April 18, 2006 7:30 PM
The Promise of Jesus: Abundant Life for All
Missiles unleashed, car bombs detonated, wars waged—all in the name of God. Individuals, social movements and nations invoke God to justify violence and bigotry. Now, the Rt. Rev. John Shelby Spong, a retired Episcopal bishop and preeminent voice for progressive Christianity, draws us back to an image of God that is affirming and loving of all.
What has happened to the promise of Jesus in the course of Christian history? In this evening dedicated to the celebration of life, the audience considered a faith stripped of our desire for power, a faith that instead looks through the eyes of its victims.
A lightning rod for controversy and a devout man with boundless hope, Bishop Spong has called for a new reformation. He says, “What the Jesus experience showed was a vision of a new humanity and in that vision no one is diminished.”
Bishop Spong articulated a spiritually rich, emerging Christianity where every person will have the opportunity to live fully and abundantly in the spirit of God, and encouraged those gathered to consider how they can live out this vision in their own hearts and minds.