The audience that I try to reach are members of what I call the church alumni association. Now they are people who have not found in institutional religion a God big enough to be God for their world. John Shelby Spong alumnusassociationaudience Change image and share on social
I admire our ancestors, whoever they were. I think the first self-conscious person must have shaken in his boots. Because as he becomes self-conscious, he's no longer part of nature. He sees himself against nature. He looks at the vastness of the universe and it looks hostile. John Shelby Spong admireancestorboot share on social
I was baptized as an infant. I was confirmed as an adolescent; I was active in my church's youth group and in my university student group. I was married before the church's altar; trained at the church's seminaries, ordained deacon and priest at age 24. John Shelby Spong activeadolescentage share on social
I live on the other side of Copernicus and Galileo; I can no longer conceive of God as sort of above the sky, looking down and keeping record books. John Shelby Spong bookconceivecopernicus Change image and share on social
A lot of people hear me attacking their certainty. I don't have any interest in doing that. I'm interested in penetrating the meaning of certainty. John Shelby Spong attackcertaintyhear Change image and share on social
Was Judas Iscariot a figure of history? I do not think so. There is no mention of him in any source before the 8th decade. John Shelby Spong 8thdecadefigure Change image and share on social
I believe God is real, but I believe God calls me beyond myself to take responsibility for my life and to try top work to allow other people to be themselves and to take responsibility for their lives. John Shelby Spong callgodlife share on social
You learn that you either are going to have a police state where you don't have any freedom left, or you're going to build a world that doesn't create terrorists - and that means a whole different way of 'getting along.' John Shelby Spong buildcreatefreedom share on social
The church is not going to survive if they are going to tell people that they have to twist their minds into 1st century pretzels. John Shelby Spong 1stcenturychurch Change image and share on social
I cannot possibly conceive of my planet Earth as the centre of a three-tiered universe. I know rather that the sun, around which my planet Earth revolves, is a middle sized star in a galaxy called the Milky Way that has over a hundred billion other suns or stars within it. John Shelby Spong billioncallcentre share on social
