Guidelines for growing a Seventh-day Adventist regional “mission field” into a full-fledged, self-reliant church region, or “Union Conference,” were approved following little discussion at the world church’s annual business meetings on Oct. 13.

Pastor Joseph A. Ola, president of the church in Nigeria asked chairman Lowell Cooper, Adventist Church vice president, how the guidelines would affect those church regions that were trying to become a Union Conference based on old guidelines.

Larry Evans, undersecretary of the world church, said the new guidelines were to help, not penalize church regions. It was voted that old guidelines in the church manual be suspended until Annual Council 2005 for a time of adjustment.

“At the heart of the process is the question of maturity,” said Evans. “That’s when a church administrative region is ready to be independent.”