[Dialogue] 10/13/16, Spong/Alexander: Thanks to Bishop Spong

Thu Oct 13 08:33:54 PDT 2016

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Thanks to Bishop Spong

Have you ever been pressured by friends or family to buy into today’s modern evangelical spin on Christianity? Or, have you ever been pressured not to share the latest scientific discoveries or academic scholarship for fear of disrupting the simple faith of others?
As a child I was sent to Christian school and bible study groups. I was also a critical thinker, so that caused a lot of tension. I asked the whopper questions in class, and even caused so much doubt in one group that my teacher had to ask me to take it down a notch because I was causing others in the group to question their faith. Apparently I had to learn that thinking for oneself was not encouraged when it had to do with God. I didn’t want to be a jerk or anything, I just wanted to make some sense of what I was hearing, and I assumed others did too. I had the makings of a true reformer back then, but I backslid due to social pressure.
Because of that pressure I decided to acquiesce, for two decades. Sometimes I even felt a sense of fear – or maybe it was guilt – for asking such questions, and having such nettlesome thoughts. It was as if I was the one being mentioned in Mark 9:42, where Jesus was quoted as saying it would be better to have a millstone hung around one’s neck and thrown into the sea instead of cause any of the little one’s to stumble in their beliefs. Some part of me felt that if I continued to express my dissonance that I might make God angry at me and risk a good old fashioned smiting. Some part of me conceived of God in a similar way that Jim Carey’s character Bruce Nolan did in the iconic movie Bruce Almighty – as a legalistic smiter! As I matured though, I found that my experience was not uncommon. Many who’ve been raised in the Church struggle to transcend the paradigm of conservative Christianity because they are fearful, even subconsciously, that they will open themselves to God’s disfavor. At the very least it just seems a lot safer to stay in the box. Losing friends can seem tolerable, but losing God’s blessing, not so much…
This brings us to the good Bishop Jack Spong. His recent stroke got me to thinking. Here is a man who has led the charge for over fifty years toward an enlightened understanding of Christianity, leaving no question off limits. Yet by most accounts he has lived a charmed life. He certainly hasn’t been struck down by an angry and vengeful God. He is 85, and this is one of the first times I have heard of him being out of commission from speaking about his ideas. He has a wonderful wife. He has four successful children. And he’s had thousands, or maybe even millions of people express thanks for his life’s work. This is not a man who God has unleashed the devil on, a la Job. If anything, this is a man who has been blessed. Now, I no longer subscribe to those quid-pro-quo beliefs about God anyway. But if I did, I could look at Bishop Spong’s life and feel much more confident to venture out of the conservative Christian fortress without fear of retribution from a querulous God. It is clear to me that God is not going to punish us for using our brains. Bishop Spong’s life is a living example of that. We can think, dream, and even doubt without feeling scared of God’s judgement. The source of the universe is not an old, bearded, homophobic, temperamental, misogynistic, angry, genocidal, maniac in the sky. Peace, joy, compassion, and growth come from following love and truth wherever they may lead. Bishop Spong has been an excellent example of that.
Because of his work, the Bishop’s teachings have been integral to the progressive movement throughout the past twenty years. For example, as I sat one recent morning looking over some recent essays from Bishop Spong, I found one with a Q & A from a reader asking how to make the Church relevant for modern day people (yes, a BIG question of our time). In his response, Bishop Spong wrote: “Most of our doctrinal explanations have long passed their ‘sell by’ shelf life.” I really loved that quote, and the way he can word things in such a prodigious way. I also appreciate how he offers a reconstructive framework to help us articulate a new, hopeful, and exciting path forward once we remove those expired elements.
I have always valued the way Bishop Spong can articulate volumes of wisdom in a mere sentence or two. Before too long I was pastoring and leading church ministries – speaking to thousands of people. But at the same time I began to see how bent people were on agreement of beliefs. For the majority of Christians I met, the core of Christianity was about orthodoxy (right beliefs). The marching orders were to convince people to agree on centuries old beliefs, and then convince them to go out and convince others to agree on those same beliefs. Said like that it kind of sounds like a cult. Hmmm.
When I noticed what I had gotten myself into I began reverting back to my childhood roots, asking lots of questions and challenging folk’s positions. I assumed that maybe they just didn’t know about modern Biblical scholarship, the historical Jesus, or open and inclusive paradigms. I realized quickly though that just like when I was a child, I was again surrounded by people who did not want to hear anything that conflicted with their deepest beliefs – no matter how obvious or factual it was. This was no longer eight year old children I was dealing with, but full grown adults now. Yet they were acting the same as the eight year olds I remembered back in primary school. Only now they were actively teaching and promoting this stuff to the next generation, so it seemed even more worthy of challenging. Even the Sr. Pastor at my church at the time was a closed door to questions or open discussion. He simply told me I had a “hermeneutic of suspicion” that I needed to pray about…
So I did what any Gen-X’er would do, I took to the internet to find relief. And thank God for the internet in this case. I found this Bishop from Newark who scratched my theological itch. He was a straight-shooter and I found him to be an absolute genius at re-visioning Christianity in the honest way that I craved to hear so many years earlier. At that time he was one of the few people out there who were speaking as intelligently and freely as I yearned to hear, while not feeling the need to sugar coat things to the point of ambiguity. He didn’t protract his language in order to keep crossover appeal within the church. He helped embolden me to escape the conservative evangelical paradigm before it took root within the all-too-famililar tidal wave of indoctrinational peer pressure I was under once again. Reading and watching Bishop Spong’s material during that time helped me realize that I wasn’t alone. Not only that, but there were educated and compassionate pastors out there taking it much further than I even thought possible, with great new ideas about where to go from here. His work helped convince me not to give up again. He also shared some tools that would help me not just come across as a doubter and a cynic, but as someone who could also offer a more interesting, honest, and sustainable vision for the future.
I write this article to thank Bishop Spong, but also to encourage everyone out there who may be struggling to go deeper or be yourself publicly. You can absolutely feel free to think with a refreshed sense of theological freedom. If there is Truth out there, the only true way to pursue it is to seek it with no boundaries, blinders, or fear – no matter where it may lead. There are no rules in how we seek to grow in love for ourselves, for others, and for all creation. There is a large and growing community of innovative thinkers who will support and encourage you. And I thank Bishop Spong for his inspiration in my life, and his worldwide leadership in pioneering a new Christianity for a new world.
Click here to read online
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Eric Alexander is a board member for ProgressiveChristianity.org and holds a master of theology from Saint Leo University. Some of his most popular articles are: I’m a “Gay” Christian – (sort of) and The 7 “at some points” of Progressive Christianity. He is also the author of Teaching Kids Life is Good, and the founder of an exciting new project called Jesism.

