SPORTS: PAVING THE WAY TOWARDS PEACEFUL AND DELIGHTFUL SCHOOLS

The concept of sports was cultivated around the ideals of maintaining healthy and strong bodies and perpetuating camaraderie among its participants. Sun Myung Moon, a Korean religious leader in a speech entitled The Role of Sports in Creating World Peace aptly said, Sports employ rules to insure fair competition. A gentlemanly spirit governs sports. The athletes demonstrate the attitude of fair play and sportsmanship as they compete based on their talents, abilities and strength. They follow the laws and rules that have been agreed upon, and they submit themselves to fair judgment by the referees. The virtue of sports is when the loser does not dwell on his own disappointment, but applauds the accomplishment of the winner. In sports, there is the beautiful fragrance of friendship and love among like-minded people. The beauty of the players appears when they demonstrate sportsmanship. They must work hard, shed sweat and tears and achieve incredible standards of skill. They must be trained in the virtues of fairness, proper order and etiquette. In beautiful syntax, Moon is telling us about the inherent discipline embodied by sports. This discipline would lead to a deeper appreciation of peace. It is with discipline that we develop habits that lead to actions and these actions are the starting point of all endeavors to raise the human condition. If school kids are trained in the virtue of sportsmanship they will propagate the values of discipline, fairness, humility in the face of losses, and gallantry. In this sense, developing good sports programs in our schools could usher in genuine peace and enjoyment.