Hi!
I'm Wes Phillips and a long-time fan of Bishop Spong. I didn't know about this forum, but I am glad I found it. I grew up in Wichita Falls, Texas and attended the Methodist church there. When I went to College, I attended the Methodist Youth group at the Wesley Foundation where we had a very progressive minister. I was already convinced that the Bible was not a history book, nor a science book and had already determined this by the time I was 13 or 14 years old--about 1955. In college I majored in Biology and minored in Geology.
I consider Bishop Spong to be a moderate Christian and not at all radical. I also follow Israel Finkelstein as I was president of the local Archeological society for a number of years. I am now 73 years old and except for the inevitable geriatric diseases I am in relatively good health. I worked for the National Park Service for 34 years, retired there and then spent ten years in a local history museum, where I eventually became director. I retired there when I became 70 and am now active in both the Methodist church and the Unitarian Fellowship.