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screen and (max-width:480px){#yiv2064117735 #yiv2064117735templateBody .yiv2064117735mcnTextContent, #yiv2064117735 #yiv2064117735templateBody .yiv2064117735mcnTextContent p{font-size:14px !important;line-height:150% !important;}}@media only screen and (max-width:480px){#yiv2064117735 #yiv2064117735templateFooter .yiv2064117735mcnTextContent, #yiv2064117735 #yiv2064117735templateFooter .yiv2064117735mcnTextContent p{font-size:12px !important;line-height:150% !important;}} | | | | View this email in your browser | | | | | | | | | | | | | | The Jig Is Up | | | | | | | | | | Essay by Rev. Roger Wolsey October 6, 2022The 1960s and ’70s were a time of great social change in the United States. Racial desegregation was officially ended. The Civil and Voting Rights Acts were passed. The two major political parties switched platforms and agendas. Women’s Liberation and Gay Pride were on the rise and a sexual revolution took place, culminating in “The Summer of Love.” In concert with all of this was a profound movement of young people challenging the status quo in many ways – including pushing back against the war in Vietnam. The voting age had been lowered to 18 and many bras and draft cards were being burned. And the US Supreme Court passed the Roe v. Wade ruling. In the eyes of some, the “American way of life” was under attack. What such people meant by this is that they feared that the era of privilege and power for straight, white, wealthy, capitalist men might soon pass unless it becomes vigorously defended. In response, a cabal of far-right conservative politicians and conservative evangelical leaders conspired to bamboozle the masses into thinking that American Christianity needed a revival – and specifically, a revival to get as many Christians as possible to shift their understanding of Christianity such that it was reduced to mean embracing a specific culture that has strong stances controlling human behavior. It wasn’t about theology, it was about imposing specific values. The Moral Majority was formed in large part to trick Christians into thinking that embracing certain, so-called, “family values” is what it meant to be a Christian. Biblically speaking, they sought to get people to think that being anti-gay, anti-abortion, anti-marijuana, and pro-capitalism, pro-gun, and pro-American empire is the “shibboleth" for authentic Christianity. It was a call for Christian nationalism. Instead of being a movement of the Holy Spirit it was a mass act of blasphemy, idolatry, and apostate backsliding. An excellent article in Politico.com Magazine supports my assertions and provides details. Billy Graham warned, “It would disturb me if there was a wedding between the religious fundamentalists and the political right. The hard right has no interest in religion except to manipulate it." Despite that warning, the Southern Baptist Convention was hijacked by fundamentalists in the early 1980s and that denomination became the largest Protestant denomination in the country. Many independent congregations also popped up in storefronts, and in time, as big box mega churches. What they frequently share in common is a wedding of the false gospel of wealth and prosperity and indoctrination into conservative “family values.” In tandem, the Republican party was rebranded - a la Ronald Reagan, Pat Robertson, and Jerry Falwell - as being “God’s Own Party.” Tragically, to this day, many American Christians think that if you’re a Christian you must vote Republican. Simultaneous to all of this was the creation of the Institute for Religion and Democracy – a conservative think tank and political action organization. That organization, funded by far-right conservatives such as Adolph Coors, etc., seeks to undermine the remaining major Protestant denominations – which have tended to be centrist, if not liberal politically. Their mission is to cause conflict, strife, and confusion, divide and conquer, and thus render impotent the prophetic “speaking truth to power’ wings of those denominations. The Wesleyan Covenant Association is the tentacle of the IRD “Hydra” within the United Methodist Church – the denomination of which I am a member and serve as a pastor. Followers of this newsletter are likely aware that the United Methodist Church hasn’t been ”united” in quite some time, and that the denomination is experiencing a split regarding the reality of homosexuality. A new splinter denomination has formed this past spring and it is likely that 10% or more of the UM congregations in the U.S. will defect to that conservative group which doesn’t embrace LGBTQ persons. The new “Global Methodist Church” was intended to yoke the conservative (divided) Methodists in the U.S. with the majority of Methodists in Africa and South America. But reality hit. Leaders of the UM Church in Africa have balked and are indicating that they may not wish to split after all. They woke up and smelled the proverbial coffee. “African bishops claimed the Africa Initiative has ‘lost its original goal of helping The United Methodist Church in Africa’ and instead is ‘working with Wesleyan Covenant Association to destroy our United Methodist Church." And, just a few weeks later, a major study conducted by evangelical Christians in the U.S. came out indicating that 65% of American evangelicals reject original sin; 74% don’t believe the Bible should be read literally; 56% believe God accepts the worship of world religions; nearly half (48%) believe that God changes; and nearly half (43%) deny that Jesus was divine. And yet over 90% have consensus that abortion is wrong and that sex outside of marriage between a man and a woman is wrong. Certain conservative leaders within the Divided Methodist Church have been claiming that they aren’t leaving because of views about homosexuality, but rather, that they’re leaving because ‘too many United Methodists hold unacceptable theological stances.’ Clearly, Conservative Evangelical Christians in the U.S. have overplayed their hand. They have discovered that their eyes were bigger than their stomachs and that they are more hat than cattle. No, what is true is that even evangelical Christians aren’t heeding to conservative notions of normative doctrine and theology. What is true is that it’s clear for all to see that the real reason that they are leaving is because of their bigotry, especially their homophobia – and sex phobia in general. “I’m reminded of the movie Footloose (1984) where young Kevin Bacon’s character challenges the strict religious values and traditions of a small town in Texas that has banned dancing. Which in turn reminds me of the joke, “Why are fundamentalists opposed to premarital sex? Because it might lead to dancing!” (Excerpt from my forthcoming book, “Discovering Fire,” p. 18, Chapter 4)What’s clear is that few people wish to be part of “churches” which seek to control, judge, and exclude people who they know Jesus loves and embraces. I’ll close with the words of the late poet Edwin Markham:“He drew a circle that shut me out- Heretic, rebel, a thing to flout. But love and I had the wit to win: We drew a circle and took him In!” and those of George Orwell,“They fear love because it creates a world they can’t control.” ~ Rev. Roger WolseyRead online here About the Author Rev. Roger Wolsey is a United Methodist pastor who resides in Grand Junction, CO. Roger is author of Kissing Fish: Christianity for people who don’t like Christianity and blogs for Patheos as The Holy Kiss and serves on the Board of Directors of ProgressiveChristianity.Org. Roger became “a Christian on purpose” during his college years and he experienced a call to ordained ministry two years after college. He values the Wesleyan approach to the faith and, as a certified spiritual director, he seeks to help others grow and mature. Roger enjoys yoga; playing trumpet; motorcycling; and camping with his son. He served as the Director of the Wesley Foundation campus ministry at the University of Colorado in Boulder for 14 years, and has served as pastor of churches in Minnesota, Iowa, and currently serves as the pastor of Fruita UMC in Colorado, and also serves as the "CRM" (Congregational Resource Minister/Church Consultant) for the Utah/Western Colorado District of the Mountain Sky Conference. | | | | | | | | Question & Answer Q: By Millie My faith seems to constantly be changing. I think it is mostly changing for the better. Some of my more conservative friends seem to think my faith should be more “rock solid” than that. Is it OK to have a frequently changing faith? A: By Rev. Dr. Mark Sandlin Dear Millie,I'd go as far as to say not only is it OK, it is essential. I mean, if we are not pleased with how things are or who we are, we need to experience change in order to live a better life, to expand our spirituality, to find greater happiness, to help create a better world. It's just a reality of life, in order to have a better life, our current life must be transformed, be changed. It's true even down to the cellular level. You see, every 80 days or so our bodies replace 30 trillion cells, that is the equivalent of an entirely new you. Life, it would seem only truly exists within the context of change. That is certainly true of our spiritual lives. A healthy spiritual life is about constantly striving to grow into a more compassionate, more caring person who offers their unique gifts in the service of a larger whole. That is impossible without change. Change offers us the possibility of growing beyond our current limitations into the fullness of our divine potential.~ Rev. Dr. Mark Sandlin Read and share online here About the Author Rev. Dr. Mark Sandlin is an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church (USA) from the South. He currently serves at Presbyterian Church of the Covenant. Mark also serves as the President and Co-executive Director of ProgressiveChristianity.org. He is a co-founder of The Christian Left. His blog, has been named as one of the “Top Ten Christian Blogs.” Mark received The Associated Church Press’ Award of Excellence in 2012. His Podcast The Moonshine Jesus Show is on Mondays at 4:30pm ET. Follow Mark on Facebook and Twitter @marksandlin. | | | | | | | | Please continue to send us your feedback… we are listening. We aim to give voice to many different perspectives that are relevant and inspiring along this spiritually progressing path. We are not here to tell you what to believe or how to act. We are here to support your journey, to share and learn together.Thank you for being a part of this community - join us on Facebook! | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | As a non-profit ProgressiveChristianity.org/Progressing Spirit rely heavily on the good will of our donors to help us continue to bring individuals and churches the messages of progressive Christians, Weekly Newsletters, along with the many other resources we provide. For years, the majority of our fundraising came at the end of the year. Looking at various ways to create a more reasonable amount of cash flow we decided rather than having a BIG ask at the end of each year, our more frequent asks give folks a chance to contribute when their funds are more flexible. We think that's a win for everyone. We also want to highlight the opportunity to become a sustaining supporter. If you are looking for the best way to help us continue to provide progressive Christian