Responses

A reader put my post “Papal investigation” on Facebook and got this response.

The Catholic Church is one of the longest running soap operas in history. It's got sex, violence, torture and intrigue, all dressed up in costumes that are better than Dynasty. It's also got cover ups, centuries long scandals, inquisitions, cultural genocides by the dozen and a blind eye about dozens of other things besides molestation, genocides and systematic suppression of women.
If we saw it on TV, we'd all say that it can't be true, it's so over the top.

All true, and I’ve written about some of it, but I was delighted when someone corrected my saying in “Spong and more” that my writings point to the worst. He said they point to the best. Yes, I believe that to be true too. I try to portray the religion I happened to be born in honestly, to show both its best and its worst.

Now another follow-up to a previous post. In my first one on Bible study, I was not optimistic about a new law requiring Bible study in Texas, but this is unfolding in ways not foreseen by Bible study advocates. The huge state of Texas undoubtedly has enlightened teachers, and this story suggests that they could turn the mandate into an opportunity to lead students past popular misconceptions. A Texas art and humanities instructor said, “If you're teaching history and literature without the Bible, you're not really teaching it." I expect this person to actually provide an overview of the diverse Judaeo-Christian writings collected into the Bible and their impact on Western culture—the good and the bad. The evolution of enlightened thought cannot be stopped.

I’ve been reading biblical studies for an article I’m writing and learning interesting details that I hope soon to pass on here.