Aaron Judge, Judge or Witness

Monday Ministerial Musings

By Rev. Mark William Ennis

2022 Blog #40

October 10, 2022

Aaron Judge, Judge or Witness

I confess that I am not a fan of the Yankees. My Grandmother trained me to be a Mets fan. My grandmother was a die-hard Dodger Fan and her heart was broken when that team moved to California. When the Giants also left for the West coast, there was a deep void left in the hearts of National League fans. When the Mets were founded they adopted the colors of Dodger blue and Giant Orange to attract National League fans such as my Grandmother. We were encouraged to watch Met’s games on her color TV but Yankee games were strictly forbidden.

Met fan or not, I can’t help but be celebrating the wonderful accomplishment of Aaron Judge who this past week set the record for the most homeruns in a season, excluding steroid users. Aaron did an amazing thing but more than this I am impressed with Aaron Judge as a human being as well as an excellent Christian witness.

Aaron’s life seems to have been charmed from the beginning. Dare I call it “pre-ordained?” At one day old he was adopted by his parents, Patty and Wayne Judge who are both schoolteachers in California. At about the age of ten he realized that he must have been adopted. His height towered over his parents and his skin was darker. He is bi-racial and his adopted parents are Caucasian.

He credits his parents for shaping him into the person that he has become. He credits them with giving him a good start with instilling him with a work ethic.  He considers himself a  Christian and is not afraid to proclaim it. Each day before games, he prays on the field for each of his teammates but what his specific prayer is he will not disclose. It is his private prayer for them.

His Twitter account clearly proclaims his faith and has the follow Bible verse on it: 2 Corinthians 5:7: “For we walk by faith, not by sight.” Judge reports that this is his favorite Bible verse. This profile also proclaims:  “Christian. Faith, Family, then Baseball.” He also founded the “Aaron Judge All Rise Foundation.” Their mission statement is to “Inspire children and youth to become responsible citizens and encourage them to reach unlimited possibilities.”

I celebrate the skills and gifts of Aaron Judge. More than his skills, I celebrate his character and his striving to lead a Christian Life. He is an example to us all. I encourage all of us who proclaim ourselves to be Christian to live by the example that Aaron Judge shows us. May our lives all point to God and reflect God’s glory.

#ReformedChurchInAmerica                                 #PastorMarkAuthor            

#BergenCounty                                                        #BergenfieldNJ

#Redemption                                                            #AaronJudge

#ChristianFaith                                                         #NYYankees

To read more of Pastor Mark’s writings, please order copy of his book:https://deepriverbooks.com/books/the-circle-of-seven/