News
First European Union to Ordain Women Postpones Further Female Ordination - May 24, 2017: The Adventist denomination’s Netherlands Union Conference (NUC) has decided to postpone further ordination of women until later this year. The decision was made in the run-up to the May 4-6 NUC constituency meetings. Further ordination of women will only take place after the October General Conference Annual Council meetings to be […]- New Study Finds Tax Reform Proposals Would Decrease Religious Giving - From RNS, May 24, 2017: Current tax reform proposals in United States Congress would decrease religious giving by an estimated 4.7 percent, according to new research commissioned by Independent Sector and conducted by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Both are respected non-political institutions. Faith-based organizations would see a slightly larger decline than […]
- Bus Accident in Mexico Kills 17 Adventists and Injures 31 - May 23, 2017: A bus carrying mostly young Adventists in Mexico crashed into a ravine on May 21, killing 17 passengers and injuring a further 31. Mexico News Daily reports that the bus veered off the road and fell into a 100 meter (approx. 328 ft) ravine. The accident took place in the state […]
- Seven Adventists Serve in Parliament in Tanzania - By Tysan, May 23, 2017: The Hon. Ester A. Mahawe is a member of parliament (MP) in the Party of Revolution (CCM) and an active member of the Sakina Seventh-day Adventist Church in Tanzania. The 43-year-old was born to Adventist parents, has remained actively involved in the faith and says she has no intention of […]
- Centura Health CEO to Step Down - May 22, 2017: The head of Colorado’s largest health care network will be stepping down from his position. Gary Campbell who has been CEO of Catholic/Adventist Centura Health since 2008 will step down from his position on September 1. He will take on a new executive role centering on leadership development and health value […]
- Members Petition Church Leaders about Sunday-Sabbath in Samoa - 05/22/2017 A group of South Pacific Division Adventists are petitioning the Samoas-Tokelau Mission, Trans-Pacific Union Mission, South Pacific Division, and the General Conference to revisit the change in Seventh-day Adventists’ day of worship in Samoa when the International Date Line was changed by the Samoan government in 2011. The change meant that Seventh-day Adventists in Samoa are now […]
- Supporters of Fired It Is Written Oceania Speaker Accuse Division of Smear Campaign - May 21, 2017, updated May 25: The May 15 dismissal of then-It Is Written Oceania Speaker/Director, Gary Kent, has been criticized by a group of his supporters. In the story that Adventist Today published earlier (which there is a link to in the lead sentence of the paragraph above) a statement by Kalvin Dever, the […]
- News Briefs for May 19, 2017 - Stories from Kenya, Ohio, Lebanon, Maryland, Brazil, California, Greece, Thailand, India, La Sierra University and Pacific Union College ….. Adventist camp meetings are being scheduled earlier than past years in Kenya due to concerns related to violence which has occurred in past national elections and the upcoming general election in that country. In 2007-2008 when […]
- Burman University Rejected by Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference Due to Saturday Conflict - May 18, 2017: The Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) has rejected an application by Adventist-run Burman University to join. The 2016-2017 season marked the second application attempt by the university. The application filed on behalf of both the university’s men’s and women’s basketball teams was rejected due to what the ACAC called “scheduling limitations […]
- Membership Drive Update - by Monte Sahlin, May 18, 2017: “I’ve never sensed such a coming together, open hearted, look at the opportunities in front of the Adventist Today (AT) by the supporters of this ministry,” wrote a reader/supporter of last week’s first-ever AT membership drive. “The appeals were so moving and at the same time clarifying, hopeful, and […]
- Theft Cripples Outreach of Jamaican Church - May 16, 2917: Thieves have stolen almost JMD 1 million (USD 7,600+) worth of equipment from Kitson Town Seventh-day Adventist Church near Jamaica’s capital, Kingston. The Jamaica Observer reports that the robbery took place either on Friday night, May 12 or early Saturday morning, May 13. Audiovisual equipment including television sets were stolen. An elder […]
