Back in 2010, I reviewed a book by Bishop John Shelby
Spong entitled; “Eternal Life: A New
Vision; Beyond Religion, Beyond Theism, Beyond Heaven and Hell.” At the
time, Bishop Spong was 79 and suggested that, despite the fact that he was fit
and healthy, this might be his last book. I am pleased to say that he was
wrong.
His new book is “Reclaiming
the Bible for a Non-Religious World.” His stated purpose in writing it is
to; “…reclaim not the literal power, but the essential meaning of the Bible in
and for the non-religious world we inhabit.” His intention is that the book be
used by study groups in the hope that those who engage it will have the sense
of completing a major university course on the Bible. Sounds good to me!
Bishop Spong has been a popular author in the spiritual
but not religious movement that has become fashionable in recent years.
Unfortunately, many people who consider themselves spiritual but not religious do
not have a clear definition of what that means to them. This book can help
clarify that distinction.
According to Bishop Spong, religion is not about truth,
it is about security which explains why religions try to offer easy,
authoritarian answers to complex problems and assure people that they need not
think for themselves. Rather, religion insists that all they need to do is to profess
the creed, perform the rituals and be assured that they are superior to others
who have not done so and will be guaranteed the ultimate security in the form
of an afterlife reserved for their kind.
On the other hand spirituality invites us to “embrace
insecurity and dismiss security as a vice.” This is true of any form of
spirituality, Christian, Buddhist, Jewish or otherwise. His idea of
spirituality is that intangible something
which gives people the courage to live in an insecure and ever changing world
knowing we are not alone and that we have the strength to embrace the radical
insecurity of life.
This is the perspective from which Bishop Spong
interprets the Bible; a collection of stories about how human consciousness has
been moving along a path leading from the false security brought about by blind
belief, obedience and victimization to the liberating power of personal
responsibility and compassion. In the process we give up the pathological need
for security and discover the positive aspects of doubt, questioning and the
creative potential of chaos.
The path charted in the Bible does not move in a straight
line. Instead, it weaves, gets stuck and at times backtracks. The problem for
humankind is that security is seductive; magical thinking and superstition are
more exciting than reality.
The Bible is a cautionary tale recounting the pitfalls
and roadblocks along our evolutionary journey. It also captures the
breakthroughs and shifts that led to real progress and growth. A good sense of
history is invaluable in charting a way forward and Bishop Spong’s new book will
help make the Bible relevant to an increasingly spiritual but not religious
world.
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