Spong, is He Non-Religious or just Non-Christian?

Update: Review by Ben Myers added. 8/30/07
Update: Comments by John Hobbins added. 10/01/07
Originally posted on 8/24/07. Bumped to 10/01/07.

John Shelby Spong: Even the Non-Religious Need Jesus - 4/25/2007 - Publishers Weekly:

In this article they quote Spong who confesses "I see God as part of the power of life, the power of love, the ground of being, and Jesus as one who lives fully and loves completely, wastefully, and totally even in the face of his death."

It's sad to see the abysmal state of the Episcopal Church. With an introduction like this to Spong's latest book, I'm not so interested in reading it.

Have any of you read anything by Spong? I would like to hear your comments about his theology.

ONLINE REVIEWS -

John Shelby Spong, Jesus for the Non-Religious (New York: HarperCollins, 2007), 316 pp.

Jason Lee Steorts, at National Review, has written a very helpful review of this book. Here is his closing statement which is on the mark.

"It is hard to see how the new story can survive when the God at its center is nothing but an overwrought sentimentality plummeting down an abyss. If that is all we have left, Spong can keep his Christianity. There would be more dignity and courage — to say nothing of honesty — in facing life’s terrible question marks with a mind that does not flinch."

Ben Myers at Faith and Theology has written a review on the occasion of John Shelby Spong's promotional tour of Australia. I think Ben has done a superb job critiquing Spong's view of Jesus. Here's his summary:

"Bishop Spong’s Jesus may be useful and consoling, then, but he is not especially interesting, much less unique. He poses no threat, no challenge. He makes no demands. He tells us nothing that we didn’t know already. And for just that reason, it’s hard to see why “the non-religious” – or anyone else, for that matter – should have any special regard for this Jesus."

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A lecture presented by Bishop John Shelby Spong has been posted by Clay Nelson (iGod St Matthew-in-the-City).
* Bishop Spong takes on the Bible

I just finished listening to this lengthy lecture with Q&A attached. I'm astounded. What is helpful about this lecture is that Spong articulates his unbelief in the God of the Bible and is very clear when he describes the imagined god he worships.

John Hobbins, of Ancient Hebrew Poetry, has provided a helpful critique of Bishop Spong and his handling of the Bible. His post: John Shelby Spong and the Bible

Spong, is He Non-Religious or just Non-Christian?