- It Is Written Oceania Dismisses Speaker/Director - May 16, 2017: It is Written Oceania’s speaker/director, Gary Kent has been dismissed from his position. In an email to supporters of the ministry, Kalvin Dever, the CEO of Wahroonga, Australia-based Adventist Media Network announced the decision. The May 15 email said that Dever had met with Kent that day to formalize his dismissal. Although a […]
Commentary
- The Holy Spirit and Women’s Ordination - By Dan Day, May 23, 2017: The continuing controversy over women’s ordination within the Adventist faith has sometimes been positioned as a debate between those who seek more centralized authority and those pursuing the greatest mission effectiveness. But it is also about the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the […]
- The Notion of Race in Light of History, Current Events and Comparative Religious Outlooks - Second of an 8-part Series By Cleran Hollancid, May 23, 2017: Yes indeed, race and its foul corollaries have impacted the church in a much deeper and extensive manner than perhaps many are aware of. There is a history of anti-Black prejudice and anti-Black discrimination, including deep-seated segregation attitudes and practices in American religious history […]
- #Thingsonlychristianwomenhear - by Lindsey Painter Recently, the hashtag #Thingsonlychristianwomenhear surfaced on Twitter and quickly went viral. Women seemed to come out of the woodwork to share the harmful messages the church sends only to women, and to call the church to do better. The hashtag was so popular because it points out a major problem in the […]
- Race in Society and Religion: Its Implications and Its Long Shadow - First of an 8-Part Series By Cleran Hollancid, May 22, 2017: Considering the place of what I prefer to call notions of ‘race,’ ‘ethnicity,’ and ‘culture,’ in the Christian church and in the world at large, first calls for clarifications. It should be noted that these three notions are all constructed in nature; and of […]
- Is Being Left-Handed a Sin? - By Stephen Ferguson, 05/16/2017 Is being left-handed a sin? I suspect with so many other issues today, this isn’t one you’ve given a whole lot of thought to. Yet, left-handedness goes to the core of what it means to be “normal”. The Australian charity Beyond Blue has produced an excellent advertisement called “#StopThinkRespect”, which explores this […]
- The Transactional Spiritual Life - by Winona Winkler Wendth Is obedience a condition, a state of mind? Or is it one end of a transaction? How do obedience and rule-following work together in one’s spiritual life? Here are some thoughts about rules, about laws, codes, and systems, what they ask of us, what makes them work, and what makes them […]
- Good News for People with Issues - Articles like this are daily fare at Adventist Today. If you find this one inspiring, interesting, or thought provoking, we invite you to help us bring you more independent journalism by becoming a member at Adventist Today. There is an option that will fit most anyone’s ability and willingness to help. Thank you! Subscribe to our […]
- The Transparency Cure - by Jack Hoehn, May 7, 2017: “The world’s biggest disease is not a disease; it is corruption. The antidote to this disease is transparency. We’re going to win if we work together as one, because the power of the people is stronger than the people in power. Facts, like people, want to be free.” These […]
- Why I’m a Charter Member of Adventist Today - By Pastor Larry Downing For more than five decades I have been a contentious reader of Adventist publications: Youth Instructor, Review and Herald, various Union publications. What was absent in all these journals was a straight-forward, unbiased account of events and actions within the church, especially those we suspected of being inconsistent with Christian ethics and […]
- A Challenge to the Adventist Church in Africa - This incisive commentary on Adventism in Africa is the kind of thing you have come to expect from Adventist Today. Since this week is our Spring Fundraising drive, I invite you to click here to support our ministry of independent Adventist journalism! —Loren Seibold, AT Executive Editor. by Alvin Masarira, Johannesburg, South Africa, 05/05/2017 The Seventh-day Adventist […]