resources, become a sustaining supporter by choosing Recurring Donation. Help keep ProgressiveChristianity.org online and going strong - click here to donate today! * Another way to support us is to leave a bequest in your Will and/or Trust designating us a beneficiary. | | | | | | | | | | | Don't miss the next Episode of PC.org's Executive Directors Mark and Caleb on: The Moonshine Jesus Show - every Monday at 4:30pm Eastern Time – watch live on Facebook,, YouTube, Twitter, Podbean | | | | | | | | | Bishop John Shelby Spong Revisited The Birth of Jesus, Part IX. Was There Scandal at the Manger? Essay by Bishop John Shelby Spong February 12, 2013The prologue to Matthew’s gospel, which also serves to introduce the story of Jesus’ miraculous birth, is now complete. Matthew writing as he does to the members of a traditional Jewish community, who were also the followers of Jesus, has grounded the life of Jesus deeply into Jewish history. Jesus is the son of Abraham, the heir of King David, in a line produced by those who had lived the various stages of Jewish life. The Jews were a people who had been born free in the persons of the great patriarchs, driven by famine into the land of Egypt where they descended into slavery, broke free once more in the Exodus, wandered through the wilderness reclaiming what they believed was their promised land, established a lasting monarchy, were torn by secession and civil wars, defeated in battle at the hands of the Babylonians and exiled to a foreign land where they believed the songs of Zion could never be sung again. Then, years later, they were finally allowed to return to their homeland, rebuild their ruins, including their holy city of Jerusalem, and even revive their ancient calling to be “a blessing to the nations of the world.” These were the people who produced Jesus, Matthew was saying. It was in this life of Jesus that Matthew believed was to be vested “the hope of the Jews.”In his stage-setting genealogy, however, Matthew had also begun to respond to the critics of Jesus, who at this time were identified primarily with the Orthodox party of the Jewish world. What was the content of their attack on Jesus? I think we find hints of that in various places in the New Testament to which I will turn when we have stitched together the content of this criticism. Then I believe we will discover Matthew’s motive for developing the story of Jesus’ origins in the way that he did. Most especially we will be able to understand just why Matthew included in his genealogy the references to those I have called the “shady ladies,” which suggests that the line that produced Jesus also flowed through incest, prostitution, seduction and adultery.Religion has always been in the business of control. That is why those who cannot abide by its rules face ostracism and excommunication. The religious lines of power are clear. God reveals the divine law to the religious leaders. These religious leaders then claim for themselves alone the power to interpret and to enforce those rules. This means that to disobey the rules is not just to disobey the religious leaders, but it is also to disobey the God who has chosen and empowered these leaders. A religious troublemaker is, therefore, the most direct threat to ecclesiastical power. Religious reformers and religious visionaries are thus thought of as dangerous people. They challenge the security around which the religious community is organized. That is why reformers are banished, tortured and executed, sometimes by being burned at the stake. Prior to this “final” solution, visionaries are frequently attacked personally, becoming the victims of character assassination. One of the ways this character assassination was accomplished in Jewish society in the first century was to attack the reformer or the visionary’s legitimacy. A base-born person might be prone, they assumed, to struggle against the religious rules that defined him or her as untrustworthy.That is why there is so much discussion in the gospel tradition about the “origins’ of Jesus. He was not thought of by the religious hierarchy as a legitimate religious leader. He came from Galilee! Search the scriptures; nowhere will you find a hint that a messiah would rise from Galilee. He hailed from the town of Nazareth. That was “on the wrong side of the tracks.” Nothing good could come out of Nazareth. Where did this man get his knowledge, his power? We know his family, his mother, his brothers and his sisters. Echoes of his inadequate origins are found throughout the gospel tradition. Some even suggested that he might be possessed by demons! “By the power of Beelzebub, he casts out demons,” is the way they put it.Mark, the earliest gospel to be written, makes these charges overt. In chapter three of that first gospel, in which there is no birth story, the family of Jesus is portrayed as becoming alarmed at the reputation that Jesus was accumulating. Believing him to be “beside himself,” that is, out of his mind, his mother and his brothers actually come to take him away. They are rebuked by Jesus who announces that his real family, his real mother and siblings are not his birth and blood relatives, but those who hear the word of God and do it.By the time one arrives at chapter six of Mark, these charges have finally been identified with Jesus’ questionable paternity. A member of the crowd shouts, “Is not this the carpenter?” Note that Joseph has never been mentioned. Jesus is the carpenter in the first gospel to be written. This nameless voice in the crowd then goes on with this identification process and says, “Is not this the son of Mary, the mother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon and are not his sisters