What I'm trying to do is develop a language that will enable us to talk about God beyond the, what I think, are sterile categories of theism and atheism. "[24], Spong died in sleep at his home in Richmond, Virginia, on September 12, 2021, at the age of 90. I think the worst way to go is to have somebody think they speak for God. if (isRetina) { Both papal infallibility and biblical inerrancy require widespread and unchallenged ignorance to sustain their claims to power. }); I live on the other side of Copernicus and Galileo; I can no longer conceive of God as sort of above the sky, looking down and keeping record books. He believed that theism had lost credibility as a valid conception of God's nature. The Bible was quoted to keep women silent, and the Bible lost. There is no mention of him in any source before the 8th decade. - John Shelby Spong. Forcing the evolution is the dialog between yesterday's words and today's knowledge. "Bishop John Shelby Spong On: The Resurrection" The Christian Faith was born in the experience that we have come to call Easter. Inequality for gay and lesbian people is no longer a debatable issue in either church or state. Are they people who no one prayed for? Our English language really says if youre not a theist, the only alternative is to be an atheist. I don't think so. googletag.pubads().collapseEmptyDivs(true); From this perspective, all human claims to possess objectivity, certainty, or infallibility are revealed as nothing but the weak and pitiable pleas of frantically insecure people who seek to live in an illusion because reality has proved to be too difficult. Christianity is, I believe, about expanded life, heightened consciousness and achieving a new humanity. If that is a requirement of my commitment to Jesus, I find it difficult to stretch my mind outside the capacities of my world view. In 2000, Spong was a critic of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith of the Roman Catholic Church's declaration Dominus Iesus, because it reaffirmed the Catholic doctrine that the Roman Catholic Church is the one true Church and that Jesus Christ is the one and only savior for humanity. I was taught that it was okay to hate other religions, and especially the Jews, and the Bible was quoted to prove it. Rev. Incarnation will never give us that.. Giving It All Quotes Page 34 Part 2 of the giving it all quotations list about premature-birth and baby-shower sayings citing John Shelby Spong, Eve Ensler and Milo Ventimiglia captions Now, the fourth gospel says that the moment that Jesus is glorified is the moment he's put to death on the cross, not the resurrection. The cross reveals that we're called to a deeper, fuller experience of what it means to be alive and open to new dimensions of life which our religious boundaries - creeds, atonement theologies - have kept us from experiencing. It's just not easy enough to say that I pray and God will accomplish. That's magic, that's not God. Kelly assists on a wide variety . John Shelby Spong 25. 5:44) and never to call others by demeaning or hurtful names (Matt. I think the first self-conscious person must have shaken in his boots. (function() { John Shelby Spong has long been known as the "nightmare" of the more conservative element of the Anglican Church in America. !function(d,s,id){var js,fjs=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],p=/^http:/.test(d.location)? "https://":"http://";i+=f?g:k;i+=j;i+=h;c(i)}if(!e.ue_inline){if(a.loadUEFull){a.loadUEFull()}else{b()}}a.uels=c;e.ue=a})(window,document); try { Spong, Resurrection Myth or Reality, p. 287. It caused his followers to regard his teaching as worthy of being preserved. His admirers acclaim him as a teaching bishop who makes contemporary theology accessible to the ordinary layperson he's considered the champion of an inclusive faith by many, both . .__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.__prevent_empty_css_file{width:0}.authorModuleDropdownMenu{width:180px;border-left:1px solid #D8D8D8;border-right:1px solid #D8D8D8;border-top:1px solid #D8D8D8}.authorModuleDropdownMenu__dropdownLink,.authorModuleDropdownMenu__dropdownLink:hover{display:block;text-align:left;padding:12px;font-family:"Lato", "Helvetica Neue", "Helvetica", sans-serif;font-size:14px;color:#000000;cursor:pointer}#authorInfo{display:-webkit-box;display:-moz-box;display:-ms-box;display:box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-moz-flex;display:-ms-flex;display:flex;padding:10px 10px 5px 10px}#authorInfo .authorInfoGroup{-webkit-box-flex:1;-moz-box-flex:1;-ms-box-flex:1;box-flex:1}#authorInfo .authorPhotoGroup{-webkit-box-flex:0;-moz-box-flex:0;-ms-box-flex:0;box-flex:0;margin-right:10px}#authorInfo .authorFollow{display:flex}#authorInfo .authorFollow .authorDropdownContainer{border-radius:3px;border:1px solid #D6D0C4;font-family:"Lato", "Helvetica Neue", "Helvetica", sans-serif;font-size:14px;-moz-appearance:none;-o-appearance:none;-webkit-appearance:none;appearance:none;cursor:pointer;display:inline-block;text-decoration:none;color:#333333;background-color:#F4F1EA;line-height:1;padding:8px 12px;font-size:16px;padding:12px 24px;box-sizing:border-box;text-align:center;margin-left:0px;padding:0px;min-width:38px;height:32px;background-image:url(/assets/down-caret.png);background-repeat:no-repeat;background-position:center;float:right}#authorInfo .authorFollow .authorDropdownContainer:disabled{border-color:#DDDDDD}#authorInfo .authorFollow .authorDropdownContainer:hover{color:#333333;background-color:#ede6d6;text-decoration:none}#authorInfo .authorFollow .authorDropdownContainer:active{background-color:#D6D0C4}#authorInfo .authorFollow .authorDropdownContainer:disabled{background-color:#F3F3F3;color:#cccccc}@media (max-width: 540px){#authorInfo .authorFollow .authorDropdownContainer{min-width:20px;width:27px}}#authorBooks{*zoom:1}#authorBooks:after{content:"";display:table;clear:both}#authorBooks .sectionTitle{border-top:1px solid #CCCCCC;padding:10px 10px 0 10px;margin:0}.accordionContent{padding:0 10px}.authorBio{padding:0 10px;margin-bottom:10px}.authorBooksMeta{color:#999999;font-family:"Lato", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;padding:0 10px}.authorBooksMeta a{color:#00635D}.authorBooksTotalReviewCount:before,.authorBooksTotalRatingCount:before{content:"\00b7"}.authorDetailsList dt,.authorDetailsList dd{display:inline;margin:0}.authorDetailsList dd:after{content:'\A';white-space:pre}.authorDetailsList dt{font-weight:bold}.authorDetailsList dd{color:#999999;font-family:"Lato", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;margin-bottom:15px}.authorDetailsList dd a{color:#00635D}.authorSimilarAuthorsLink{padding:0 10px}.authorDistinctWorksLink{padding:0 10px;display:block;margin-bottom:10px}.authorFansLink{font-weight:bold}.authorInterviewsList{list-style-type:none;margin:0;padding:0}.authorInterviewsList .authorInterview{margin-bottom:15px}.authorInterviewsList .authorInterviewAt{color:#999999;font-family:"Lato", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif}.authorInterviewsList .authorInterviewAt a{color:#00635D}.authorInterviewsList .authorInterviewTitle{display:block}.authorName{margin-bottom:10px}.authorShortBio{color:#999999;font-family:"Lato", "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif}.authorShortBio a{color:#00635D}.authorQuotesLink{margin-bottom:15px}.quotesList{border-top:1px solid #CCCCCC;margin-top:15px}.quotesPage{margin-left:10px}.noQuotes{margin-top:15px} During Chautauquas nine-week summer season, the, Iconic Chita Rivera to provide Chautauquans with one of final Amp performances in 22, Incoming pastor Rt. That is not what most Christians have been taught to think, but it is factual. He stated that he was a Christian because he believes that Jesus Christ fully expressed the presence of a God of compassion and selfless love and that this is the meaning of the early Christian proclamation, "Jesus is Lord" (Spong, 1994 and Spong, 1991). setDisplayBids: function() {}, I was married before the church's altar; trained at the church's seminaries, ordained deacon and priest at age 24. His views on the future of Christianity were "that we have to start where we are. If God is the ground of being, then the only way I can worship God is by having the courage to be all that I can be, Spong said. It doesn't. } Top John Shelby Spong Quotes. [18], During a speaking tour in Australia in 2001, Spong was banned by Peter Hollingworth, the Archbishop of Brisbane, from speaking at churches in the diocese. And all I can tell you is if we accepted every invitation we had, I'd be away every day of my life." -- John Shelby Spong #Accepted #Invitations "When I grew up in the South, I was taught that segregation was the will of God, and the Bible was quoted to prove it. I never really liked the Gospel of John because I never could find the humanity of Jesus in it. a[a9]._Q.push([c, r]) Some people think prayer is telling God what to do. googletag.pubads().enableSingleRequest(); He died peacefully in his sleep on Sunday morning," St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Richmond . It has not only to do with erasing human divisions, but about revitalizing our most cherished beliefs.. John Shelby Spong Bio, Wife, Kids, Career, 12 Theses, Books and Quotes - Buddywikis Sometimes, you're just in the wrong place at the wrong time. The way you become divine is to become wholly human. He sees himself against nature. I spend my life studying that book, and every book I've written has in some sense been a book about the Bible, and that's what I mean by reclaiming its value and its essence for a world that no longer treats it literally and no longer reads it traditionally. The audience that I try to reach are members of what I call the church alumni association. stylesheet.type = "text/css"; // page settings John Shelby Spong Quotes. (wikipedia) Born On June 16, 1931. John Shelby "Jack" Spongis a retired American bishop of the Episcopal Church. I think that anything that begins to give people a sense of their own worth and dignity is God. John Shelby Spong was born on June 16 1931 at Charlotte, North Carolina, the elder of two boys. Theism is dead, I joyfully proclaim, but God is real. Last edited on 13 September 2021, at 21:11, "Why We Must Reclaim The Bible From Fundamentalists", https://en.wikiquote.org/w/index.php?title=John_Shelby_Spong&oldid=3004716. He looks at the vastness of the universe and it looks hostile. I think that anything that begins to give people a sense of their own worth and dignity is God. The Christ path is the path I've walked all my life, so it's normal and natural. He sees himself against nature. var ue_sn = "www.goodreads.com"; In the first gospel, Mark, the risen Christ appears physically to no one, but by the time we come to the last gospel, John, Thomas is invited to feel the nail prints in Christ's hands and feet and the spear wound in his side. [22] Following Spong's death, Tooley told The Washington Times that "he [Spong] claimed that he was making religion relevant for a new generation who could not believe in the supernatural, often citing his daughters. As the smell of incense filled the air, I knelt before three images of the Buddha, feeling that the smoke could carry my prayers