Curiosity has always been part of my DNA. Even as a little kid my life was constantly filled with “why’s’ and “how comes?” At first, I tended to blindly accept whatever the adults in my sphere told me. After all, I reasoned, they were so much older and wiser than I.

As I grew in age and wisdom, I began to see that such reasoning carried with it seeds of doubt. Truth often seemed buried under several layers of “easy answers.” As my intellect grew, my questions needed better answers. And, of course, being the third in an eventual family of eight did not allow for lengthy discourses on any given subject.

This was true especially in our spiritual nurturing. Each meal began and ended with a prayer and also included a reading from the bible. Dad always did both the prayers as well as the bible readings, and, of course, philosophical discussions were not uppermost in my mind after a meal. Each one of us kids said our own memorized prayer both at the beginning and at the end of each meal. Needless to say, our prayers were at times a bit hurried, especially when we were chomping at the bit to go out and play. Sometimes I reasoned that God had heard these prayers so often that the Almighty probably knew them from memory, also.

In my lifetime I have been richly blessed to have come into contact with giants whose influence guided me along pathways least expected. There were men such as the Dutch world renowned organist/composer, Feike Asma, who for me, even during my childhood years, was the ultimate embodiment of what it was to be “an organist.” He was my idol; and my ultimate dream was to someday study with this giant. It was not to be; but I did have the joy of being his chauffeur, companion and assistant for a week during part of his concert tour to the U.S.

Some others who greatly influenced my life were Richard Purvis, the former organ virtuoso and composer from Christ Cathedral in San Francisco; Maestro LeBlanc in Luxembourg, who graciously referred to me as “the young American organist who plays so well”; and Dean Spielman, one of my assistants during my European debut recital, assistant organist for the Notre Dame Cathedral in Luxembourg City who eventually became the “President of the European Court of Justice.”

There were world renowned entertainers such as Steve Allen, Dinah Shore, Milton Berle, Bob Newhart, and the incomparable Louis Armstrong. The writings of Robert Frost, who inspired me to take “roads less traveled by” and Carl Rogers, world renowned psychologist, whose theory of “Client Centered Therapy” I embraced, and whose theories were in  direct contrast to those of John Calvin’s theory of “Predestination.” 

The list goes on and on, and by all of these I was nurtured and I grew. But it was during my college years that I came into contact with Bishop Spong, an Episcopal Priest, whose writings were both brilliant and accessible for me. They truly became “a light upon my path.” Regrettably, we never met; but it was an association that grew over the years. I eagerly read and reread, no, I devoured each new book as soon as it became available. 

My childhood faith that had been nurtured in the Calvinist tradition (my dad was a pastor) was not only tested, but shaken like a young tree in a storm. As I began to grow spiritually, and as I began to question the “old time religion,” I began to realize that to question my faith was not only good, but necessary; as part of the process of my spiritual growth. The old answers no longer satisfied my questions. 

As I began to open doors into this new house of faith, I began to realize that I was on a seemingly endless journey, a never ending search, but one that eventually, I believed, would lead me to the divine. 

A few years ago, Bette and I had the joy of hearing Bishop Spong deliver one of his lectures in a church in Minneapolis. The church was filled and time stood still. His delivery was like his writing; gentle, warm, and gracious. When he spoke about “the mystery of God,” his voice was filled with awe; and we, the flock to whom he was ministering, were likewise filled with the same sense of that divine mystery. 

Spong, in spite of being a man of gentleness, was not afraid to tackle the difficult questions that surround Christianity. He became a leader in the Progressive Christianity movement and for many years his writings appeared in its publication, “Christianity Today” (online publication, christianitytoday.org). The internet is filled with audio/visual lectures by Spong as well as numerous references to his writings. See “Bishop Spong.” I highly recommend his “Charting the New Reformation: The Twelve Theses”. It is a definitive piece outlining his core beliefs.

He has moved on into a new reality. Like he so eloquently said, “The Christ path is the path I’ve walked all my life, so it’s normal and natural. And I have no reason to abandon it because it leads to where I want to go.”

Rest from your labors, Bishop Spong. You have talked the talk, walked the walk and now inherit the kingdom prepared for you. “Eternal rest grant him, O Lord!”

EDITOR’S NOTE: Gerrit Lamain is a former Copper Country resident who served as a music professor at Suomi College. He has published a book, “Gerrit’s Notes: A compilation of essays,” which can be found on Amazon. His email address is gerrit.lamain@gmail.com.