Question & Answer
Amy Villwock via the Internet, writes:

Question:
An eight-year-old girl in my congregation has a father who has cancer and will likely die soon. She told a family member that she knew her father would not die because she was praying “really hard” to God. How would you respond to this child?

Answer:
Dear Amy,
There is a considerable distinction between reality and desire. This child is expressing her desire in very typical eight-year-old forms. At the age of eight, one believes that one’s parents can do anything and God is presented as a kind of parent figure with supernatural power. If one pleases God like a child pleases the child’s parents, there is an assumed payoff, i.e. the child gets the desire of his or her heart. Of course, life doesn’t work that way, but superstition and religion both feed that mentality. Christian liturgies are filled with unimaginative clichés: “Have mercy, O God”; “reward us not according to our deserving, but according to your gracious will.” In liturgy we act as if there is nothing working in our lives to commend us to God and so we are taught to throw ourselves on God’s mercy. This eight-year-old child is simply reflecting this permeating theology of Christianity. Perhaps it made sense when our primary picture of God was that of a super father or super parent, who lives above the sky, keeping record books on our behavior up to date while rewarding the faithful and punishing the wicked. If the church reflects this Santa Claus view of God, it should surprise no one that one of our children reflects it. I suspect this child has said this before and has been praised for her faith and faithfulness. What can we do or say to keep this child from having a rough time when reality moves into her fantasy world. She will survive. Most of us deal with reality when we are forced by reality to do so.
In the long term, we must start by educating the adults who pass on this theology to this eight year old child. The first lesson that adults need to learn is that Christianity does not make one secure. It does not create peace of mind amid the chaos of life. Christianity rather gives us the courage to embrace the radical insecurity of life. It gives us the courage to live creatively when there is no peace of mind, to continue putting one foot in front of the other when chaos is the reality of our lives. No one escapes the difficult times of life – not the righteous, the sacred or those who are convinced they possess the true faith.
Love this child. Set up a relationship with her that is so supportive and so honest that she may be able to give expression to her fears, which are well repressed in one who believes that her prayers can control the will of God.
I wish you well. Life is tough, there are no easy answers. That is why Paul Tillich referred to the Christian life as having “the courage to be.”
John Shelby Spong

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Send Bishop Spong a Get Well Note! 

So many readers have asked how to send Bishop Spong a note letting him know they are praying and thinking of him during his recuperation. You can send your notes to admin at progressivechristianity.org and they will be forwarded to Bishop Spong. 

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