Tebowing: (vb) To get down on a knee and start praying, even if everyone else around you is doing something completely different.

By now everyone has seen the season’s new form of “Planking” with the Tim Tebow prayer inspired “Tebowing.” Like planking before it, “Tebowing” has people all over performing the meme in odd places. But while it has been fun and spawned a Web site dedicated to it, there are a lot of people who feel that mocking Tebow’s ritual is downright disrespectful to the man and his religion. While the debate has raged on as to whether or not imitation is a form of flattery or blatant disrespect, this weekend’s game where Tebow was pulverized by the Detroit Lions has brought the discussion full circle.

It all started with Lions linebacker Stephen Tulloch sacked Tebow in the second quarter and proceeded to go “Tebowing” afterwards. Later, Broncos tight end Tony Scheffler caught a touchdown pass and struck his own prayer pose in the end zone. Neither instance was to pay homage to Tebow or his faith. Instead, it was like Terrell Owens standing on the Dallas Cowboys’ midfield star several years back; except the 50-yard line was marked by Tebow’s Christian faith.

No, it’s not likely anybody is trying to disrespect Tebow’s Christian values. But had this been another religion and another player, would it be taken as lightly? Maybe, maybe not.

It’s a blurry line, especially when Tebow has become such a polarizing figure in the NFL. It’s no secret that there are many that despise his wholesome image. He is a Christian man who wears his faith like the numbers on his Broncos jersey. He’s had Bible verses written on his eye paint, openly stated that he was a vigin to media and has even appeared in a pro-life commercial. Because of that, people who dislike Tebow will take shots at anything that Tebow represents.

While some may take offense to this, there is another side that sees it as something that has little to do with mocking his faith. It has much more to do with the picturesque pose than what Tebow believes in. Similar to how a baseball player points at the sky after a home run, most see the pose instead of the meaning. Does that mean “Tebowing” is a form of mockery and disrespect of the religion or the person. Can you separate the two?

Do we need to lighten up?

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