Youth sports are a big deal and getting bigger all the time. An offshoot of this growth is that games and tournaments are held on weekends, including Sundays, which conflict with church attendance.

While most area school districts have come to terms with this reality, one has not. Last month, the Tamaqua Area School Board voted 7-2 to keep its policy forbidding practices on Sundays and permitting sporting events only under unusual or emergency situations. Two years ago, for example, when we had an extraordinarily rainy spring, some Sunday makeup baseball games were allowed.Last month’s board decision came a week after a committee had recommended approval of a policy that paralleled the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association policy that allows Sunday practices between 2 and 8 p.m. and games only under special circumstances such as playoffs or weather and, even then, only with the approval of the superintendent.The board in December permitted the junior high wrestling team to participate in the annual District XI Coaches Association Tournament, which was held on a weekend, including Sunday, in mid-February.This issue came up a year ago when the board by a split vote allowed the middle school wrestling team to participate in a weekend tournament at Parkland High School in Lehigh County. School board President Larry Wittig was opposed then, just as he is about the more recent proposed policy shift.There are one or two other District XI schools which take a dim view of playing games or practicing on Sundays. Others, such as Palmerton, play on Sundays only under extraordinary circumstances. This occurred in 2015 when persistent rain and snow played havoc with the spring sports schedule, necessitating a makeup game on Sunday.“So we’re not the only religious nuts,” Wittig was quoted as saying. He rejects the idea that banning Sunday practice puts Tamaqua teams at a competitive disadvantage.For generations, Sundays were considered a day of rest, and Sunday sporting events were never an issue, but with the formation of clubs, elite-level teams and the lure of college scholarships, today we have a different ballgame.Although instances of interscholastic sports competition on Sundays is rare, it is pretty much the norm for youth sports and traveling teams not directly affiliated with PIAA-sponsored events.In one respect, it is understandable given the time constraints that today’s children are under. It is difficult to schedule games during the week when there is competition with school attendance and extracurricular activities. Somewhere in these busy days, children must also do homework, try to sneak in a little time for themselves and eat. Games therefore get relegated to weekends.It is not uncommon for some youth games to start as early as 8 a.m. Sundays, but, more commonly, they are scheduled in competition with Sunday worship services at mid- to late-morning and into the afternoon.This presents a real dilemma for those parents who are concerned about raising their children with a Christian upbringing that includes attending Sunday morning services.Of course, it is not only sporting events that compete with services; more than a half-century ago, Roman Catholicism recognized that Sunday was no longer the traditional day of rest and instituted late Saturday afternoon and evening services. As “blue laws” became a thing of the past, Sundays became much like any other day of the week. Families went on trips, shopping excursions, movies, sporting events, etc. As traditional Sunday barriers fell, the incidence of church attendance dropped in inverse proportion to the growing number of activities that were scheduled for Sundays.Wittig is concerned that opening the barn door to Sunday practice will mean that corralling that horse and returning it to the barn will be very difficult. When this issue first arose in 2016, Wittig insisted that his stance is “a matter of principle.” He said practices and games on Sundays would set a “bad precedent” and discourage church attendance. He also said his determination was supported by many calls, letters and emails, with not one opposing view.In the ongoing discussion involving separation of church and state, there is the concern that there are some religious minorities who attend services on Friday nights or Saturdays, times when athletic events are routinely played. Wittig had said last year that the policy is based on serving the largest numbers in the district, and this means the Christian community, which has traditionally held services on Sunday.In addition to Roman Catholic services on Saturdays, more Protestant churches are offering alternate service times to accommodate members with Sunday morning commitments.Sounds like a case of “if you can’t fight ’em, join ’em.” Some communities, however, are not going to surrender without a fight.By Bruce Frassinelli |

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