- The Shack: Much to Love—and A Few Things Not To - This careful and critical book review by Melody Tan is the kind of thing you have come to expect from Adventist Today. Since this week is our Spring Fundraising drive, I invite you to click hereto support our ministry of independent Adventist journalism! —Loren Seibold, AT Executive Editor. by Melody Tan When it was (self-) published 10 […]
- Once on a Damascus Road - by Larry Downing, April 23, 2017: “‘You hear your fate,’ said the Sphere to me…‘Death or imprisonment awaits the Apostle of the Gospel of Three Dimensions.’” (Flatland, by Edwin Abbott, 1884). “That’s What You Think” Subtitle: “Why reason and evidence won’t change our minds.” The subtitle by itself was reason enough to look further. Why […]
Features
- Another Light on the Master’s Hands - By , May 18, 2017 [Editor’s Note: This week I got lucky—my interviewee wrote his own story for me and all I had to do was some minor editing! Binford is a master luthier (a maker of stringed instruments) and his story reminds me of the old one, “The Master’s Hands,” a story […]
- Dr. Nancy Abu-Bonsrah, Johns Hopkins Neurosurgery Resident - By Debbonnaire Kovacs, May 11, 2017 A recent report of a young Adventist woman who is the first black female to become a resident in Johns Hopkins School of Medicine’s highly prestigious and extremely competitive neurosurgical department motivated us here at Adventist Today to learn more. I was able to talk by telephone with Dr. […]
- Marianne Thieme: Adventist Animal Rights Politician - This interview with Adventist legislator Marianne Thieme is the kind of thing you have come to expect from Adventist Today. Since this week is our Spring Fundraising drive, I invite you to click here to support our ministry of independent Adventist journalism! —Loren Seibold, AT Executive Editor. Marianne Thieme is a young Dutch Seventh-day Adventist animal rights activist who […]
- Innovative Worship: How to be an AT Profile Church - Intro by Debbonnaire Kovacs, worship tips by Nicholas Zork, May 4, 2017 Several years ago, I was privileged to attend the Music and Worship Conference at Andrews University. I reported on it to this magazine. Lately, I’ve been profiling churches whose names come to me as “safe places”—and isn’t that a sad thing, that we […]
- Innovators: Can Failure Equal Success? - By Debbonnaire Kovacs, April 20, 2017 Most innovators would say that innovation begins with an unmet need and develops by thinking from a different direction than expected. Tim Allston would agree. He has written a unique book from a unique point of view for a unique audience he feels is underserved…and it all began with […]
- Tony Romeo Leaves the Church - By Debbonnaire Kovacs, 4-13-17 [Editor’s note: This story was originally posted June 2012. I am reprinting for those who read this week’s feature and want to know more about Tony. DLK] “I’ve decided to leave the church. Please join me.” So reads an invitational email promoting Pastor Tony Romeo’s new venture, called “Reach […]
- Pastor Tony Romeo: Celebrating a Life - By Anthony Romeo; foreword by Debbonnaire Kovacs, 4-13-2017 This is a different kind of feature—a bittersweet one. Pastor Anthony Romeo is a one-of-a-kind Christian who takes the Sermon on the Mount (and all the rest of Jesus’ words) seriously. When Jesus said to love everybody, Tony assumed he meant everybody. At his church in Manhattan, […]
- Richland Washington Church Follows “God’s Initiatives” - By Debbonnaire Kovacs, April 6, 2017 Every year the Richland, Washington Seventh-day Adventist church meets together in the fall for a visioning process that will inform their ministry during the coming year. Len Harms, whose title is Executive Pastor/Head Elder, described this process for me: After lunch, and after both group and individual prayer, […]
- Summerville’s Church Growth is Counted in Friends - By Debbonnaire Kovacs, Mar 30, 2017 Many if not most churches count their growth in numbers of bodies in the pews. Not this one. In 2013 and 2014, the small Summerville, GA, Seventh-day Adventist Church was in crisis. Pastor Edward Skoretz described it this way (adding that he’s fuzzy on the chronology): Their head elder […]
- Refugees Part 2: Fear and a Love Story - If you would like more information about the refugee ministry at the Paradise Valley SDA church or Pastor James’ book on the topic, here are a list of links. See Quick Chat–Refugess Part 1: Refugees and Professing Christians here. Paradise Valley SDA Church Website Friendships for Hope Website The Joys of Partnering With God by […]
