Wrestling with faith in Iowa

Would any female competitor in any sport be required to forfeit for refusing to compete in a close-contact match against a male?

"There's certainly no scriptures that address this and nothing doctrinal or church based. I just believe this is a principled decision."

Freedom and exercise of religion not based on cherry-picked Abrahamic scriptures - how refreshing.

Should he have been put in this position?

Well, is there an alternative? Either he plays by the rules and the seeding, or he imposes his admitted unjustifiable religious preferences on every other contestant in the tournament.

It is analogous to Muslim girls sports that seek to compete in public leagues, but want their opponents to submit to very restrictive sectarian limitations like not permitting males older than nine to be present for the contest.

The contestants in the tournament agree to play by the rules in effect at the time. Observant Jews refuse to play in various leagues that play on Saturday lest they violate Sabbath. That is their choice, but it imposes no obligation on the leagues involved.

The kid made a decision based on modern day cultural values. This had nothing to do with a book that allows slavery and rape.

So does this mean any boys should be able to compete in any sport against girls if there isn't a boys league?

This is in high school. Maybe he is trying to respect the girls and not touch them in certain places. I mean can you just imagine the running commentary that a late night show or Talk Soup would put to a male female high school wrestling match?? It would be impossible to resist.
I've seen wrestling. It's a very close, intimate, contact sport.

They need to get some WWE divas to teach this kid a lesson. Have Kelley Kelly choke slam the pencil-necked geek.

I have to believe he knew going in that there were girls in the tournament. He was one of the top competitors and it seems she was too. Generally at that level, athletes are aware of who they may face. I think he had an obligation to face whatever competition was put in front of him. Now her tournament experience is tarnished too, and she didn't break any rules.

I have a lot of respect for the young woman, who wants to compete and has put her efforts out there to do it. I am sure she has faced a lot of guff over her choice of wrestling as a sport.

I also have a lot of respect for the young man who refused to wrestle a woman out of his idea of decency and respect.

He is not being asked to do anything evil or bad. He is simply, forgive me, squemish. He holds a point of view that, if extended, would limit women to whatever he decides is suitable.

Joel really needs to get over it.

I have had my chimes rung in mediaeval re-creation combat by female fighters (the 40-60 odd pounds of armor and the length of a rattan broadsword keep things from getting as intimate as wrestling). I have been kicked and punched by female karateka in sparring, thrown by female judoka, and been launched into low-earth orbit by a silver haired grandmother in aikido class (many of these women had black belts, which I don't).

Mind you, I am not in a conservative Christian sect and was not a high school student (when gender differences are so highly sensitive), so did not have the personal ethical issues to confront that Mr. Northrup did. Generally, the first time a female opponent plants you on the mat or the tourney field, considerations of whether it is appropriate to work at full pitch in a combat sport with this particular opponent become secondary.

Believers Faith Church,like
the Pentecostals, also don't
believe in premarital sex.

They claim it leads to dancing !!!

I salute Mr. Northrup for taking a principled stand that he knew would hurt him. As to why he entered the tournament even though girls were entered: He probably hoped the female contestant(s) would be in other brackets and would lose before he would have to face them. Didn't work out that way.

Should he have been put in what position?

He refused to wrestle his opponent. He was not told he could not eat Fish on Friday.

End of story. Good luck, kid.

C'mon folks, be real here. He's a teenage boy who would have to have his hands and body all over this girl.

Did you read that? Teenage Boy. Wearing tight clothes, a whole audience of people staring at him.

Do I have to get biological here ...

Erections happen regardless of whether one's opponent is a girl or a boy. They happen in contact sports and they just happen.

It's an anatomy thing.

Girls have other issues.

Not the point.

NO story here.

Move on.

The girl lost 5-1 in the next round to another boy so maybe the pervs who allow physical contact and groping between girl and boy wrestlers got some kicks out of the competition. Other than that Its hard to fathom what the organizers wanted to prove.

There wisdom in: never use physical force on a female. Some would say in sport is different, but many gentlemen make no exceptions, not even arm wrestling, knowing how way leads on to way. It is a matter of principle, nothing to do with faith, nothing to do fear of being sexually aroused.

If you compete in a sport, you compete against the opponents that are available for competition, or you don't compete. He chose to forfeit and that was his call to make. But he shouldn't complain if he gets cut from the team or doesn't make next year's team because his actions hurt the school's win/loss record.