John Shelby Spong, Bishop

Bishop Spong is one of the most identifiable, outspoken liberal voices in religious circles today. Generating controversy and headlines for more than three decades, Spong is a longtime advocate for gay rights both inside and outside the church and can speak to all issues of Christian faith. He urges everyone to abandon all traditional beliefs (e.g., that Jesus was divine, born of a virgin, was resurrected, that the Bible was inspired by God, or even that God exists as a separate being) that are out of step with modern science or the concerns of contemporary society. He lives in New Jersey.

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Bible/Jesus Experts

Biography/History

Re-Claiming the Bible for a Non-Religious World

Talking Points

John Shelby Spong was the Episcopal Bishop of Newark before his retirement in 2000. As a visiting lecturer at Harvard and at universities and churches throughout North America and the English-speaking world, he is one of the leading spokespersons for liberal Christianity. His books include Eternal Life: A New Vision, Jesus for the Non Religious, Sins of Scripture, A New Christianity for a New World, Rescuing the Bible from Fundamentalism, Resurrection: Myth or Reality?, Why Christianity Must Change or Die, and his autobiography, Here I Stand. He has initiated landmark discussions of controversies within the church and has become an outspoken advocate for change.

Description

For over 200 years, scholars have been debating, analyzing, and exploring one of the most important books ever written-The Bible-and overturning much of what we know about this sacred library of books. However, a large group of people who actually use this book, mainly lay Christians, aren’t aware of this larger, deeper conversation. It is for these people that Spong writes Re-Claiming the Bible for a Non-Religious World, a primer on the history and significance of the Bible. In this informal and accessible survey, Spong will move book by book through the Scriptures, introducing their themes and messages by examining the sweep of history in which these books were originally written. What has history taught us? How should we read these stories today? What does it mean for how we live our lives? And why do people tenaciously hold on to so many myths associated with the Bible? There is a vast audience of religiously hungry people eager to explore a meaningful journey into the Bible, and Spong is leading the way with this book.

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Spirituality

Eternal Life: A New Vision

Beyond Religion, Beyond Theism, Beyond Heaven and Hell

Talking Points

John Shelby Spong continues to speak at hundreds of events each year in the United States and abroad and has become a go-to spokesman for liberal Christianity. He is a regular contributer and guest on numerous radio and television shows, and writes a regular online newsletter that goes out to thousands of readers. His expertise is wide ranging and powerful.

Description

God, says John Shelby Spong, is ultimately one, and each of us is part of that oneness. This is how we live on after death: not in Heaven or Hell, but as part of the eternity that continues after we die beyond the barriers of time and space. Spong says the discovery of the eternal can be found within each of us as we go deeper into ourselves and become most fully human. By seeking it, by living each day to its fullest, we will come to understand how we live eternally.

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