- Innovators: The Awkward Plane Ride that Led to International Friendship - By Debbonnaire Kovacs, March 23, 2017 In the five years I’ve written for Adventist Today, I have “met” (online or by telephone usually) many, many amazing people, and sometimes researching an AT story even makes me cry. Amistad International is one of those. “Amistad” is Spanish for “friendship” and that’s what it is—the kind of […]
- Deaf Ministries Growing - By Debbonnaire Kovacs, posted July 14, 2016 [Photo: children sign “I love you.” Pixabay, public domain] The Australian Union Record reports that the Adventist church, for the first time, will be broadcasting a weekly church service signed in AUSLAN (Australian Sign Language). A church plant at Quaker Hill in the west of Sydney, in […]
Poetry & Arts
- Stones from the Stream - By S M Chen, May 23, 2017 “The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.” Anonymous A mountain of a man, I’d say, Like the mountain on which he stood. For forty days, two times a day He dared to fight us if we would. *** A freak of nature, […]
- Swarms - By S M Chen, posted May 15, 2017 “A bird is three things: feathers, flight and song. And feathers are the least of these.” – Marjorie Allen Seiffert (1885-1970), American poet Swarming (defined as “moving somewhere in large numbers”) in the animal kingdom occurs with regularity. As with mating, birds do it. Bees do it. […]
- On Motherhood - By S M Chen, posted 5/9/17 “A mother’s love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity, it dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path.” –Agatha Christie, British writer (1890-1976) Mother’s Day approaches. I was blest to have a mother who, […]
- HARD BY 75 - Poem by S M Chen, posted May 1, 2017 The good health that was visited on you When you were young, and maybe from your birth, Has made your life the richer, and your worth Is measured by the things you love to do. It seems that few of any age can keep […]
- Truth and Freedom - By S M Chen, posted April 24, 2017 “Ye shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free” John 8:32. “In our struggle for freedom, truth is the only weapon we possess.” – The Dalai Lama A recent edition of the Los Angeles Times contained this column: “There’s no such thing as a […]
- Sun Stood Still - Photo by S M Chen, posted Apr 17, 2017 “…and the sun stood still in the midst of heaven…” Joshua 10:13 “The heavens declare the glory of God…” Psalm 19:1
- Recipe for Disaster - By S M Chen, posted April 10, 2017 “Learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.” –Eleanor Roosevelt (1884-1962), longest serving FLOTUS [Photo by D Kovacs] Start with one comely young man of great promise: Rescues lamb from jaws of bear. Rescues sheep from clutches of lion. […]
- Solitude, Simplicity, Silence - By S M Chen, posted 4/3/2017 “How many things there are that I do not want.” –Socrates, 470-399 B.C.E. *** I recently encountered these lines by celebrated American poet Walt Whitman (1819-1892), liked them and decided to share on a social media website: “Love the earth and sun and animals. Despise riches; give alms to […]
- Thoughts on a Natal Day - Poetry and photo by S M Chen, March 26, 2017 Sweet bird of youth has flown away From branches of this aging tree Whose seeds have fallen to the ground, And found rebirth in fallow earth. So I will grieve, as grieve I must, But only for a little while. For Shelley wrote, “If […]
- Living Water - Photo by Debbonnaire Kovacs, March 22, 2017 “Now on the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone is thirsty, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes in Me, as the Scripture said, ‘From his innermost being will flow rivers of living water.’” John […]
- On The Nature of God - By S M Chen, March 20, 2017 “I love God’s shadow better than man’s light.” – Madame (Anne Sophie) Swetchine, Russian mystic (1782-1857) [Photo Pixabay; free use] *** I read with interest the announcement that Adventist Today would live stream a talk from T. Richard Rice on 11 March 2017 at the Damazo Amphitheatre at LLU. […]
- Spell Caster - Photo by S M Chen, used by permission. Posted 8-11-2016 by D Kovacs ‘The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever.’ – Jacques-Yves Cousteau (1910-1997)
All
- First European Union to Ordain Women Postpones Further Female Ordination - May 24, 2017: The Adventist denomination’s Netherlands Union Conference (NUC) has decided to postpone further ordination of women until later this year. The decision was made in the run-up to the May 4-6 NUC constituency meetings. Further ordination of women will only take place after the October General Conference Annual Council meetings to be […]
