Florida Quarterback Tebow Leaves Reporters Speechless: "Yes I am" Saving Myself for Marriage

LifeSite ^ | July 30, 2009 | John Jalsevac

[NYer]

Tim Tebow

LifeSiteNews.com) - Last week Florida Gators Quarterback Tim Tebow's photo may have graced the cover of Sports Illustrated, the same magazine that is best known for its annual "swimsuit issue," but the contrast between the two cover stories couldn't have been more glaring.

At 21 years of age and graced with boyish good looks, Tebow is one of the most talked about rising stars of the NCAA; but the football superstar literally left reporters speechless last week when he answered a question during a press conference about whether or not he is "saving himself" for marriage. quot;Yes I am," said Tebow briefly, who then indicated he was ready for the next question. However, in the video of the press conference, a reporter is heard stumbling over his words in the background as he tries to ask a follow-up question. Tebow then laughs, obviously reacting to the reactions of the reporters in the room.

"I think y'all were stunned by that," he says. "Y'all can't even ask a question. Wow. I mean, I was ready for that question. I don't think y'all were."

It wasn't the only controversial remark that Tebow made that day. In response to another question about whether or not people may be tired of the volume of coverage devoted to the young football star, Tebow, a devout Christian, said that the level of exposure he receives is a mixed blessing. However, he said, he looks at the positive side that, thanks to his fame, he has been able to share his Christian faith with so many people.

In addition, the football star told the reporters that he believes that the publicity given to his mother's story has helped other women choose not to abort their unborn children. Tebow's mother, who serves as a Christian missionary together with her husband, was pressured to abort Tebow following a life-threatening infection she suffered while pregnant with him. Doctors pressured her to abort her son to save her own life, but she ultimately resisted the pressure and both mother and child survived the birth.

"There has been a lot of people that have been encouraged not to have an abortion because they heard the story of my mom, or they have been encouraged because they have heard me give my faith on TV or in a report or something," said Tebow.

"You know what, although there has been a backlash, oh, well. You know what, I'll deal with it if I have to. It's not a big deal to me because of the kids and people that have been encouraged by the stories we have tried to tell and by the life that I've tried to live."

Growing up Tebow would often help his parents with their Christian mission work in the Philippines. He was homeschooled by his mother, who instilled in her children strong Christian values.

Tebow was the first home-schooled athlete to be nominated for the Heisman Trophy. "That's really cool," he said at the time. "A lot of times people have this stereotype of homeschoolers as not very athletic - it's like, go win a spelling bee or something like that - it's an honor for me to be the first one to do that.

[Chickensoup]

Leftists and elites are very parochial

[Golden Gate]

#79 & #83 fwiw -

[NYer]

Why is this a Catholic Ping?

Why not? Tebow is a Christian who received those morals from the Bible that was compiled by the Catholic Church.

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[agrace]

Nothing against Tebow, but why is it that Protestant Missionaries are constantly going to countries that are predominantly Catholic, rather than to the countries in Africa, or the Middle East, or ANY Asian country besides the Philippines, where non-Christian people are the norm. The Philippines is 80% Catholic and 10% Protestant. Besides the Philippines, they seem to favor heavily Catholic Latin American countries, which also have large baptized populations.

I understand your point but don’t agree that your post is entirely true with regard to missions as a whole. It is true that much focus has been placed upon the Latin American countries, but now a lot emphasis has shifted to the 1040 window, where over 4 billion people and 97% of all unreached people groups live.

Some countries are locked down tight - it‘s estimated that some 60 countries are closed to missions, and plenty more make it very difficult. There are the obvious - North Korea, Iran, Saudi Arabia etc. India, which of course allows all sorts of international workers, was officially closed to overt missions work in the early nineties, I believe. But even so, there are plenty of missionaries in a number of closed countries, but they don’t go in as missionaries, and they work very discreetly upon fear of imprisonment, expulsion or death. I belong to a strong missions-based denomination (C&MA) that has dozens of missionaries in “creative access” countries in Asia and the Middle East, missionaries we hardly hear about, can’t talk openly about or publish info on.

In addition, we have scores of missionaries in predominantly Muslim West Africa, volatile areas where political winds shift constantly and clashes are often a concern (Cote D’Ivoire and Guinea, for example). And headway is hard among those native Muslim people groups, but they are there. They’re in ex-soviet states of Central Asia, where churches are not allowed and proselytizing gets you jailed or thrown out. These days some of those states have a deadly idealogical mix of holdover soviet Marxism and Islamism. And we have missionaries overtly working in Indonesia, the most populous Muslim country in the world.

There’s even been a return to European countries like France and Germany, because their religious demographics have shifted so much that they are unrecognizable.

And who knows how many there are from other nations. For example, there is a group of Chinese evangelicals called Back to Jerusalem which for the past several decades has made it their mission to reach all the people groups between China and Israel, mostly Muslims, because, as they put it, they are used to persecution from Communist China, and therefore already trained to withstand it.

