2000 Deaths Later, the Time Has Come to Render to Caesar His Due!
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on November, 2 2005A well-known and oft-quoted verse in Matthew’s Gospel
portrays Jesus, responding to a question designed to trap him
between competing loyalties. Where does the line fall between
what …
Surveying Fifty Years with the Class of 1955
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on October, 19 2005Nothing forces an awareness of the passing of time into
one’s consciousness quite like a school reunion. Recently my
classmates from our seminary days gathered to recognize the
50 …
Is History Repeating Itself?
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on October, 12 2005“Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat
it.” These words of philosopher George Santayana are
terrifyingly true. Recently, I have looked again at what
happened …
The Christian Church in Sweden
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on October, 5 2005Recently Christine and I spent fifteen days on a lecture
tour across the beautiful, gracious land of Sweden stopping
in the cities of Vasteras, Rattvik, Stockholm, Uppsala and
…
Born Gay!
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on September, 28 2005A new book co-authored by Dr. Qazi Rahman, a lecturer in
psychobiology at the University of East London and Dr. Glenn
Wilson, a member of the faculty of …
Jewish Fundamentalism
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on September, 21 2005Religious fundamentalism is built on the assumption that
the truth of God has been captured for all time. It comes in
many forms including inerrancy for the words …
Robert Walter Funk 1926-2005
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on September, 14 2005By the force of his will and personality, this man brought
biblical scholarship out of the ivy covered walls of academia
and placed it on the front pages …
Hurricane Katrina and American Priorities
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on September, 7 2005I hesitated at first to write about Hurricane Katrina and the
devastation that has been visited on the city of New Orleans
and the people of Louisiana, Mississippi, …
The Dark Side of Evangelical Religion
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on August, 31 2005I often wonder what Bible it is that people read in America’s
Bible Belt. I wonder what the religion is that is practiced
by the Religious Right. It …
On Death With Dignity
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on August, 23 2005Late last month I joined with other religious leaders,
Catholic, Protestant, and Jewish, to file an amicus curiae
brief with the Supreme Court of the United States on …
The Emerging Church
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on August, 17 2005Time after time I am asked by people to describe what the
church of the future will look like. It seems to these
questioners that one who has …
Theology and Baseball
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on August, 10 2005Last month an anonymous member of my class at the Graduate
Theological Union in Berkeley, California, left this unsigned
question on my lectern: “How can you be so …
Pre-Modern Theology in Public Life
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on August, 3 2005When the hurricane named ‘Dennis’ placed weary Floridians under water in the first major Caribbean disaster of 2005, their Governor Jeb Bush, reflecting on the recent pounding his state …
A New Dark Age Begins
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on July, 27 2005Several years ago, in a column about the harassment, removal and silencing of Roman Catholic scholars like Hans Kung, Leonardo Boff, Charles Curran and Edward Schillebeeckx by that …
Political Fundamentalism
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on July, 20 2005I listen to the rhetoric. It makes rational sense at first glance but the argument is circular and the feelings are hostile. Yet it has a familiar ring. …
Phyllis’ Garden — Finding Meaning in the Ordinary
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on July, 13 2005The threat of meaninglessness and the specter of eternal anonymity are two forces that, far more than most of us realize, drive human behavior. The vast majority of …
Lessons Learned Walking 192 Miles Across England
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on June, 29 2005It had its ups and downs, its heights and its depths. My wife, her daughter (my stepdaughter) and I set out on May 21st to walk the Coast-to-Coast …
Debating with Evangelicals
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on June, 22 2005Twice recently, I have had the opportunity to engage in public debate two people who identify themselves as evangelicals, the Rev. Dr. Albert Mohler, the President of the …
Guest Column from the Reverend Gretta Vosper
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on June, 22 2005Dear Friends,
This week I take great pleasure in introducing you to one of the most exciting voices in 21st century Christianity. The Reverend Gretta Vosper is …
Can One Be Christian Without Being a Theist?
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on June, 15 2005As one who lectures extensively across this nation and the world, I have been asked questions by my audiences that have ranged from the naive to the profound, …
Robert R. Merhige, Jr., Modern Hero
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on June, 8 2005Earlier this year, The New York Times carried an obituary notice for Robert R. Merhige, Jr., a retired Federal District Judge in Richmond, Virginia. The story opened a …
Walking Coast to Coast in England
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on June, 1 2005When my wife first proposed it, I was sure she was kidding. She wasn’t, so now some three years later, and I might add three years older, I …
NBC’s Dateline, Miracles and the Virgin
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on May, 25 2005The setting was surreal. We were in St. John’s Lutheran Church in Helsinki, Finland. It was 2 p.m. Finnish time, (7 a.m. EST) on a Friday afternoon in …
Guest Column: Brokering the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on May, 18 2005This week, I continue a feature that I trust my readers will enjoy. I will seek out and present four guest columnists during the course of each year, …
Seven Minutes With Bill O’Reilly
Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on May, 11 2005I began my Harper-Collins book tour to introduce The Sins of Scripture on Fox News’ with Bill O’Reilly. It was my seventh appearance on the program and, I …