Victor Penney:
Interim writer Victor Penney, Sporting Life
Do you know what I love about old books? Passages like this:
“The body-coats of naked steel,
The woven iron coats of mail,
Like water fly before the swing
Of Hakon’s sword–the champion-king.
About each Gotland war-man’s head
Helm splits, like ice beneath the tread,
Cloven by the axe or sharp swordblade,
The brave king, foremost in the fight,
Dyes crimson-red the spotless white
Of his bright shield with foemen’s gore.”
That’s a description of a battle from Heimskringla. The work dates back to the 13th century, a collection of epic stories about great kings from Norway and Sweden – I tell my kids it’s a book about cool Viking stuff. The content conjures to mind images of berserker warriors, broad axes, and plundering raiders. No wonder the NFL’s Minnesota franchise named their team the “Vikings” when they came into the league in 1960; it was an aggressive moniker and would resonate with local Scandinavian communities. The team, however, is embracing a different legacy these days and I don’t think Leif Erikson would approve.
The Minnesota Vikings added two openly gay men, Louie Conn and Blaize Shiek, to their cheerleading squad this year, and they appeared in the team’s preseason opener on August 9. In addition, there was a number of social media posts showcasing the duo dancing and waving pom-poms.
The backlash was fiery with angry fans calling for a boycott of the team online. The Vikings, meanwhile, ran the old “double-down play” in a statement to NBC News: “We support all our cheerleaders and are proud of the role they play as ambassadors of the organization.”
They also pointed to precedent: “While many fans may be seeing male cheerleaders for the first time at Vikings games, male cheerleaders have been part of previous Vikings teams and have long been associated with collegiate and professional cheerleading.”
I dove down the cheerleading rabbit hole on this one and found a historic side note to the story. The USA Cheer website says a University of Minnesota student, Johnny Campbell, jumped onto the field during a game on November 2, 1898, to yell:
“Rah, Rah, Rah!
Ski-u-mah!
Hoo-Rah! Hoo-Rah!
Varsity! Varsity! Varsity,
Minn-e-So-Tah!”
Other students apparently followed Johnny’s lead and boom and modern-day cheerleading was born. The discipline would remain a male-dominated field until the First and Second World wars when men went off to fight and women took over.
The recent uproar over the Vikings, though, has nothing to do with boisterous blokes leading cheers – about one third of NFL teams have men on their cheerleading squads. Despite overwhelming approval in the legacy media, many fans are upset that the Vikings are giving a platform to Conn and Shiek’s homosexual lifestyle – a behaviour that runs contrary to God’s design for human sexuality. While the two aren’t dressing like ladies, having them prance around like harlots is adding to the outrage. (I don’t approve of women acting like jezebels, either.)
The corporate flaunting of gay cheerleaders is a reflection of the Vikings franchise and the league, which loves embracing woke causes and ideologies. It mirrors the culture, as well, because if there wasn’t already a broad approval of morally illicit lifestyles, I don’t believe this story would have unfolded the way it has.
A former Vikings player, Jack Brewer, told Fox News he’s “disgusted and embarrassed” by the team’s decision. “This is purely an attempt to manipulate young children,” Brewer said. “They are teaching young boys that it’s okay to have pom-poms and cheer and act like women.”
I won’t be tuning into Minnesota’s home games for the foreseeable future, but I’m not giving up on the team. As a Christian, there’s always a reason to hope, just look at the recent example from the Viking’s former defensive end Jared Allen. On August 2, during his Hall of Fame induction speech, he reflected on Chapter 4 of St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians and the importance of being content in life, no matter the circumstances. I was never a fan of his mullet, but I love how he spoke to his daughters from the podium about always putting Christ first.
Many current NFL players will echo Allen’s Christian zeal, and I think someone like St. Olaf, the Viking King and Martyr, would do so, too. Can you imagine Olaf, though, gyrating his hips and waving pom-poms while fighting to Christianize Norway? I have a hard time believing pagan warriors would fear the cheer. In short: traditional masculinity matters. St. Olaf, pray for us.
