Lessons from Lasso — Rites of Passage

Ritual is rare in the Western culture and context and while there are things that are unique and specific to football, not even in the Beautiful Game are many times where rites of passage are happening, or are happening well. In today’s Lesson From Lasso, we look at Nate ascending from kit-man or clubhouse attendant to the role of assistant coach. The ceremony and celebration and elevation of Nate get connected into a night when Jesus demonstrates and models for his best friends, a way of serving and a way of honoring one another. Jesus gets down and dirty as he washes his friends feet and then encourages them to do the same. Ted Lasso, the immensely popular streaming TV show on Apple TV+ features the antics and quirky, Coach ‘Ted Lasso.’ Lasso first appeared a number of years ago as a comedic character as NBC purchased the broadcast rights to the English Premier League. Played by Jason Sudeikis, Lasso (as a coach) brings change to the difficult football (soccer) team that he has traveled overseas to coach. In the ‘Lessons from Lasso’ series, I (Rev Brad) look at some of the different life learning points brought up in the show from a chaplain’s point of view. From the Touchline is a short-feature (usually 10-15 min) podcast with Rev Brad Kenney, Founder and Executive Director of Soccer Chaplains United and Volunteer Chaplain to the Colorado Rapids of Major League Soccer. Rev Brad and occasional guests touch on various issues around the topics of faith, family, and football (soccer). Also, don’t forget that you can listen in our app, SoccrChapUtd, in the Apple and Google store.