Eternal Life: A New Vision - Beyond Religion, Theism, Heaven and Hell by John Shelby Spong | Spiritual Growth & Philosophical Exploration Book

Although this is not a new offering from John Shelby Spong (it was published in 2010) I just got around to reading it. He says in the first line of the "Preface," that "This may well be my final book" but goes on to say that he has written his "last book" at least five times now so I for one am hoping that he has another one in him. I couldn't put the book down and although I want to reread it, I am breaking my rule of never lending a book. Two good friends are on the receiving end of my temporary lending library.This book is quintessential Spong in that although riff with serious, profound topics-- surely no question is more important that whether or not we live after death-- it is written in clear, thoughtful language for the average lay reader and calls into question the more tradition views on Christianity. The complete title ETERNAL LIFE: A NEW VISION - BEYOND RELIGION, BEYOND THEISM - BEYOND HEAVEN AND HELL pretty much sums up Bishop Spong's beliefs on the subject. He sees God apart from religion. "There is no supernatural God who lives above the sky or beyond the universe. . . Heaven and hell are human constructs designed to make fair in some ultimate way the unfairness of life." He goes on to say that he recoils when he writes such words, "for this traditional definition of God has been my companion from the earliest days of my life," and states further that "the fact that the way we thought of God in our past has died does not mean that God has died or that there is no God." In short, no religious tradition is too delicate or sacred for this gentle, thoughtful seeker of truth to dismantle. He sets forth his "vision" by discussing his own life and says that this is the only way he could get into the subject. He learned first of death as a young child when he found a pet fish floating in an aquarium, then a pretty-much absent grandparent died, whose death did not have that much of an impact on him, but he really grieved when his pet dog died. Spong's mother said that death happened to old people, something he began to question when two young classmates were killed in an accident.In this relatively short book, not much over 200 pages, Bishop Spong says so much that makes so much sense, and he says it so much better than I can summarize or paraphrase, but here are just a few of his many statements that resonated with me: Churches seem to prefer child-like members who do not think for themselves; fewer and fewer people care what fundamentalists think; we must dance with death before we can rejoice in life; it is difficult to be a biblical literalist if you actually read the Bible; and the primary function of religion is to provide security.In the "Epilogue" Spong discusses the right to die; he does not mean suicide but the right to end a life in a meaningful-- he would say-- beautiful way. We should have that choice; if we are unable to make that choice, than a family member or beloved friend should make that decision for us. It should never be made, however, by a non-interested third party such as a physician or other health care professional. But before the epilogue, he ends with what once again I must quote verbatim: "If someone were to pose to me the question that was posed by the mythical biblical character of Job so long ago--'If a man [or a woman] dies, will he [or she] live again?'--my answer would be yes, yes, yes. . . So I end this book by calling you to live fully, to love wastefully, to be all that you can be and to dedicate yourselves to building a world in which everyone has a better opportunity to do the same. That to me is to be part of God and to do the work of God. That to me is to be a disciple of Jesus. Finally, that to me is the way to prepare for life after death. Shalom."