Here I Stand - Softcover

Spong, John Shelby

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0732266939 ISBN 13: 9780732266936

Publisher: Hamish Hamilton, 2000

Synopsis

This work is John Shelby Spong's story of his life-long quest to make Christianity open to all who seek to follow the way of Jesus.

About this title

Review:

Here I Stand is the autobiography of John Shelby Spong, the Episcopal bishop who is a lightning rod for controversy. Spong has for decades been working to popularise an inclusive version of Christianity that avoids racism, sexism and homophobia; as a result, he has engaged leading conservatives (such as Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson) in very public conflicts. Here I Stand, predictably, gives a blow-by-blow account of Spong's high-profile battles. More surprisingly, Spong also shares some very intimate details about his life that help to explain the sources of his theology. His southern childhood is related in a manner that is every bit as painful and comic as a Flannery O'Connor story. And the story of his first marriage, to a woman whose mental illness persisted for 15 years, is handled with sensitivity and grace. Despite his occasional rhetorical excesses, Spong's book is clearly written in love--with God, with the Church and with the world. "I walk inside the wonder of this God in every experience of life, "he writes at the book's end. We are fortunate that Spong's autobiography so expertly conveys this wonder. --Christine Buttery

Review:

..".a rare and compelling exercise in spiritual and intellectual autobiography."-- Peter J. Gomes, author of "The Good Book"The poignant account of someone who loves the church deeply and has frequently been misunderstood."-- Archbishop Desmond Mpilo Tutu"In this superb autobiography, Spong synthesizes his experiences as the leading spokesman in America and abroad for liberal Christianity."-- "Library Journal

About this edition

• Publisher: Hamish Hamilton
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0732266939
• ISBN 13: 9780732266936
• Binding: Paperback