Debates about God, Jesus, Religion, Christianity etc

BIshop Robinson calls for people to be honest about their understanding of God.

I found this book in a pile of give-away books, and I picked it up because the title looked familiar. Later, I realized that I knew the title because Shelby Spong, in his autobiography, Here I Stand, had raved about the impact of this book on his own faith. Since I like Spong's books so much, I decided to check this out.

I think it's an excellent book. Other reviewers have offered some good summary and depth to his arguments. Speaking much more pointedly to my own preferences, I like that Robinson takes seriously the implications of science and 20th century knowledge on our Christian faith. I love that he makes it clear that the focus of religion should be on how we live in relationship with "the least of these." As Robinson writes, "Whether one has 'known' God is tested by one question only, 'How deeply have you loved?'" And he goes on to list ways that the Bible (Matthew 25) defines that love in how we provide the material needs of others (61). So the whole point of deepening our faith becomes tied to deepening our concern for other people (87, 90).

The book leaves me with some good quotes that I can share with others. It is dated, of course, but I would definitely recommend it to people looking for a meaningful articulation of what it means to be Christian. ( )

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