One of the basic, underlying themes of Christianity, across all of the various denominations, is that the Bible is the word of God, given to authors who were divinely inspired by the Lord to bring his word to us mere, fallible mortals. Some Christians — former President Joe Biden, a (supposedly) devout and dedicated Catholic who nevertheless approves of prenatal infanticide, homosexuality, same-sex ‘marriage,’ transgenderism, racial discrimination, and government spying on the Catholics he doesn’t like being the most obvious example — like to ignore the parts of the Bible that they do not like, and some, but almost all accept the premise that the Bible is the Lord’s instructions to mankind.
Note that I wrote “almost all,” because that leaves room for Yvette Flunder, “the senior pastor of the City of Refuge United Church of Christ (UCC) in Oakland, California, as well as the Presiding Bishop of The Fellowship of Affirming Ministries,” who apparently does not accept that premise. Many parts of the Bible need to be thrown out, superseded by a third Testament, because she just plain doesn’t like what the first two Testaments say!
Bishop Says We Need a ‘Third Testament’ Because The First Two Are ‘problematic’ And ‘not the word of God’
Staff Writer | Monday, April 20, 2026
An avowed “womanist” and proponent of liberation theology, she is “gay-married” to another woman and is about as progressive and liberal as they come.
During a recent message for the Center for Public Theology & Public Policy, Flunder shared:
“This a very dangerous thing that I’m about to say now… a bit dangerous. I’m of the opinion that we need a Third Testament, because the Bible has become problematic.
Problematic? Really? Problematic for whom? Certainly not for the vast majority of Christians, although our separated brethren, our Catholic description of baptized Christians who attend or identify with Protestant churches, disagree that seven of the Old Testament books we regard as divine revelation are such¹. Bishop Flunder would apparently toss out far more things she doesn’t like, from the New Testament as well as the Old.
‘Slaves obey your masters as you do the Lord’- It’s a text.
‘Let the women keep silent in the churches and if they have any questions let them ask their husbands at home.’
Now I’m a believer. My whole heart, I trust God with my whole heart. I wake up in the morning talking to God and God talking to me.
But I am completely frustrated with the ways in which the text speaks to the kind of vitriolic God that makes those kinds of things.
At this point, I am reminded of what Jesus said, in the Sermon on the Mount, recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 5:
17 Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfil.
18 For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.
19 Whosoever therefore shall break one of these least commandments, and shall teach men so, he shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven: but whosoever shall do and teach them, the same shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven.
Jesus himself told us that the old law, as given to Moses, remained in force, and always would.
There is a problem here for the good bishop: without the Bible, the whole Bible, we would know virtually nothing about Jesus, who he was, or what he said, what he commanded, and the wisdom he gave us. There are several references to Jesus and his ministry from contemporaneous and near-contemporaneous sources outside of the Bible, but they do not tell us much about him. They are primarily sources which tell us that yes, a man called Yeshua ben Yosef² existed, and that he had a growing religious following.
The good bishop continued, saying that people objecting to her theology would say that the things to which she objects are in the Bible:
And I said, then we need to pull that page out.
And they said, well, you can’t do it. It’s the Word of God. I said, no, it’s words about God. Come on now. But is it the Word of God? No. It is not the Word of God.”
What can I say? There have been others who have claimed that they “(woke) up in the morning talking to God and God talking to (them),” and who have penned their own “testaments” to what the Lord said to them. Joseph Smith, author of the Book of Mormon, is one of the most famous, and it would not be illegal for Bishop Flunder to write that third “testament” herself, and see how many people would be converted to her words and vision of God.
From where does the good bishop’s theology spring? I did something really radical, and followed the link to her church:
The seed for City of Refuge UCC grew from a small group of mostly gay and lesbian Christians’ deep desire to have a worship space that resembled the churches of their youth, but contained none of the toxic theology that was so often present in those spaces. Specifically the group desired a church that would (1) not be adverse to female clergy; (2) welcome same-gender-loving and transgendered people; (3) take seriously Jesus’ commitment to social justice; (4) value and welcome all people regardless of their race or social status; and (5) and be accountable to its members. After a year of intense contemplation, study and prayer, this visionary group founded the City of Refuge in 1991 to live out these ideals.
The original twenty-seven member church was first located in San Francisco near 14th and Belcher in the historic Castro district. It was a small open sanctuary that City of Refuge shared with the Central United Methodist Church and quickly outgrew. It wasn’t uncommon in those days for a passerby to hear the music coming from the church, wander into its open doors and be invited to take part in the worship service. The passerby might be a homeless person, a doctor, an ex-convict or a student. Regardless of the person’s station, he or she would be met with the same open arms of City of Refuge members. Although the church moved several more times before arriving at its current location in Oakland, that spirit of radical inclusivity has never left.
In 1995, City of Refuge was accepted into the United Church of Christ, joining the company of over 5,000 other churches around the world that are dedicated to using their faith to effect a just and sustainable world, not just for Christians, but for all people regardless of their faith. With the support of its members and the UCC, City of Refuge continues to live out the demands of its faith through the various programs that it runs or partners with other organizations to run that address substance abuse, homelessness, HIV/AIDS and green justice.
Very trendy!
In an odd way, I find the good bishop to be refreshingly honest, in a way so many modern religious people are not. So many of the Joe Bidens of the world, not excluding even some Catholic bishops, have their cafeteria versions of Catholicism and Christianity in general, busily telling us that the Bible says things it clearly does not, trying to make the word of the Lord something is not and never has been. Bishop Flunder, on the other hand, admits that she wants to throw out the Bible, in favor of San Francisco late hippie counter-culture vibes. The intersection of 14th and Belcher Streets is located in the Duboce Triangle/Castro neighborhood, approximately 0.5 to 0.7 miles southeast of the central Haight-Ashbury district (centered at Haight and Ashbury streets). It is a very close, walking-distance location, typically taking about 10–15 minutes. We do have freedom of religion in this country, so it’s perfectly legal for those who disagree with what the Bible tells us to disagree.
I, for one, appreciate her honesty, if not her beliefs.
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¹ – Tobit, Judith, 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees, Wisdom of Solomon, Wisdom of Sirach (Ecclesiasticus), and Baruch.
² – The name Jesus is a result of translation from translation. Neither Hebrew nor Aramaic, the language Jesus used during his earthly life, have a letter “J”. Greek, the language in which the New Testament was written, also lacks a “J”, as does Latin. The most educated estimates have Jesus referred to as Yeshua, derived from Yehoshua or Joshua.
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