Tim Tebow has departed stage left — for this season anyway.

But his very public act of praying before, during and after his Denver Broncos football games goes on and on as millions of people around the world imitate the quarterback by kneeling on one knee and praying, a ritual that has become known as “Tebowing.”

Old and young have taken to this practice on every continent as Internet pictures show Tebowing in front of the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia, atop the Ecuador volcano Cotopaxi (19,345 feet), on the Swilcan Bridge at St. Andrews Old Course in Scotland, under the Eiffel Tower in Paris, on the Great Wall of China, before the Sydney Opera House, by African tribesmen, and even at the South Pole.

It seems apparent that many of these people at the four corners of the Earth are just going through the act of mimicking Tebow’s posture when he kneels to pray, while others may be quite intent and serious about their prayers at those moments.

Some of these might even be mocking the quarterback, who makes such a public display of his religiosity that he leaves himself open to criticism. Tebowing even became the butt of joking on a recent “Saturday Night Live” program.

Tebow, as a very devout evangelical Christian, is undoubtedly serious about his prayers when he goes down on one knee and bows his head into a hand that is supported by an elbow on the other bended knee.

The problem that stirs up a pot full of critics is that this 24-year-old bachelor and admitted virgin who is the son of Christian missionaries does his praying before millions and millions of people viewing him around the world. When he goes down on bended knee in a filled National Football League arena, he is witnessed by the 60,000 or more fans seated there as well as those millions in the television audience.

Tebow, who won the Heisman Trophy as a University of Florida quarterback when he led the Gators to two national championships, wears the usual black anti-glare tape under both eyes. Using white letters and numbers, he imprints upon those tapes a verse from the Bible. It might be “John 3:16” one week and another verse the next.

However, it is doubtful that he ever imprinted on those black eye tapes “Matthew 6:6.” That is the verse where Jesus tells his followers how to pray:

“When you pray, go to your room and close the door. Pray privately to your Father who is with you. Your Father sees what you do in private. He will reward you.”

Many people have chastised Tebow for his very public display of his evangelical Christianity in this manner. One such critic even described it as “banal,” saying, “Prayer is not supposed to be a public event, designed to display your holiness in front of the maximum number of people.”

But Tebow is hardly alone. Hundreds and thousands of athletes give open displays of thanks or prayers of hope to God on the playing fields of the world and have been doing so for as far back as one can remember.

Christians have been very publicly demonstrative in their prayers and devotional activities for centuries, while Jewish and Muslim worshipers also pray very openly. Prayer is surely a part of life and devotion that people do not hide — most of all the world’s clergy.

Countless NFL players pray in the middle of gridirons following games as both teams gather in a circle to join hands, bend heads and pray. Many other football players from Pop Warner up through the NFL kneel and pray after scoring a touchdown.

Similarly, many baseball players, such as Sammy Sosa and David (Big Papi) Ortiz, looked to the heavens after crossing home plate to complete a home run. Others crossed themselves before stepping into the batters box. Pitchers such as Mariano Rivera stop to pray for a few seconds prior to taking the mound.

Of course, there are always the cynics who question the sincerity of players like Sosa and Ortiz, who were caught up in the steroid scandal. When Sosa or Ortiz looked to the skies and raised their hands toward heaven in a motion of thanks, these skeptics wondered if they were giving thanks for providing them with the latest PED (Performance Enhancing Drugs) or steroid booster. Or maybe Sosa was giving thanks for a corked bat he might have used.

There have been many evangelical golfers on the PGA Tour and LPGA Tour. Steve Jones, who won the 1996 U.S.Open, may be the most outspoken of these born again Christian pro golfers.

Jones, like Raleigh’s Josh Hamilton, the Texas Rangers’ left fielder, became a born again Christian in order to end his life-threatening difficulty with alcohol. Hamilton was also addicted to numerous drugs and, despite experiencing at least one known slip back to drinking, he became a fine hitter and the American League’s Most Valuable Player in 2010.

Like Tebow, these men and women are not at all shy about expressing their religious feelings during press conferences and on other public occasions.

Yet Tebow is rather unique in his constant display of prayer and devotion. And never before has an athlete started a fad based on praying that has swept around the globe.

This 6-4, 245-pound southpaw quarterback, who is a better runner than passer, is hard to bring to Earth when he plays the part of a charging fullback. When he drops back to pass or rolls out to throw, Bronco fans keep their fingers crossed that he won’t send some wobbly missile out there for easy pickings by the foe.

During a rather successful sophomore campaign, he took over the starting quarterback role at Denver and became the surprise of the 2011 NFL season by helping lead the Broncos to the playoffs. Tebow managed to get by his first postseason test with a pass to Demaryius Thomas good for 80 yards and the winning touchdown on the first overtime play against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

But then Tebow learned a lesson that cynics have been trying to teach those devout folks for ages: Prayer surely helps a quarterback if he has a good offensive line and a strong defense.

All the Tebowing in the world could not prevent Denver and Tebow from losing last week at New England, 45-10, in the second round of the playoffs because the Patriots had a better team and a record effort by a better quarterback, Tom Brady. Tebow also came out of the game suffering from injuries to his lungs, ribs and chest as the result of a third-quarter tackle when he ran instead of passing.

There are those who scorn Tebow for being sanctimonious and those who praise him for becoming a symbol of fine, upstanding, young American manhood willing to express his religious feelings while openly displaying his concern for the disadvantaged.

Until Tebow is shown not to be genuine in his beliefs and actions, there appears to be nothing to criticize about this man other than his less-than-accurate passing touch.

At least he is not a ­womanizer, heavy drinker, or bombastic athlete like some who have bored ­everyone as they strutted through NFL history over the past century. To the delight of owners and network executives, Tebow has attracted some of the highest NFL television ratings in decades.

It is enough to make those greedy old fogies go down on bended knee and do their Tebowing every day just before they run to the bank.

Gordon White served 43 years as a sports reporter for The New York Times. His email is sports@thepilot.com.