A little more than 24 hours after its adoption, a new fundamental belief statement for the Seventh-day Adventist Church called "Growing in Christ" has been sent back to a writing committee of the movement for further refinement.
A little more than 24 hours after its adoption, a new fundamental belief statement for the Seventh-day Adventist Church called “Growing in Christ” has been sent back to a writing committee of the movement for further refinement.
The action came after concerns were voiced in the July 6 morning business meeting, and earlier sessions, about some phrases in the statement, which persons involved with outreach to Muslims and Jews said might introduce imagery that evokes negative feelings toward the Gospel message. The statement begins with a reference to the cross of Jesus Christ, which has been viewed by Muslims as a historic symbol of the Crusades, and by Jews as an emblem of persecution.
“We just want a correct formulation to reach the people we have to reach,” said Pastor Richard Elofer, president of the Adventist Church in Israel, which reaches out to both Jews and Muslims. “If we have this opportunity to send text back to the writing committee so we can help the minority” of people, he added, we should do so.
John Fowler, associate director of education for the world church, said he was opposed to a rewrite.
“Some think that certain words expressed here, such as the cross, represents an icon rather than an item,” thus being offensive, Fowler explained. “I would like to say that there are phrases in all the 27 [other] fundamentals that are offensive [to some]. I come from a country with ... Hindus who cannot see [the concept of the] shedding of blood for the remission of sin, and Jesus as the Son of God, as [being] also offensive. I don’t want this [belief] to be an evangelistic statement—that is the job of an evangelist.”
Back-and-forth arguments over the language in the motion continued along these lines, until a motion to rescind was proposed. That motion was tabled until the afternoon session, where it was withdrawn in favor of the proposal to refer it to the writing committee.
That action came following an appeal from world church president Pastor Jan Paulsen, who spoke during an intermission between two business sessions.
“I do understand the concern that has been expressed,” Paulsen said about the discussions surrounding the “Growing in Christ” statement. He recognized that there were those who felt there was “a process of input that has not been adequately cared for.”
However, debating a motion to rescind the statement is sidetracking church business, he said: “We are spending so much time here and it’s not taking us anywhere.”
Paulsen added, “[Please] send it back to the small [writing] group and they will listen, then it will be brought back to us tomorrow. The process would be cared for; we will all be healthier for it.”
A majority vote supported the world president’s request, and that writing committee spent two hours on the afternoon of July 5 assessing comments; a report is expected July 6.