EDITORIAL: No More Echo Chamber

Build a wall!

That three-word slogan helped secure a presidential candidate millions of votes in the 2016 election. If you don’t look (and think) like me, stay away. And if you’re already here, get out! We want our country pure. Ignore the famous poem on the Statue of Liberty.

Many people fear immigrants—newcomers—especially if they seem different from us. Which is a shame. Philippe Legrain writes about immigrants that “their diversity [does] in fact enrich and invigorate the economy, culture and society of their adopted homes.” He fills a book with statistics and illustrations of the benefits of immigrants and the myths about how they hurt us.

In the church, some have a similar fear of people who aren’t like us (me). Let’s keep the church pure by keeping out or throwing out those who aren’t like us. People who challenge our thinking. People who didn’t use to be accepted as members or leaders are being accepted now. There’s a nostalgia for the good old days (when women stayed in the background, for example, and minorities knew their place).

In college, I took part in a debate on the issue of women’s ordination, really believing women shouldn’t be ordained. I believe differently on that and many other political and religious matters now, and I’m looking forward to more such thinking changes. I can’t change as quickly, though, if I don’t read websites such as atoday.org. Adventist Today is a resource I’ve learned to depend on for some mental exercise, some reality check, some reminder that my philosophical or theological structure still needs remodeling, more perspective from others in different situations. It reminds me that my current beliefs might use more information.

Some people want a melting pot (immigrants), while others prefer an echo chamber (keep outsiders out). An echo chamber is “a situation in which people only hear opinions of one type, or opinions that are similar to their own.” When I never hear or read differing opinions, I can comfortably forget that there is any other way of looking at things. I consider Adventist Today to be a “melting pot,” not an echo chamber. It allows voices and news that are excluded from official church publications to get a chance to provide more food for thought. It’s a community where more feel included and wanted and respected.

If you would like to support Adventist Today’s diverse approach, please click here to donate today!

Mark Gutman

Editor, Adventist Today

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