Charting the New Reformation, Part II – The Burning Necessity

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on December, 10 2015

The Bible is not the “word of God!” It never has been. No one who has ever read the Bible in its entirety could possibly defend that suggestion. This …

On the Separation of Church and State

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on November, 26 2015

(Publisher’s note: On November 9th 2015, in Washington, D. C. the national organization known as Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, held …

A Meditation on Patriotism in a Changing World

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on August, 7 2014

Patriotism is a powerful force that manifests itself in a variety of ways. One is extreme nationalism. We see that in the behavior of President Vladimir Putin of Russia, …

Carrying My Understanding of Christianity to France

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on July, 31 2014

In two lectures in Paris, France, this summer and through various other media, I sought to place into the religious conversation of that nation a new way of looking …

Thoughts While Listening to America’s Health Care Debate

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on March, 20 2014

We had one of our closest personal friends to dinner recently. He is a stock analyst, a very successful and wealthy man with a passion for understanding the economy. …

Three Spanish Citizens who are Changing the Culture of Spain

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on December, 12 2013

Spain is a nation of 47 million people located on the southwestern part of the continent of Europe. It almost touches North Africa at Gibraltar and thus has a much …

America’s Health Care Debate and What it Reveals

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on December, 5 2013

Every nation I visited on my recent European lecture tour has a National Health System, paid for by tax dollars and run for all the people by the government …

A Thirty-Day Lecture Tour of Europe

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on November, 28 2013

It was probably the most exciting and fulfilling book tour of my entire career. Over a period of thirty days, I journeyed through Europe delivering sixteen public lectures in …

Learning about Europe’s Economy and Christianity’s Place in it

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on December, 27 2012

Throughout the past few years, and certainly as a factor in the recent American presidential race, the state of the economy has been front and center. An important aspect …

My Way into an Interfaith Future

Column by Bishop John Shelby Spong on June, 28 2012

Last week I introduced you, my readers, to an interfaith “think tank” in which I shared recently at a conference center known as the Chautauqua Institution in Western New …