Part XL Matthew – The Passion Narrative Begins
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on February, 12 2015It is a familiar story. It has been burned into the collective consciousness of the Christian world over the centuries. Many of its elements have long since left their …
Part XXXIX Matthew – The Apocalypse and the End of the World
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on February, 5 2015In Matthew’s narrative, the Jewish year came to an end with the month of Adar. The Passover would be the first celebration of the New Year which began …
Marcus J. Borg 1942-2015
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on January, 29 2015He was one of the giants in the Christian faith during the last 25 years, widely read, widely known and widely respected. He was a quiet man, humble and unassuming, …
Part XXXVIII Matthew – The First Confirmation Class
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on January, 22 2015Most people are not aware that Judaism, at the time of Jesus, had become a missionary, conversion-oriented religion. People all over the Roman Empire were finding their way into …
Part XXXVII Matthew – The Impact of Deuteronomy on the Journey of Jesus to Jerusalem
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on January, 15 2015When the Transfiguration experience was over, Matthew tells us that Jesus and his disciples came down from that mountain. It had been a transformative experience for the disciples, Matthew …
Part XXXVI Matthew: The Execution of John the Baptist: History, Myth or Midrash?
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on January, 8 2015Salome was a dancer, she danced before the king.
She wiggled and she wobbled and she …
Part XXXV Matthew – Getting Back in Touch with our Source
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on January, 1 2015I return this week to our study of Matthew’s gospel after a rather long hiatus, which allowed me the opportunity to address other pressing topics such as my visit …
A Letter to my Community of Readers
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on December, 24 2014Dear Friends:
As the calendar in the year 2014 dictates this column should arrive at your email address at about 2:00 o’clock A.M. Eastern Standard Time on December 25th. …
“Fear Not” – The Message of Christmas in a Frightened World
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on December, 18 2014Christmas will dawn in 2014 in a world gripped by a growing sense of fear. We have recently experienced that pervasive emotion in almost every phase of our life in …
Standing on the Boundary Between Death and Life. Charles Robinson 1931-2014 R.I.P.
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on December, 11 2014His name was Charles. His wife of 57 years, and now his widow, was named Cynthia. He was a lawyer who, after ten years and with a wife and three …
Insights from Behind the Iron Curtain
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on December, 4 2014I made my second trip in the last two years behind what was once known as the Iron Curtain recently. There I saw the impact of communism that had …
Do Our Seminaries Prepare Clergy for Today’s World?
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on November, 27 2014Writing about the Theological School at Drew University this past week caused me to think about theological education in general and my own theological education in particular. I loved …
The School of Theology at Drew University Installs Javier Viera as its New Dean
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on November, 20 2014From time to time, I have an experience inside organized Christianity that is filled with such excitement that it creates in me the hope that there might be a …
On Visiting a Nazi Concentration Camp
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on November, 13 2014In early October of this year, Christine and I had the opportunity to visit a concentration camp at a place called Theresienstadt in what is now the Czech Republic. …
Part XXXIV Matthew – The Transfiguration of Jesus, Part III
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on November, 6 2014A Dedication-Hanukkah Story
How many of you have ever connected the story of Jesus’ transfiguration with the Jewish celebration of Dedication/Hanukkah? We may well have imagined …
Part XXXIII Matthew – Watching the Traditions of “Dedication/Hanukkah” Develop
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on October, 30 2014Last week we traced the origins of the Jewish festival known as “Dedication,” but in our day popularly called “Hanukkah.”. It celebrated the moment when a guerilla army of …
Part XXXII Matthew – Dedication and Transfiguration, Part I
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on October, 23 2014Matthew, having provided Jesus stories for the Sabbaths between Sukkoth and the final major Jewish festival of the liturgical year, is now ready to relate Jesus to this last …
The Emerging Church in Northern Michigan
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on October, 16 2014Marquette, Michigan, sits on Lake Superior about 300 miles south and slightly east of Thunder Bay, Canada. While we were there, Christine and I were made honorary “Yoopers,” a name …
Part XXXI Matthew – Peter: A Symbol – The Wobbling Rock at Caesarea Philippi
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on October, 9 2014In this episode Jesus asks: “Can one read the signs correctly? Does a clear sunset today anticipate fair weather tomorrow? Do dark clouds announce the presence of a storm? …
Part XXX Matthew – The Canaanite Woman: Matthew’s Icon of Prejudice
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on October, 2 2014In Mark’s gospel she was a Syro-Phoenician woman. Matthew has changed her into being a Canaanite woman. That shift is significant because the term “Canaanite” carried so much more …
Part XXIX Matthew: Did Jesus Really Walk on Water? Of Course Not!
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on September, 25 2014Sandwiched between Matthew’s two stories of Jesus feeding the multitude is another popular tale in the gospels. It is the account of Jesus walking on the water. Interestingly …
Part XXVIII Matthew: The Parable of the Loaves and the Fish
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on September, 18 2014Sukkoth is complete. There will be six to eight Sabbaths to engage the synagogue before the next celebration, the festival called Dedication, arrives. In Aramaic the word for “Dedication” …
Part XXVII Matthew: Sukkoth, Jewish Thanksgiving Day
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on September, 11 2014Matthew Shifts the Emphasis from Crops to Converts; From Harvest to Judgment
Our study last week has helped to make it obvious, I hope, that Matthew borrowed …
Part XXVI Matthew: Sukkoth – The Harvest Festival
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on September, 4 2014Labor Day is over. Little children, carrying new book satchels and wearing new clothes, have found their way back to their schools. University students have returned to their campuses …
Virginia Politics and the Trial of Governor Robert McDonnell
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on August, 28 2014On Monday, August 14, 2014, beginning at 9:30 a.m., my wife Christine and I were seated in the Federal District Courtroom in Richmond, Virginia, preparing to listen to the testimony in …