In the days following her sermon on April 19th, much has been made of the claim by Bishop Yvette Flunder, Presiding Bishop of the Fellowship of Affirming Ministries and Pastor of City of Refuge United Church of Christ, that “we need a third testament.” Predictably, the phrase was lifted from its pastoral and theological context and, by detractors, recast as a rejection of Scripture or an attempt to supersede the biblical witness. Such readings, in my view, miss not only her intent but the deeper tradition from which she speaks.
To understand what Bishop Flunder was pointing toward, we must begin with a truth the Church has long professed, even if we have not always lived it fully: God is not finished speaking. The canon of Scripture is closed, yes, but the revelation of God’s presence and activity in the world is ongoing through the work of the Holy Spirit. The early Church itself bore witness to this dynamic reality, discerning in real time how the Spirit was moving beyond inherited boundaries, most notably in the inclusion of the Gentiles, a development that would have seemed unthinkable to many who first received the law and the prophets.
What, then, might be meant by a “third testament”? This phrase is not intended to suggest a tangible new book to be added to the Bible, nor to claim a replacement for the Old and New Testaments. Instead, “third testament” is a metaphor for the ongoing, living testimony of God’s people in our present age. Through this metaphor, the phrase provocatively and pastorally invites the Church to acknowledge the ways God continues to show up in the lives of those whose testimonies have often been dismissed or silenced.
Bishop Flunder has long ministered among communities that have experienced exclusion at the hands of the Church, particularly LGBTQ+ persons, people of color, and others on the margins. Her reference to a “third testament” highlights the sacred stories of these communities as places where God’s grace, liberation, and truth are revealed, echoing central scriptural themes of liberation, an expanded covenant, and inclusive love.
Indeed, if we read Scripture attentively, we find that it is itself a record of God continually expanding human understanding. The prophets challenged the complacency of religious institutions. Jesus disrupted the boundaries of purity and belonging. The apostles wrestled with what it meant to follow Christ in a rapidly changing world. In each case, faithfulness required both fidelity to tradition and openness to the new thing God was doing.
The discomfort some have expressed in response to Bishop Flunder’s words may, in fact, reveal how uneasy we are with that tension. It is far easier to treat revelation as something safely contained in the past than to grapple with its implications in the present. Yet the Gospel calls us to a living faith, one that listens as well as proclaims, that discerns as well as preserves.
As a bishop, I hear in her words a summons to deeper faithfulness, not a departure from orthodoxy. Believing in the Spirit’s activity means attending to the testimonies unfolding around us and listening for God’s voice where we least expect it.
Ultimately, the phrase “third testament” urges the Church to awaken to God’s ongoing story. The question is not whether God is still speaking, but whether we are listening.
