I'm intrigued by the wondering out there this week as to whether it’s kosher for athletes to praise God when they’re interviewed after a victory. Kosher may not be the right word, for literally that would mean it is acceptable to religious people—or at least a specific portion of them. And the question at hand seems to be whether it is acceptable to the non-religious people who have to hear all this “glory-to-Godding.”

So let’s think about this for a few minutes.

One of the key criticisms of athletes who thank or praise God for a victory goes like this: “Well, of course they’re praising God. They won.” It’s not a criticism that’s too verifiable because, well, normally postgame reporters only interview the winners.