Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy (2016)
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The Christian story did not drop from heaven fully written. It grew and developed year by year over a period of forty-two to seventy years. That is not what most Christians have been taught to think, but it is factual. Christianity has always been an evolving story. It was never, even in the New Testament, a finished story.
— John Shelby Spong
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "The Christian story did not drop from heaven fully written. It grew and developed year by year over a period of forty-two to seventy years. That is not what most Christians have been taught to think, but it is factual. Christianity has always been an evolving story. It was never, even in the New Testament, a finished story." in the context of "Biblical Literalism: A Gentile Heresy (2016)" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "John Shelby Spong" (Quotes)
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
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About John Shelby Spong
John Shelby "Jack" Spong (June 16, 1931 – September 12, 2021) was an American bishop of the Episcopal Church. From 1979 to 2000 he was Bishop of Newark (based in Newark, New Jersey). He was a liberal Christian theologian, religion commentator and author. He called for a fundamental rethinking of Christian belief away from theism and traditional doctrines.
About John Shelby Spong
John Shelby "Jack" Spong (June 16, 1931 – September 12, 2021) was an American bishop of the Episcopal Church. From 1979 to 2000 he was Bishop of Newark (based in Newark, New Jersey). He was a liberal Christian theologian, religion commentator and author. He called for a fundamental rethinking of Christian belief away from theism and traditional doctrines.
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