And about those Philippines - despite the demographic you cited, it's not exactly a safe place, considering the spread of radical Islam out from southeast Asia - Al Qaeda offshoots are active, and Muslim rebel groups in the south have been fighting the Philippine govt for autonomy for years, leaving thousands dead and hundreds of thousands displaced.

[Dr. Sivana]

McKinley was infamous for saying something to that effect about the Philippines 100 years ago,

Infamous to the citizens of the nation of the United States or to the nation of Vatican?

Inasmuch as Vatican City didn't come into existence until 1929, I doubt it would be Vatican City.

The McKinley quotation is:
"(4) that there was nothing left for us to do but to take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and civilize and Christianize them"

Such a line is an insult to any educated man, American or otherwise.

[rabidralph]

There are plenty of christian missionaries in Africa and in other countries that don’t have a catholic presence. I don’t know why the media focuses on the ones in certain countries. What are you afraid of?

[ansel12]

My guess is that it did not bother the American people and that they supported it.

Those crazy Americans, they do have their own desires and goals at times, I wonder where the Philippines would be today if we had ‘uplifted and civilized and Christianized them’, probably far more advanced than they are today.

[Dr. Sivana]

Thank you for your thoughtful reply. Regarding the Philippines in particular, I did not understand that the missionaries were going primarily to those Muslim territories, but I wish them well if they do.

I also know that Red China could use all the Christianity it can get, and know that there is real activity going on there (I mean outside of the state-sanctioned churches, of course).

I had not heard of activity in Indonesia (or Malaysia or other non-Christian pacific rim countries like Thailand).

It is a big world, filled largely with pagans, Muslims and atheists. I am not moved by those who say that increasing Protestant populations in Catholic countries is in the U.S. interests, as we are an abortion on demand country, and had been exporting THAT as far back as 1948 (encouraging it in Japan, which sadly today has very high abortion rates.) The official American interests have not been particular Christian for some time, and at best are neutral, but often aggressively hostile to religious practice, whether it is in the name of science, pragmatism or ideology.

Not every missionary necessarily has to put himself in extreme danger as a matter of course, but there is a lot of untrod territory that could use the effort more than the Philippines and Latin America.

[Dr. Sivana]

I wonder where the Philippines would be today if we had ‘uplifted and civilized and Christianized them’, probably far more advanced than they are today.

As the U.S. has abortion on demand and the Philippines does not, I maintain that the Philippines is more civilized than the U.S. With 90% professing Christianity still, it is also now more Christian. They aren't as wealthy as we are. Of course, we bought Puerto Rico at the same time, and still have them. They are heavily subsidized, don't have to worry about pockets of Muslims, and have a favorable location and climate, but are still quite poor. How long does it take to "uplift and civilize" someone up to MTV standards?

[ansel12]

You don’t seem to care for America much judging by the way you keep referring to us.

When you look at Hispanic protestants in America and see them voting republican do you see any benefit to them spreading that conservatism among their Mexico brethren, or would that only be dragging Mexico from their elevated position down into the muck with America?

[Dr. Sivana]

or would that only be dragging Mexico from their elevated position down into the muck with America?

For a Christian, you don't seem too concerned with the blood of fifty million innocent babies. We are already in the muck. Cuban-born Catholics have been voting Republican for decades. But if you insist, I am Catholic and pro-life before I am a Republican.

[Pinkbell]

Great guy! That is the type of guy I want to marry. Whoever gets him is a lucky girl.

The tabloids will be watching him like a hawk, though. Liberals love it when Christians fail to live up to their standards. Of course, liberals have no standards at all.

[ansel12]

For a Christian, you don't seem too concerned with the blood of fifty million innocent babies.

Democrat politicians gave us abortion, do you ever ask yourself how different America would be if Catholics had voted like Protestants since they started showing up here about 160 years ago and especially in the last 19 elections or so? Imagine 54% of the Catholic vote going for McCain istead of the actual 45% in 2008 for instance.

As we speak, in America Catholics are less pro-life than Protestants.

[kinsman redeemer]

This is a great story! God bless him and his family!

What a testimony of God’s promise: “Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it. “ (Pv 22:6)

God is GOOD!

ALL the time.

[kinsman redeemer]

Thanks

[kinsman redeemer]

As we speak, in America Catholics are less pro-life than Protestants.

...and they vote.

[agrace]

I don’t at all disagree with you regarding untrod territory...said from the comfort and safety of my plush-by-the-world’s-standards home. :) I also agree with you regarding American interests.

I don’t know that missionaries are primarily in dangerous Philippine areas, but some of them certainly are (I could tell anecdotal stories but I don’t have figures). With regard to Malaysia and Thailand - tough countries. Burma too. My pastor was actually just to Malaysia for a month-long teaching tour at the request of a group there. In Thailand the Christian Hmong are having a terrible time - cross border refugees fleeing persecution in Laos, hiding in the jungle by the hundreds or living in refugee camps. Burmese fleeing to Thailand too. I’m not sure which is worse - radical Islam, communism or military junta.

[WhyisaTexasgirlinPA]

The press are by and large such whores they were stunned to learn someone hasn’t sold out any part of his life.... Good luck Tim and thanks for being such a great role model!