here with us?” Then Mark says: “They took offense at him.”Three things must be noted here. First, to call an adult Jewish male the son of his mother was a deliberate insult. It carries with it the implication that his paternity is unknown, that his father is compromised, missing or not identified. It is a charge of being illegitimate. The second thing is that this is the only time that the mother of Jesus is identified by the name “Mary” in any Christian writing before the ninth decade. The final thing to note is that in this, the earliest record we have about the family of Jesus, no father, earthly or otherwise, is mentioned. Joseph does not enter the Christian story until we get to Matthew in the ninth decade and when he is introduced, his role is to name the child and thus to legitimize him.Another hint of Jesus’ questionable paternity is found in the Song of Mary, called “The Magnificat,” recorded only by Luke. In that song, God is said “to have regarded the low estate of his handmaiden” and to have turned her to a state of blessedness. God exalted her, who was of “low degree.” There was no status of lower degree or lower estate in first century Jewish society than an unmarried woman expecting a child.A third scriptural hint that rumors were abroad about Jesus’ questionable paternity is found in the Fourth Gospel in which, once again, the subject is the inadequate origins of Jesus that disqualify him from being able to make the messianic claim that was clearly being made for him. In this passage someone in the crowd shouts at Jesus, “We were not born of fornication.” (John 8:41). The clear presumption of this speaker is that Jesus was.So with Jesus’ origins under attack, with innuendos abroad that he was base-born, a bastard, if you will, and that this is what actually caused him to be a troublemaker, Matthew decides to come to his defense. He will argue that far from being base-born, his life was born holy. God is his father. So, borrowing a popular Mediterranean tradition, which attributed personal greatness to divine origins and to virgin births, Matthew created the narrative of Jesus’ miraculous birth. He then searched the scriptures to find a prophetic text that might point in this direction. He found a verse in Isaiah (7:14). It did not fit but, like many fundamentalists do today, Matthew edited it to make it fit. The text literally said in Hebrew, a young woman is with child. Translated into Greek, the Hebrew word for woman, “almah,” was rendered “parthenos,” in which there is a connotation of virginity, but the phrase “a virgin is with child” is a bit of an oxymoron, so Matthew altered the verse to make it read: “a virgin will conceive.” On the basis of this forced and incorrect rendition of this text, Matthew built the first story of the virgin birth of Jesus to appear in Christian history.The text in Isaiah actually grew out of a time in the 8th century BCE when the city of Jerusalem was under siege by the combined armies of Syria and the Northern Kingdom. The prophet Isaiah wanted to provide a sign to assure Judah’s King Ahaz that Jerusalem would not fall to these enemies and that the Jewish nation would go on. His reference was to the current pregnancy of a woman in the royal family, probably the daughter in law of King Ahaz. The birth of her royal child would be a sign that the nation would endure and that the House of David would not be destroyed. His re-assuring words were: “A woman is with child.” The context makes it obvious that this verse did not apply to someone who would be born 750 years later!Matthew, as a follower of Jesus, was convinced of the holiness of Jesus’ life and of the reality of his experience that God was in and with Jesus in a deep and dramatic way. So he crafted the virgin birth story to support that thesis. Matthew, however, must have known that his reasoning was weak. He was enough of a student of the Hebrew Scriptures to know that the text he had chosen would not bear the weight he had assigned to it. So, in the prologue, he covered his other bases. This life is holy. This life is of God. This life is God’s promised messiah, but if you are not persuaded by my argument from scripture, I want you to know that whatever were the circumstances surrounding his birth, God is capable of bringing holiness through any set of human compromises. Out of a line that contained incest, prostitution, seduction and adultery, this holy life of God has emerged. It is thus a powerful story.Matthew will continue to wrap the Jewish scriptures around Jesus for the rest of his birth narrative. As he does so, the history of the Jewish people and the characters out of that ancient Jewish story re-emerge to bear their witness. Those who possess Jewish eyes will be able to see them. Among these characters will be Moses, the Pharaoh, Joseph the patriarch, Rachel, Isaiah, the Queen of Sheba, Balaam, Balak, Jesse, David, Hosea, Elijah and Joshua. Matthew’s gospel in general, but the birth narrative in particular, must be read through a Jewish lens.To these other texts and biblical characters, we will turn when this series resumes.~ John Shelby Spong | | | | | | | | Announcements The Wisdom of the Body Buddhist teacher Reginald Ray describes the body as “the last unexplored wilderness.” For the desert monks of the Christian tradition, the wilderness is the place where we can have a radical and intimate encounter with the divine. Join Christine Valters Paintner on Zoom, Saturday, October 22, from 9 am – 12 pm Pacific, 12 – 3 pm Eastern, 5 – 8 pm Ireland & UK time. The e-workshop will also be recorded so that those who cannot attend live can view it at their convenience. READ ON ... | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |