Wall Street Journal Op-Ed: About That ‘Immaculate Reception’, by Patrick Gray (Rhodes College):
It’s been half a century since professional-football fans were treated to one of the wildest finishes in the sport’s history. Yet few fans fully understand the religious undertones behind what is now known as the “Immaculate Reception.”
On Dec. 23, 1972, the Pittsburgh Steelers were trailing the Oakland Raiders 7-6 with 22 seconds left in their first-round playoff matchup. Steeler quarterback Terry Bradshaw dropped back to pass on fourth down and 10. Barely avoiding a sack, he flung a desperation pass to John “Frenchy” Fuqua halfway down the field. Oakland safety Jack “The Assassin” Tatum arrived as the pass reached Mr. Fuqua. His bruising hit sent the ball caroming 10 yards back. That’s when Steeler fullback Franco Harris scooped it out of the air right before it hit the turf and, without breaking stride, ran the rest of the 60 yards for the winning touchdown. A local announcer dubbed it the “Immaculate Reception.” …
Most will recognize the name as a play on the Immaculate Conception but may not understand what this phrase means in Roman Catholic teaching. It isn’t a reference to Christmas or even to the unusual circumstances surrounding Jesus’ origins, of which the Virgin Mary was informed nine months earlier by the angel Gabriel, an episode called the Annunciation.
Rather, the Immaculate Conception deals with the birth of Mary herself.
Pope Pius IX formally defined the doctrine in 1854, stating that Mary, “in the first instance of her conception, by a singular privilege and grace granted by God, in view of the merits of Jesus Christ . . . was preserved exempt from all stain of original sin.” The Catholic Church celebrates it as a feast day on Dec. 8. It is hard to imagine anyone connecting this doctrine to the world of sports, if only because so few people would catch the allusion, much less appreciate the subtle theological distinction between the Immaculate Conception and the Virgin Birth. …
For the Steelers, the Immaculate Reception would portend the unexpected birth of a dynasty. They would go on to win four Super Bowls in a six-year stretch after four decades of postseason futility. Their chief rivals through the end of the 1970s were the Dallas Cowboys. That team was led by Roger Staubach, whose last-gasp touchdown pass to Drew Pearson three years later would popularize the “Hail Mary,” so named for the prayer he whispered before the snap.
For more on the Immaculate Reception, see NFL.com, Controversies, Bitterness and the Mythology Behind the NFL's Greatest Play
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