The Adventist prophet, Ellen White, had a comprehensive health vision in 1863, from which she concluded that there was an intimate relationship between physical and spiritual health. Her subsequent writing on this subject greatly influenced church leaders, who within three years opened the first Adventist health-related center, “for the care of the sick and to…… Continue reading From Separation to Integration: The Odyssey of the Seventh-day Adventist Hospital System in the US
Immigrant Influx: The Impact of Large Numbers of Immigrants from the Developing World on Seventh-day Adventism in England, France, and The Netherlands
The center of Christianity moved slowly but surely during the twentieth century from the Developed World to the Developing World, so that the majority of Christians today are nonwhite (Jenkins, 2002). However, this “Southernized Christianity” has not confined its impact to the Global South: the patterns of international migration have shifted in recent decades, bringing…… Continue reading Immigrant Influx: The Impact of Large Numbers of Immigrants from the Developing World on Seventh-day Adventism in England, France, and The Netherlands
The Fragmenting of Apocalypticism within a Denominationalizing Sect: The Case of Seventh-day Adventism
Research has shown that over time many religious sects reduce the tensions between themselves and surrounding society, and thus move from sect towards denomination. For a millenarian sect to follow this process, its apocalyptic must become less urgent: it must become less rejecting of the present society and put down roots there. However, the dynamics…… Continue reading The Fragmenting of Apocalypticism within a Denominationalizing Sect: The Case of Seventh-day Adventism
Tensions Over Worship Music within SDAism: A Global Church Wrestles with both Inter-generational and Inter-cultural Issues
Seventh-day Adventists were born in mid-C19th America, and their church music originally reflected both their roots and beliefs (the evangelical hymns of the time leavened with a large number expressing their belief that Christ’s return was imminent) and their humble origins (unpretentious buildings and musical instruments). As their missionaries carried their message abroad, they taught…… Continue reading Tensions Over Worship Music within SDAism: A Global Church Wrestles with both Inter-generational and Inter-cultural Issues
Twenty-First Century Adventism: The Impact of The Decline of The Church in The Developed World and Its Rise in The Developing World
I will begin by showing you the dramatic changes that have taken place in recent decades in the global distribution of all Christians, and of Adventists in particular. I will then compare and contrast the Adventist statistics with those of the other major religious groups that emerged, as we did, in the U.S. during the…… Continue reading Twenty-First Century Adventism: The Impact of The Decline of The Church in The Developed World and Its Rise in The Developing World
Adventists and the Proposed “Marriage Amendment”: The Constitution and Same-Sex Relationships
Two prominent Adventists have recently urged a reversal in our Church’s long held position of opposing the enactment of laws attempting to impose morality. They have urged that the church take a public position against the recent changes in North America towards recognizing same-sex relationships, and publicly support the “Marriage Amendment” to the constitution that…… Continue reading Adventists and the Proposed “Marriage Amendment”: The Constitution and Same-Sex Relationships
Adventists, War, and Oppressive Governments: Patterns and Relationships from Before World War I to the Present
The American Civil War forced the Adventist Church to grapple with the issue of military service just as it created its organizational structure in the early 1860s. After an open debate, and after the introduction of conscription in March 1863 obliged it to publicly embrace a stance, Adventism adopted what was known then as a…… Continue reading Adventists, War, and Oppressive Governments: Patterns and Relationships from Before World War I to the Present