heavenward. [CDATA[ It meant go beyond the boundaries that you directed in your biologically driven search for survival.. The biblical texts that we Christians have used for centuries to justify our hostility toward the Jews need to be banished forever from the sacred writings of the Christian church. And so Christians began to define themselves over against the orthodox party of the Jews as a way of surviving against the Roman onslaught. And thats immoral. A.async = !0; But before he talked too much about the end, he went back to the Jewish roots of Matthews Gospel. Don't read that to me on Sunday morning and say "This is the word of the Lord." //]]> "Events.Namespace": "csa", 12:34), "sons of vipers" (Matt. } In the way that God brought oneness out of diversity, wholeness out of brokenness and eternity out of time, Spong realized the version of faith he wanted to spread. 23:17). True religion is not about possessing the truth. I think one of the things we've got to look out for is human beings claiming that they know how God operates. There are passages in the Gospels that portray Jesus of Nazareth as narrowminded, vindictive, and even hypocritical. Spong was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, and educated in public schools there. "Another [book on Matthew] is Amy-Jill Levine, who is a Jewish woman who teaches New Testament at the Vanderbilt School of Religion. By popular demand, here are his conservations with Tapestry from 2007 and 2009. We were told in the Second Commandment we could make no images of this God, and I don't think that means just building idols, I think that means also trying to believe you've captured God in your words, in the Creeds, in the Scriptures. Are they blinded by a combination of ego needs and navet? Jerry Falwell says, on Pat Robertson's program, that the reason we got attacked on 9/11 is that we were accommodating the ACLU and abortion and homosexuals and feminists in America, so God smacked us down. }, Apologetic explanations do not develop unless there is a reality that has to be explained and defended. To me, neither option is worth pursuing. 25:30)? At its very core the story of Easter has nothing to do with angelic announcements or empty tombs. That is a paradigm shift of the first order. Are they hopelessly misinformed? John Shelby Spong Quotes. I thought it presented Jesus as a visitor from another planet; in addition, Johns gospel is and has been interpreted as a document that fuels anti-Semitism in the church. It's a group of essays by mostly womanly scholars looking at Matthew's gospel through feminists' eyes - very exciting. Williams described Spong's Twelve Points for Reform as embodying "confusion and misinterpretation". February 7, 2019 You learn that you either are going to have a police state where you don't have any freedom left, or you're going to build a world that doesn't create terrorists - and that means a whole different way of 'getting along.' John Shelby Spong/ freedom Contents 1 Quotes 1.1 Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism (1991) 1.2 Resurrection: Myth or Reality? 1. Spong said the only way his mission can be successful is if his mantra is carried out without any set of boundaries. The tour coincided with Hollingworth leaving the diocese to become the Governor-General of Australia. I cannot possibly conceive of my planet Earth as the centre of a three-tiered universe. It's like that crazy man down in Alabama who wanted to put the Ten Commandments in his courtroom. He was a liberal Christian theologian, religion commentator and author. So I ask you where hope is located, and you say, "You can't locate it.". Oh, my God, teach him rather to think like other people! And the way they did it was to say, the Jews killed our hero too. window.csa("Events")("setEntity", { I operate with an emotional fearlessness, and I really feel music; I really feel songs. The audience that I try to reach are members of what I call the church alumni association. It is not necessarily words addressed heavenward. [3], Spong was one of the first American bishops to ordain a woman into the clergy, in 1977, and he was the first to ordain an openly gay man, Robert Williams, in 1989. pubID: '3211', adServer: 'googletag', bidTimeout: 4e3, params: { aps_privacy: '1YN' } Papal infallibility and biblical inerrancy are the two ecclesiastical versions of this human idolatry. Improve yourself, find your inspiration, share with friends. Our English language really says if you're not a theist, the only alternative is to be an atheist. V. Gene Robinson was able to publicly thank the man he said are the shoulders on which (Robinson) stands.. In [the story of Jesus] I found a center for my being. function isShowingBuyableFeatures() { Almost any poll of regular churchgoers will reveal that their favorite book in the New Testament is the Gospel of John. I prepare for death by living. George Stroumboulopoulos. Integrity and honesty, not objectivity and certainty, are the highest virtues to which the theological enterprise can aspire. Previously, she recapped the Chautauqua Lecture Series in 2019 and the Interfaith Lecture Series in 2018. I do assert that one prepares for eternity not by being religious and keeping the rules, but by living fully, loving wastefully, and daring to be all that each of us has the capacity to be. Even in the widest variety of our humanity, in our deepest set of beliefs, there is no outcast in this community, he said. All of those are human systems which human beings have created to try to help us walk into the mystery of God. 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