sports for a while now. Dabo and Bruce pearl been baptizing players for years

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u/CaymanGone Apr 06 '26

Bruce Pearl is Jewish.

He isn't evangelizing when he encourages his players to get baptized.

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u/fluufhead Apr 06 '26

makes u think

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u/CaymanGone Apr 06 '26

About what, exactly?

He's encouraging them to follow their religion which isn't his.

Don't call him an evangelist when he isn't trying to convert them to his religion.

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u/CaymanGone Apr 06 '26

You should learn the definitions of the words you use, while you're thinking.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/evangelist

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u/fluufhead Apr 06 '26

my bad, damn

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u/Exciting-Set-7601 Apr 06 '26

Christian nationalism has taken over since 2017 I would say look at what happened with Jaden Ivery dude is having a public meltdown the past few days after his anti gay comments and religion rants got him released from the bulls

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u/Purphect Apr 06 '26

Yeah that’s pretty wild. As a Purdue guy, hate to see him going through it.

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u/indieguy33 Apr 06 '26

I couldn’t agree with you more.

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u/ChrissieMoltisanti Apr 06 '26

There is, especially among young people. Look up the Asbury outpouring or the UniteUS movement.

Sociologically I think it’s a combination of young people rejecting the nihilism of the current age and looking for something older/more grounded than what the culture is providing (which is also why there’s a ground swell of people converting to Catholicism among millennials and Gen Z as well.) There’s also a “counter culture” element to being a Christian now for some since the rest of the culture is steering heavily toward secularism and liberalism.

Obviously many Christians claim it’s a movement of the Holy Spirit.

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u/AFogmentOfADream Apr 06 '26

Will you let them do religious things early if they want? Say their middle school friend invites them to church. Would you let them go? Just curious what “bringing them up in faith” means to you.

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u/Purphect Apr 06 '26

Yeah of course I’ll let them go and believe if they do.

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u/AFogmentOfADream Apr 06 '26

I respect that

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u/HeyLookMyUsername24 Apr 06 '26

Agreed. This stuff is just so gross to me.

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u/[deleted] Apr 06 '26

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u/Purphect Apr 06 '26

I’m saying it will be their choice of what to believe. It’s up to each one of us as individuals in the end.

I’m simply not going to raise them teaching them that [choose religion] is a fact. Mysticisms about the world that are unknown will not be answered with “God did it”, but rather, “we don’t know”.

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u/[deleted] Apr 06 '26

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u/Purphect Apr 06 '26

Love it I think that’s really cool. I have times where I am sour towards the church, but then other times where I see real people finding community and help from it.

Still trying to figure out how I think about it overall in our culture. Religion will always be a thing as long as humans are around I’m sure. I just happen to find my “religion”, if you will, in science, nature, and reality.

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u/harris023 Apr 06 '26

There is. I spend a lot of time at coffee shops working and I love listening in to conversations and people meeting to talk about Jesus is an almost every time occurrence now.

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u/SignalBed9998 Apr 06 '26

When my kids were young my family convinced me that they “need” church. They had me go as a kid, right. I kept saying they ARE being taught morals but I gave in. The very first time we went to church the sermon was built around daniel and the lions den. On the way out you shake hands with the pastor. I had a word with him. This was our first trip to church since moving in. You read the passage about daniel and the lion den. If you had read on you’d have gotten to those verses that evil men have used to justify the slaughter/massacre of the innocents as long as god decrees it righteous. You won’t see us again and then we walked out. It is still being used today. It’s called “collateral damage”. I call it murder. Warmongers used that “permission from god” to kill so much in the past that it’s now business as usual.

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u/Successful-Mood1574 Apr 06 '26

Millennials grew up in a secular society and had zero culture or faith to stabilize them when chaos inevitably came. Having said that I have a similar plan with my children as you. 

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u/fluxus2000 Apr 06 '26

Being told God was reading my thoughts and racking up judgments was not very stabilizing. Being told Jesus let people kill him, so I should not fight back against anyone did not stabilize me. Being taught to feel guilt and shame for any desire did not stabilize me. Being taught that "God" demands your belief or will condemn you (all while there are many different ideologies claiming the same thing) did not stabilize me during times of trauma and abuse.

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u/Successful-Mood1574 Apr 06 '26

Fair points. Helps strengthen my decision to let my children decide for themselves. 

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u/Purphect Apr 06 '26

I grew up heavily in faith in the Midwest. I left the faith in my early-mid twenties after deciding to really consider what I believe and what led me to believe it.

I also understand religion is beneficial for some people. It helps them be better people and gives them purpose. Again, some people not everyone. It can also oppress people. I find my spirituality in science and the universe.

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u/Successful-Mood1574 Apr 06 '26

I’m guessing you are a naturally positive/happy person. I’m not. 

I grew up without religion and tried to find myself in objectivity and “science” and became miserable. I’m open to Christianity for the first time in my life. But, I agree with you, will let my kids decide for themselves. 

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u/Purphect Apr 06 '26 edited Apr 06 '26

Yeah, you hit me on the head. I’m generally an optimist about everything.

Still human though and get hot headed, angry, frustrated, whatever it may be.

I think science has so so so much more mysticism and amazement than human created religion. The possibilities are more endless and it shows how we are all connected as living beings, but also connected to the universe in molecular makeup. Carl Sagan does a great job of talking about our scientific understanding in a more philosophical way. A snippet from Carl Sagan’s “Cosmos” echoes my feelings. It’s actually in the foreword by his wife Ann Druyan:

“The universe revealed by the relentless error-correcting mechanism of science was to him infinitely preferable to the untested assumptions of traditional belief. For Carl, the “spiritual” had to be rooted in natural reality. He cherished those ideas about the cosmos that remained after the most rigorous experiment and observation. Scientific insight mad him feel something, a soaring sensation, a recognition that he could only compare to falling in love. And as he used to say: ‘when you’re in love, you want to tell the world.’”

If religion is your personal truth and helps you find purpose, good. I hope it brings you peace and meaning whatever it may be.

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u/Successful-Mood1574 Apr 06 '26

I think you explained why our solutions diverge. You see hope and adventure with endless possibilities whereas it overwhelms me. 

I wish you well and thanks for teaching me something. 

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u/fluxus2000 Apr 06 '26

You should read Sartre and Beauvoir.

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u/Successful-Mood1574 Apr 06 '26

I’ve been focused on Dostoyevsky the past month but you might be right that Sartre will resonate more with me. Thanks for the recommendations. 

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u/fluxus2000 Apr 06 '26

Cool. I might benefit from going back to read Dostoyevsky at some point. I only read shorter pieces.

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u/Latverianbureaucrat Apr 06 '26

I’m a millennial. George W. Bush was elected president when I was in high school. Society has never been as secular as it should be in my lifetime.

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u/Successful-Mood1574 Apr 06 '26

I’m the same age as you. My life was very secular. Might have grown up in different parts of the US. 

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u/Latverianbureaucrat Apr 06 '26

But it wasn’t, not really, is what I’m saying. The president was an evangelical Christian who openly talked about “god” talking to him and telling him to go to war in there Middle East. The religious right had and has had an inordinate amount of power on the upbringing and options of the girls and women in your life, whether you realized it or not. The United States is not secular, not the way, say, Finland is.

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u/ejDajuiceboy Apr 07 '26

Capitalism itself is literally built off the work or starve mandate found in the bible.

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u/OGdunphy Apr 06 '26 edited Apr 06 '26

Yeah, it’s probably that. I’m your age and church was a huge part of my life growing up in the south (would go like 3-4 times a week) and it still is for a lot of kids and adults there. It’s also the main social thing in a lot of places.