Gradual and natural change is expected in the Seventh-day Adventist Church during the next five-year period, known as a quinquennium. After church leaders met for the 58th business session in St. Louis, Missouri this month, they are now looking at change
Gradual and natural change is expected in the Seventh-day Adventist Church during the next five-year period, known as a quinquennium. After church leaders met for the 58th business session in St. Louis, Missouri this month, they are now looking at changes—and challenges—over the next five-year period.
The word “change” may suggest a “revolution,” says John Graz, director of the world church’s Public Affairs and Religious Liberty department, but it is more likely to be comprised of incremental developments.
In a random survey by the Adventist News Network, several church leaders, just back from St. Louis, spoke of what they considered as the most important change in the church in the past five years, as well as what lies ahead. All agreed the church is highly adaptable, but at the same time still committed to the fundamental beliefs that define it.
The most important change, some said, was the church’s renewed emphasis on reaching out to those in countries not friendly to Christianity; others said it was its use of technology; and others said it was the makeup of the church itself. But almost everyone agreed that including women leaders in greater numbers in the top tiers of the church is one of the most important. For the first time, a woman, Dr. Ella Simmons, was elected to be a vice president for the world church. Veteran Global Mission coordinator, Daisy Orion was elected an associate treasurer of the world church, while Dr. Rosa Banks, director of Human Relations for the church in North America, was elected associate secretary for the world church.
“That should have happened a long time ago,” said Dr. Peter Landless, a physician and an associate director in the world church’s Health Ministries department. But, he explained, including women in leadership “is easier said than done. Cultural issues around the world often prevent that. In some places women are still repressed, sadly even within the culture of the church.”
“We are more open to women in leadership and need to be,” said James Cress, secretary of the church’s Ministerial Association. By including more women in leadership “we are affirming that 70 percent of the church is one gender and we have not been representative. This is the first major step in the past 12 years,” he said.
Some said the church must start opening its ranks to young people. Reports state that 70 percent of the church is young, especially in places like Africa, South America, Inter-America and the South Pacific.
“Increased utilization of young people is trickier than utilization of women,” Cress admitted. “How do you get the experience unless you have the job and how do you get the job without the experience? We have to more earnestly recruit and rely on young people and sometimes take the risk that they may not do as well as those with more experience. However, I believe the real risk is they may do better.”
Baraka Muganda, Youth Ministries director for the world church, does not believe church leadership is trying very hard to include more young people.
“The makeup of the church is youth and the church is not reflecting that in all its ... decision-making,” said Muganda. “Youth still feel they are not part of the church. We’ve got to empower them! The church is not doing that. ... I am sure if we had more youth at this past Session we would have made some very different decisions.”
During the St. Louis meetings, Dr. Jan Paulsen, president of the world church, urged church leaders on every level to include more young adults.
“We will need to find better ways of making our young people feel as if they belong to the church,” said Gary Krause, director of Global Mission and the Office of Mission Awareness for the world church. “The rate of young people leaving the church is truly appalling. We must do better to include them in the life of the church, and make them feel welcome and loved—even when they do and say things differently [than] us. We need to listen to them and let them implement their ideas and creativity.”
With such a great number of church members outside of North America, unifying a diverse church is another concern.
There is general agreement that the church is responding well to the varied cultural and religious backgrounds of new members, some who may not have been exposed to Adventism or even Christianity before.
Landless pointed to the new fundamental belief voted in at the Session as one example of this sensitivity. “The church can be understanding of other religions and cultures without compromising its beliefs,” he said.
“We’re not only going to have to talk about diversity and acceptance, but really in our hearts be converted to unconditional acceptance of all God’s children in the faith,” said Landless.
Graz agreed. “No one in the church should say that they are marginalized because they are a member of a marginalized group.”
What has changed, and continues to change, is the method in which the church spreads the Gospel message. The church has a strong presence on the Internet, television and radio, which has made the Gospel accessible to many.
Continued use of church media such as Adventist World Radio, Hope Channel and the Global Internet Evangelism Network will help fuel more intensity on the part of church members, said Ted Wilson, a general vice president of the world church.
Muganda said that while he believes few big changes have taken place in the church, he agrees embracing technology has facilitated church growth. “We have more Web sites administered by Adventist entities than ever before,” he said. “E-mails have become the main source of communication among workers and church members. Satellite evangelism has also put the Adventist Church on the cutting edge of today’s evangelism.”
What is the church’s most pressing challenge? Reaching out to the world in non-traditional ways and meeting the needs of a very international community in the pews, these leaders said.
“Many of our members are affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic, particularly in Africa,” said Cress. “How do we deal with that? How do we work with new members who are new to the church and have difficulty leaving their old life behind? Then there are those who come from other faith groups and may have difficulty adjusting to life as an Adventist. How do we make them feel at home?”
“The church will also need to focus more on the growing postmodern population—particularly in the West,” Krause added. “People in Western Europe, Australia and New Zealand, and even in North America are increasingly saying, ‘We, too, are a mission field!’ We will need to find creative, new approaches to reach people who make no place for God in their lives. We will need to find ways to balance the growing needs in the ‘home fields’ with the crying needs in the traditional ‘mission fields.’”
Overall, Orion says, the church is adapting to changes positively: “I think the church is responsive. Policies are updated and new ones are in place. We have added a new statement to our fundamental beliefs. We have churches in Africa.”
In the end, Wilson said, “The Adventist Church itself isn’t successful because of individuals from different areas, but because of the Holy Spirit. That is the one constant—not the administration, not policies or Bible study lessons. These all help, but what doesn’t change is our reason for being here.”
