Editorial: The Bear Went Over the Mountain
Another General Conference session will soon be upon us. Adventists will be eager to hear what the brethren (still almost all brethren, with but a small handful of sisteren) will come up with.
You might want to temper your expectations a little.
There’s an old song about a bear who went over the mountain to see what he could see. And what did he see? “The other side of the mountain, the other side of the mountain, the other side of the mountain, was all that he could see!”
That’s probably not a bad way to think about what you’ll get from St. Louis in July. Things will happen, to be sure—but don’t expect to be surprised.
There will be some edits to the Church Manual that probably won’t matter very much. There will be endless policy and by-laws changes that will bore everyone. (You’ll notice that some delegates will be absent from these sessions.) There could be a new General Conference president; he’ll have a different face, but otherwise the same leadership style as the old General Conference president. Many Ellen White quotes will be heard from the pulpit, handily outnumbering the Bible citations. Expect some new outreach slogans, along with reminders to give the church more of your money. (Don’t, however, expect a thorough accounting of how much the session itself is costing, nor precisely where the money came from.) You’ll be reminded how bad the world is, and that we are the only church that has the truth about what’s happening. Some speakers will say that getting Jesus back to earth rests entirely on our hard work, and imply that we, the people, haven’t yet done enough to “finish the work.”
Oh, and you will hear again (and again and again) the quote from Ellen White that the General Conference is God’s highest authority on earth.
Just sayin’: the other side of the mountain will look pretty much like this side.
Just a reminder that Adventist Today will be covering the meetings this summer—we hope with your support. Help us help you to get the news you need to hear by clicking on this link.
Loren Seibold
Executive Editor, Adventist Today magazine & website
12 April 2025
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