A New Christianity for a New World: Why Traditional Faith Is Dying and How a New Faith Is Being Born

John Shelby Spong does not believe in a Theistic God and he states so forcefully; "Theism is dead, I joyfully proclaim." THEISM as Bishop Spong defines it, is "a being, supernatural in power, dwelling outside this world and invading the world periodically to accomplish the divine will".Yet, Spong admits, "Christianity postulates a theistic God who does supernatural things". Christianity is about God invading the world through Jesus Christ. Christianity is, and has been for 2000 years (give or take), "Emmanuel" - God with us, visibly and dramatically. "Christianity is a THEISTIC religion" said Dr. Sally McFague (Professor of Theology -Vanderbilt Divinity School - author of the pensive and provocative book, 'Life Abundant' - envisioning Christianity for the new century - see my review). Therein lies the rub. Allow me to digress. A man had a Honda Civic that needed the engine overhauled. He decided to 'radically' change the car and make it a quarter-mile race car. He pulled out the engine and transmission, threw out the brakes, replaced the tires and the suspension. He gutted the interior completely (graciously keeping the windshield and wipers). He then cut away parts of the body to accommodate the new parts and welded the doors shut. He put in a high performance, 400 horsepower engine and modified what was left of the car so that it could reach speeds in excess of 110 mph in 9 seconds. Now, with a great stretch of the imagination you could say this man still had a Honda Civic, but, in reality, he had created a new vehicle. This book is not a "radically, reformed" car, so to speak, it is a completely different car. Bishop Spong has taken a blow torch and sliced out the parts of Christianity that he no longer believes in or adheres to. He has not "radically reformed Christianity" he has created a new belief system.For Spong; God is not a supernatural being, Jesus is not the earthly incarnation of God, the Bible is not the "Word of God", the supernatural miracles of Jesus did not happen and Jesus was not resurrected, nor did he return to God. God, incarnation, atonement, Trinity, miracles, 'Christian' morals, and the Church as it exists today are all replaced. What the title of this book should be, is, "A New Religion for a New World", for that is what Bishop Spong is giving us. T\This is not to say that he does not have something to say. He does and he says it well. Bishops Spong radically questions the basic assumptions of conventional Christian theology and attacks the paradigms that ecclesiastical hierarchy find convenient. He rejects: Theism's tribal theology, bibliolatry, Jesusolatry, and Christianity as an exclusive pathway to God. His "beyond theism" theology demands that we stand and embrace our own humanity, not with shame or the stigma of sin, but recognizing that we are unique and full of potential. That we can, without an "eternal and omnipotent protector" and live fully, love fully and be all that we can be. The God that Spong embraces

From the perspective of a mainline Protestant, this book has been a welcome addition to the discussion. My own United Methodist denomination is dying, largely because it is no longer relevant in theology. We no longer will go to church to hear what sinners we are, how we must drink blood and eat bread to get to heaven, debate baptism by immersion vs. sprinkling, etc. etc. At the same time, as Spong reveals, there is a new grassroots movement that refelcts a New Christianity. If you are missing something in your journey, try it. By the way, the answer is not "updating" the music--have you heard the lyrics of so-called "contemporary" worship music?!? ("Wash me, wash me, wash me in the blood.")

The beauty of the Anglican dynamic of spirituality, is it's defined focus on the desire to marry faith in the Divine, with theological tradition, and with scientifc reason. No spiritual group or denominantion, in any world culture today, makes more of an effort to achieve this marriage then the Anglican tradition and mission. Right or Wrong, this intellectual and theological effort is the norm in Anglicanism, more often then not, leading to open discourse, theological evolution and (over time) fostering eventual, spiritual harmony. Bishop Spong's most recent effort reveals the beauty and the breadth of the Anglican theological tradition, in that, his book reveals the Unitarian elemental phases within the spherical dimensions of Anglican theological thought. Regardless of the many accusations of heresy (by some theologians) and or admiration (by anothers), Bishop Spong is one of the few spiritual thinkers who is TRYING to make the intellectual effort to marry modern scientific research, with traditional religous activities and Sacred scripture. It is a wonder thoroughly Roman Paul was able to convince a Jewish Peter to the merit and value of preaching to the Greek Gentiles, and in todays modern Church, all denominations, should strive to understand Bishop Spong's effort to articulate a science, faith and tradition theology of the Divine that reflects modern science, inspite of the recognized limits of human language (in particular English). Attempting, is meritorous, even if the attempt goes down paths of controversy. I recommend this book for all theological thinkers. Conflicts are raised that our global human society should discuss, or as the Bishop suggests, human culture is doomed to continued religous tribalism, war (sadly as is seen today in the world of terrorism)and or worse, destruction of global bio-diversity.

This review reflects the point of view of one who was raised in the Roman Catholic tradition and is now a Unitarian Universalist minister. I appreciate the insights that John Spong has shared in this latest book -- no surprise there, I suppose. In the course of my studies & a lifetime of wrestling with "meaning", I am one who has come to appreciate "god" as a description of an ongoing process at work in the universe. Bishop Spong's views remind me of some of the early 19th century "Unitarian" representatives -- William E. Channing, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Theodore Parker in particular. Like those individuals, he understood that the truth and beauty of Christianity is not tied to "transient" facts & understandings which are more indicative of one generation's perceptions. There is much that has been added to Christianity that is not essential to it. One can remove the transient and still regard oneself as a good, albeit "liberal" Christian. Sure, literalists will fume, but righteous indignation is not a convincing response for a faith rooted in intelligence and reverence. I liked this book. Spong writes sensible, reverent prose. I share his faith that Christians will respond to the challenges of the present in a mature manner. Theism is passe. Those who profess to love and honor Jesus would do well to heed John Spong's insights.By the way, I read some of the other responses. Don't worry - this kind of sparring has been going on for several centuries in this country ... I salute a fellow traveller on the path; we subscribe to the view that one must understand to have faith; others require faith first, that they might understand. Let one give witness to one's faith -- by either path -- with a dose of charity & humor.

For years, I have been a searcher, trying to find a way to participate in Christianity, but repelled by conflicting texts and questioning the paradoxes of a merciful God and the concepts of heaven versus hell, damnation and all the many components of Biblical text that are either unbelievable or not palatable to someone who doesn't advocate sexism or racism or any kind of absolutism. I also questioned how any one faith could claim truth, and how someone from a non-Christian background could be considered sinful just because they grew up indoctinated by their faith tradition. Moreover, the mystery and immensity of the universe are so profound that I knew the antiquated thinking of traditional churches and fundamentalists had to be wrong. Bishop Spong pulled it all together for me and has ignited a spirit of hope and excitement in me I have not ever felt in matters of God and Christ. The whole idea of God, instead of a theistic being with a white beard and a demand for sacrifice and submission to judgement, as the source of all life and love and being makes perfect sense to me. His thinking conveys oneness of all that is and is welcoming and open-minded and indicative of an authentic search for truth. Throughout the book he mentions that giving up the old, theistic ways of Christian thought will be hard for some. Not for me - I have been questioning their validity for many years. This book has used scholarship and compassionate, rational thinking to open up new doors for me - doors that I believe lead to God - the ultimate source of life, love and the Ground of all Being.