Tragedy: a play in which the protagonist, usually a man of importance and outstanding personal qualities, falls to disaster through the combination of a personal failing and circumstances with which he cannot deal (dictionary.com)

Before you get too involved with this post, let me warn you that it will probably lead to a depressed mood. So go ahead and get your John Mayer playing ("Comfortable" if you really want to be in the mood), and your ice cream in hand. Just kidding, sorta.

To preface this, I want to let you know that I am a sucker for emotional sports stories. Maybe it is my old age, or my love for the game, but I'll tear up at just the hint of an inspirational season, or a dramatic saga; heck I even teared up when I watched a special on the demolition of the old New York Yankee's stadium. And I hate the Yankees. To be honest, most of the emotions come from reminiscing on experiences I had years ago, mostly with my Dad, doing sports stuff. There is just something about a Father playing catch with his son. (See "Field of Dreams")

I hope you have been able to catch most or all of the ESPN 30 for 30 specials they have been airing every so often this past year, they have been some of the most dramatic, heart wrenching, enlightening stories I have seen. And the best thing about them, is that they are all true. Tonight, they aired "The Best that never Was", which documented the rise and fall of Marcus DuPree, who was one of the most highly recruited High School football players ever. Long story short, he was a Man-Child at football. They showed some of his High School footage, and it looked like a grown man was playing against 5 year-olds. Naturally, he was heavily recruited, ultimately deciding to play with the University of Oklahoma, who are perennial championship contenders. He had a stellar freshman year, and going into his Sophomore year, he was the frontrunner to win the Heisman Trophy, which had never been given to a Sophomore. However, it never came to be. Between injuries, conflicts with coaching, and unreasonable expectations, he crumbled. After a game where he suffered a concussion, he got on a plane and flew home, never to return to Oklahoma. None of his family knew where he was, the FBI was involved in trying to find him, he literally ran away and hid. He finally came back to the surface, but when he did, his college playing career was done. Because of his immense talent, he still recieved offers from professional teams: At 20, he signed a 5 year, $5 million contract, only to play about half of a season because of then-career ending knee injury. 6 years later, he amazingly came back to play in the NFL for 15 games, then was cut and never played again.

This is where the definition of Tragedy comes in to play. I believe Tragedy is the most complex, but natural, state of being for humanity. Marcus DuPree possessed the highest skill level anyone had ever seen. Now he drives delivery trucks.

And we are no different.

Tragedy is at the core of every human being. Achilles was the greatest warrior to ever live, and he dies from an arrow in his heel. Mozart was one of the greatest composers ever, but died when he was 35. Hamlet had the kingdom in his hand, but he couldn't grow up. Willy Loman had the American Dream, but couldn't get over his incompetence. The 2010 Dallas Cowboys were supposed to go to the Super Bowl. Billy Gilman hit puberty. (Just kidding, thats not a tragedy).

Tragedy shows up very clearly in the Bible as well. Pick any Old Testament character, and you will find a task that he/she fails to complete. And I think from the Bible, we are able to see firsthand the clearest form of tragedy. Tragedy in its most basic form is where you have a human, designed to do a specific task, granted all the skills needed to complete the task, and end up unable to complete the task. That is tragedy. A God-ordained purpose in life that you can't fulfill. A God-ordained purpose in life that you choose not to fulfill.

And we have no choice in this sad reality. There are only 2 chapters out of 1189 in the Bible where humanity was without tragedy. Not a very good percentage. And those 2 chapters were the first 2 in the Bible. So we really have no chance. Gen 1:31 says "God saw all that he had made, and it was very good". I believe that what he sees as good, is that man has only one God, and that is the Creator of the universe God. By chapter 3 of Genesis, humanity is broken because we take the tragic bait that we make a better god than our creator does. This is the critical breaking point for humanity, where it all goes tragic: When we sell ourselves to ourselves, and we buy it. This is tragedy: That we have the keys to perfection on Earth, and we throw them away because we are more attractive to our broken hearts. We are like Marcus DuPree, all of the talent, knowledge, skill, ability, but we are head over heels in love with the pig slop that we can get by trading in our identity in God. We trade everything to have nothing that looks like something right now. That is tragedy.

This is why Jesus Christ has to be the Tragic Hero. He has to take on the greatest tragedy in the entire universe, so that our tragedy would be outweighed by his fulfillment. Jesus, because of the Father's unending love for us, willingly gives up his Godness in order to become the ultimate tragedy. To give up deity in exchange for human likeness (Phil 2:7 "...but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness") is the ultimate tragedy. And to even further this tragedy by dying in place of a criminal, taking our sins upon himself and seperating himself from his Father, He took all of humanity's tragedy upon himself, and released us from it's burden by conquering the grave. Tragedy's hold on us, while immediately clasped upon us at birth, is wrought free by the strong arm of Christ's death, in order to bring us alongside the author and perfecter of our faith.

Comedy: a dramatic work in which the central motif is the triumph over adverse circumstance, resulting in a successful or happy conclusion.

Jesus Christ surpasses the Tragic Hero to become the Comedic Hero! By sending his son, God has taken everything, to buy nothing, so that nothing would be worth everything. By sending his son, God has seated us at his table, so that we can enjoy him and be satisfied in him. Therefore, we have found the definition of the meaning of life: To enjoy and be satisfied in God. Tragedy is being aware of this, and choosing fulfillment in all things other than God. Tragedy is determining that there is something else more god-worthy than God. Tragedy is offering a created thing to replace the Creator.

Praise be to God, for sending his Son, that we might have tragedy in all other things outside of knowing Him. Praise be to God, for sending his Son, that we might lose sight of all other things outside of knowing Him. Praise be to God, for sending his Son.