The Hall of Popes

Don't you love sportscasters. Aren't they great!

They describe action on television to pump us up about something we're already watching. My favorite is when, during a great play, the 'caster says something like.. "OH BOY, THAT WAS A THROW THAT COULD BE MADE ONLY BY A FUTURE HALL OF FAMER!" "GET A LOOK AT THAT MAN, SO YOU'LL RECOGNIZE HIS BUST IN CANTON."

Pick a sport, the announcers vaunt players to lofty honors after ordinary (and expected) plays. How many of these players actually make it to the sacrosanct halls where they're prematurely declared to reside?

There is a reason a sport has a waiting period for Hall of Fame voting. Players, whose names you know, spend several years playing baseball, football, basketball, etc. We, as fans, grow to love them when they bring home victories, division and conference titles, and league championships. When the end of a season comes, and one of these players decides his career has too, who wouldn't like to bestow an honor?

Fortunately, Halls of Fame don't work that way. For example, in the NFL an open committee nominates players who have been out of the league for at least five years. If someone receives 80 percent positive votes from the committee they're nominated for enshrinment.

Does the name Fritz Pollard ring a bell? He led his Akron Pros to an undefeated season to win the NFL's first title. He was described as a "most feared, elusive runner." He was one of the first two African Americans in the NFL and the first African American head coach in the NFL. Pollard played and coached in the 20's and 30's. Time judged his impact. Time judged his career. Pollard is one of the members of this year's 4-man class of inductees to the NFL Hall of Fame. He joins Benny Friedman, Dan Marino, and my personal, all-time favorite: Steve Young.

Pollard, Friedman, Marino and Young proved that time does not diminish accomplishments. Feats performed by truly great players stand up when time erodes emotional memories of the "big game." Those who do not survive the criteria are filtered out as the Hall honors those the honorable.

Let History Judge

More than a billion Catholics just lost their religious leader. No, I am not a Catholic. Nor did I grow up Catholic. However, you don't have to be Catholic to have admired the Pope's life and leadership. During the 26 years Pope John Paul II led Catholics through societal changes that have left world political figures in the wake. I don't need to list the events that marked his life. Non-stop media coverage has barraged us with his history during the past week. The Pope was admired for his decisions and how he led the church. Those who loved him- loved how he refused to waiver.

We are now hearing calls for Pope John Paul's immediate elevation to "Great" status. Pope John Paul the Great! Calls to ignore historical tradition that time judge a Pope's Legacy by pronouncing upon him an informal honorific that has only twice been used. Calls to make history see him as one of the "Greatest" of all time. Really? And to what does he owe this comparison? By no means am I diminishing the accomplishments of the late Pontiff, or the feeling of sanctity followers of Catholocism feel. A former personal assistant to Pope John Paul says calls for the honorific are coming from "people of all walks of life, the voice of the people."

Calls for instant Greatness are a reflection on society more than John Paul's legacy. Calls for instant Greatness show societal demands for instant gratification. Calls for instant Greatness expose callers as wanting the greatness for themselves.... a source of pride to have lived in the era as "The Great."

It will be up to the next Pope to decide if tradition will be tossed for such an honor. However, I hope society's eagerness to see one of their own elevated to such a status will not take away from what society admires of John Paul's legacy: an unwillingness to change in the face of public pressure.

Let's wait for "time" to vote on inductees.