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Comments of the Week April 7-13

Comments of the Week April 7–13

“Shows where women rank in the church hierarchy.” –Elizabeth Lively on our 3-part series on Abuse in the Parsonage

Comments on The Bear Went Over the Mountain, GC Excom on Independent Ministries, 3-part Series Abuse in the Parsonage, Pastor Wins Case Against Sexist Congregation, Dakota Adventist School Closing, and Aunt Sevvy

Editorial: The Bear Went Over the Mountain

“What the bear perhaps is not capable of seeing are the thousands of souls made in God’s image who hunger and thirst for the promised Heavenly Father, the long-awaited Son, and the unpredictable She Spirit to make all our anticipations obsolete. From Nicaea to Constantinople to Battle Creek to San Francisco to St. Louis, humans hungering for a consensus and a congregation responding to the Divine have been meeting in response to the scripture to ‘forsake not the assembling of yourselves together.’ At very least we want to find a place where he-bears and she-bears and cubs and black bears and grizzly bears and panda bears and Teddy bears can quietly and peacefully feed on bamboo shoots and huckleberries. If not now, when? If not us, who? If not there, where? Let the fire fall.”

–Jack Hoehn

GC Excom: Independent Ministries Aren’t Necessarily Supporting Ministries

“The GC executive committee is saying that anyone who criticizes them in any way is not supportive. The real problem is leadership is not supportive of real thinking and authentic dialogue. It’s ‘my way or the highway.’ They describe Babylon as a power that stands in the place of God and demands obedience. Sadly, the administration has ‘protested’ so much that they have become the image of the medieval church they keep preaching against. Meanwhile, the Pope has confessed the mistakes of the medieval church and has moved on, preaching grace and service to the oppressed.

“When will the GC recognize their own mistakes, repent, and move to the role of a ‘supporting ministry’ that accepts and empowers everyone in the church?“

–Don Drummond

“They are ‘critical of the church.’ But, according to most of the comments, it seems to be the other way round.”

–Nella De Waal

Abuse in the Parsonage, Part 3: The Conference Stands by Their Man

“Seldom has a story series made me so absolutely furious. The ‘Church’ failed this woman on so many levels and behaved no better than other denominations who move around and cover for clear abusers. While I love my local church congregation, this is yet more reason why I have absolutely no use for any of the other levels of the SDA leadership hierarchy. Despite all the lip service, they do not see or treat women as equal or valuable.”

–Rebecca Larson

Abuse in the Parsonage, Part 2: A New Start & the Abuse Starts Again

“Shows where women rank in the church hierarchy.”

–Elizabeth Lively

Abuse in the Parsonage, Part 1: A Secret Past

“I am so angry at conference officials who know a pastor has been abusive and then move them to a new place where no one suspects the hidden danger.“

–Cherilyn Kaye Christen

Adventist Pastor Wins Court Case Against Sexist Congregation

“Lerato was one of my students at Helderberg College. Good for her standing up to the toxicity present at all levels of the church. I wish her all the best in the future.”

–Jeff Crocombe
“We must always remember that in its lifetime this school was a blessing to many. It is not the first school to be closed, nor will it be the last. Out of past and future closures will come new ways of getting our children educated. The problem seems to be that we are good at starting projects and have developed great policies for doing that. We now have come to the realization that times change and we really ought to develop policies about when and how necessary closures work as a way of transition rather than as a funeral.“
–Al Konrad
“Let’s go out and wash the feet of the homeless, cut toenails, put new socks and shoes on their feet. Or rent a laundromat for the day, for the homeless to do their laundry. Have a ‘Soup Kitchen’ every Sabbath. The Good Neighbor SDA Church here in Walla Walla does this every Sabbath. It’s actually a pot lunch meal at noon. They have been doing this for years. Every day in this area, one of the churches supplies a meal, and food to take with them, plus clothing, blankets, and sleeping bags. Food is available at the Christian aid center (rescue mission) for breakfast and supper. Different church groups, Pathfinders, Boy Scouts, Walla Walla University, realtors, etc., sign up to provide a meal. When my kids were little, we did breakfast once a month. So many things could be done that would be better than having the ‘Ordinance of Humility,’ held in the church every 3 months.“
–Audrey C Speer

 

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