Too many whites argue that slavery is a thing of the past for which present day whites are not responsible. In the previous two essays, I tried to debunk that myth. It is the cause of so much pain today for black and white Americans.
I love your writing and your views that embrace compassionate deeds rather than creedal concepts. It seems to me that your message would have a much broader appeal if you opened your invitation to follow your belief paradigm to all comers – not just Christians – and broadened your teaching authority to other sages and ethical and moral teachers beyond Jesus. I think your call and message could be far more inclusive than being restricted to Christians alone. Have you ever addressed a non-Christian audience and broadened your message to accept their way of worshipping God?
Dear Bill,
Thank you for your letter and suggestion. Yes, I have addressed audiences of other faiths, especially in synagogues, but I have also conducted a dialogue with a rabbi and his congregation in Richmond, Virginia, with a Buddhist monk in China and with a trio of Hindu scholars in India. Every significant contact I have had with other faith traditions has deepened my appreciation for what they are and has broadened my understanding of my own faith.
I do not believe that I contribute to the interfaith dialogue by seeking to master a faith tradition other than my own. While I certainly do not think that God is a Christian, I believe the ultimate pathway to religious unity comes through my willingness to go so deeply into Christianity that I escape its limits. Only then can I bring to the interfaith table the pearl of great price that I believe Christianity has to offer. I hope that all religious people of all traditions will be equally dedicated to discovering the essence of holiness that their faith tradition possesses so that they can share with me the essence, the pearl of great price that they have received from their life in Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and Hinduism. My goal is to enrich the world with the essence of Christianity even as I am being enriched by the essence of other worship traditions.
I hope I never disparage or look down on the way any person journeys into the mystery and wonder of God. I do not want to be against any religion. I want to walk beyond all religions, even my own, in my lifetime quest for the truth of God that all of us can only "see through a glass darkly."
~ Bishop John Shelby Spong
November 7, 2007
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