OLYMPICS

Olympics
London Olympics 2012
London 2012 sees a wide range of olympification frame of mind in and around the world. From London to common people and businessmen around the world are trying to make best use of their profits in the outlook of olympification.It is a common feature in every Olympics in the history.

As we concentrate on the word olympification in a spiritual life, let s see the motto of Olympics in its historical context. Pierre de Coubertin the father of modern Olympics first used Citius, Altius, and Fortius, which is derived from the Latin words and means Faster, Higher, Stronger.

Olympics motto
Faster, Higher, Stonger
Pierre borrowed these words from a Dominican priest called Henri Didon.The explanation of this verbs be noteworthy as we see all the Olympians strive to run faster, highest and prove to be strongest. All of us need to be spiritually function faster, reach higher and be stronger in our spiritual life.

Olympics
Pierre de Couberrtin


1The Olympic Movement uses symbols to represent the ideals embodied in the Olympic Charter. The Olympic symbol, better known as the Olympic rings, consists of five intertwined rings and represents the unity of the five inhabited continents (Africa, America, Asia, Australia, and Europe). The colored version of the rings—blue, yellow, black, green, and red—over a white field forms the Olympic flag. These colors were chosen because every nation had at least one of them on its national flag. The flag was adopted in 1914 but flown for the first time only at the 1920 Summer Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium. It has since been hoisted during each celebration of the Games. 

Mount olympus -Greek godess
The Ancient Olympic Games were a series of competitions held between representatives of several city-states and kingdoms in Ancient Greece. These games featured mainly athletic but also combat and chariot racing events. During the games, all conflicts among the participating city-states were postponed until the games were finished. The origin of these Olympics is shrouded in mystery and legend, and one of the most popular myths identifies Heracles and his father Zeus as the progenitors of the Games. According to legend, it was Heracles who first called the Games "Olympic" and established the custom of holding them every four years. A legend persists that after Heracles completed his twelve labors, he built the Olympic Stadium as an honor to Zeus. Following its completion, he walked in a straight line for 200 steps and called this distance a "stadion" (Greek: στάδιον, Latin: stadium, "stage"), which later became a unit. Another myth associates the first Games with the ancient Greek concept of Olympic truce (ἐκεχειρία, ekecheiria). The most widely accepted date for the inception of the Ancient Olympics is 776 BC; this is based on inscriptions, found at Olympia, listing the winners of a footrace held every four years starting in 776 BC. It has been suggested that their inception was preceded by the ancient Tailteann Games, founded in Ireland over a millennium beforehand. The Ancient Games featured running events, a pentathlon (consisting of a jumping event, discus and javelin throws, a foot race, and wrestling), boxing, wrestling, pankration, and equestrian events. Tradition has it that Coroebus, a cook from the city of Elis, was the first Olympic champion. 

The Olympics were of fundamental religious importance, featuring sporting events alongside ritual sacrifices honoring both Zeus (whose famous statue by Phidias stood in his temple at Olympia) and Pelops, divine hero and mythical king of Olympia. Pelops was famous for his chariot race with King Oenomaus of Pisatis. The winners of the events were admired and immortalized in poems and statues. The Games were held every four years, and this period, known as an Olympiad, was used by Greeks as one of their units of time measurement. The Games were part of a cycle known as the Panhellenic Games, which included the Pythian Games, the Nemean Games, and the Isthmian Games. 
  Mount Olympus in Greece

Thus the ancient Olympics was said to be held at mount Olympus the abode of the Greek gods was originally aimed of artistic and athletic performance honoring the Greek god Zeus. The Olympic connection with gods and the mounts tells us that every human being is having a desire of the indomitable spirit to olympify one’s life not only in speed, skill, stamina and strength but to achieve perfection In daily life.


“"Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Matt 5:48).

Matt 5:48
Be perfect like Father God
To be more and to give more doesn’t mean driving oneself to outdistance others. This mentality of competitiveness we see in this today world to outdo other and derive some pleasure from it as we see then in the Gladiatorial movies is not exactly what God intends to be perfect. To be perfect means building deeper and stronger relationship with the Nature and attributes of God and also developing the nature of God’s love in us and to forgive all those mistakes people around us do towards us and leave the discipline in the hands of God.

Apostle Paul letter describe the image from the arena of sports with verbs like “Struggle” (Greek agorizo) and strive (athleo).Spiritual perfection as paul explains demands struggle and striving. Christian life is an experience of struggles and strivings training us to be perfect as our Heavenly father is perfect.

Many believers don’t understand why they are going under certain struggles and strivings in their life. We see from Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Joseph,David,Daniel,Paul etc have undergone through this experiences so that they may learn the spiritual truths of God and completely depend up God and His wisdom rather to chose the human wisdom to perfectly fulfill the Plan of God .

Thus Paul writes:

Phil 3:13-14
Forgetting what is behind
“Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last; but we do it to get a crown that will last forever”. (I cor 9:25) and says of himself “Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.”(Phil 3:13-14).

Life from God always promises infinitely great thing you can ever imagine. Every thing depends on how much I excercise my freewill and resolute to obey the will of God  to go…..

No eye has seen the preparations
“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, for ever and ever! Amen.”(Eph 3:20-21).

 “And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work”( 2 Corinthians 9:8).


“For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come” (I Tim 4:8).

Selected Bliography:
2.Olympify your life by Francis Gosalves 30 July 2012 Deccan Chronicle.

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