- The Holy Spirit and Women’s Ordination - By Dan Day, May 23, 2017: The continuing controversy over women’s ordination within the Adventist faith has sometimes been positioned as a debate between those who seek more centralized authority and those pursuing the greatest mission effectiveness. But it is also about the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the […]
- New Study Finds Tax Reform Proposals Would Decrease Religious Giving - From RNS, May 24, 2017: Current tax reform proposals in United States Congress would decrease religious giving by an estimated 4.7 percent, according to new research commissioned by Independent Sector and conducted by the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. Both are respected non-political institutions. Faith-based organizations would see a slightly larger decline than […]
- Bus Accident in Mexico Kills 17 Adventists and Injures 31 - May 23, 2017: A bus carrying mostly young Adventists in Mexico crashed into a ravine on May 21, killing 17 passengers and injuring a further 31. Mexico News Daily reports that the bus veered off the road and fell into a 100 meter (approx. 328 ft) ravine. The accident took place in the state […]
- The Notion of Race in Light of History, Current Events and Comparative Religious Outlooks - Second of an 8-part Series By Cleran Hollancid, May 23, 2017: Yes indeed, race and its foul corollaries have impacted the church in a much deeper and extensive manner than perhaps many are aware of. There is a history of anti-Black prejudice and anti-Black discrimination, including deep-seated segregation attitudes and practices in American religious history […]
- Seven Adventists Serve in Parliament in Tanzania - By Tysan, May 23, 2017: The Hon. Ester A. Mahawe is a member of parliament (MP) in the Party of Revolution (CCM) and an active member of the Sakina Seventh-day Adventist Church in Tanzania. The 43-year-old was born to Adventist parents, has remained actively involved in the faith and says she has no intention of […]
- Stones from the Stream - By S M Chen, May 23, 2017 “The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do.” Anonymous A mountain of a man, I’d say, Like the mountain on which he stood. For forty days, two times a day He dared to fight us if we would. *** A freak of nature, […]
- #Thingsonlychristianwomenhear - by Lindsey Painter Recently, the hashtag #Thingsonlychristianwomenhear surfaced on Twitter and quickly went viral. Women seemed to come out of the woodwork to share the harmful messages the church sends only to women, and to call the church to do better. The hashtag was so popular because it points out a major problem in the […]
- Centura Health CEO to Step Down - May 22, 2017: The head of Colorado’s largest health care network will be stepping down from his position. Gary Campbell who has been CEO of Catholic/Adventist Centura Health since 2008 will step down from his position on September 1. He will take on a new executive role centering on leadership development and health value […]
- Members Petition Church Leaders about Sunday-Sabbath in Samoa - 05/22/2017 A group of South Pacific Division Adventists are petitioning the Samoas-Tokelau Mission, Trans-Pacific Union Mission, South Pacific Division, and the General Conference to revisit the change in Seventh-day Adventists’ day of worship in Samoa when the International Date Line was changed by the Samoan government in 2011. The change meant that Seventh-day Adventists in Samoa are now […]
- Adventist Today Begins a Series of Articles on Race - This week, Adventist Today is publishing a series of eight articles on the topic of race in the Adventist faith community in America. The purpose of the series to is to develop a basis for discussions that can lead to understanding and reconciliation between ethnic groups. Race in Society and Religion: Its Implications and Its […]
- Race in Society and Religion: Its Implications and Its Long Shadow - First of an 8-Part Series By Cleran Hollancid, May 22, 2017: Considering the place of what I prefer to call notions of ‘race,’ ‘ethnicity,’ and ‘culture,’ in the Christian church and in the world at large, first calls for clarifications. It should be noted that these three notions are all constructed in nature; and of […]
