News reports from Jamaica, Loma Linda University, Adventist Peace Fellowship, Adventist Society for the Arts and a webinar on Christian Identity and Christian Nationalism:

On March 7, Jamaica’s Washington Gardens SDA Church held a Zoom-based seminar titled COVID-19 Safety Measures & Vaccine Sensitization.

Jamaica’s The Gleaner newspaper reported that Charmin McKoy, the regional health educator at the South East Regional Health Authority, critiqued Christians who defy the COVID-19 safety regulations, claiming they are “covered under the blood.”

“We know that rules were mentioned in the Bible, and as Christians, we should obey rules, so I am not in agreement with that statement about ‘covered under the blood’,” said McKoy. “As Christians, we should set examples, and we should conform to the laws of the land.”

Jamaica has recently increased COVID-19 restrictions and now only allows church services to take place online.

From Loma Linda University: The WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC) has granted Loma Linda University a 10-year academic accreditation, the maximum accreditation award allowed by federal guidelines and the second consecutive such designation for the university.

During what was a challenging year for the university, the accrediting team in November conducted its review virtually. The team complimented the university for its emphasis on mission-focused learning, whole person care, the work of the Diversity Council, local and global service, graduation rates, new alumni success, and for its quick transition to virtual learning in response to COVID-19.

“We’re very proud of the 10-year reaffirmation that WSCUC has granted Loma Linda University and for its recognition of our key strengths,” said Ronald Carter, PhD, university provost. “This accomplishment is due to the efforts of so many dedicated people across campus who spent time analyzing data, preparing documents and participating in interviews with the WSCUC team.”

The accreditation was a key part of a new Thematic Pathway for Reaffirmation (TPR) of Loma Linda University Health’s academic review. The TPR is a streamlined version of the comprehensive review and is only available to academic institutions who have previously been granted a 9- or 10-year accreditation in their previous review.

In case you missed it, Adventist Peace Fellowship recorded two podcast episodes with Monte Sahlin, who until the end of last year, was CEO of Adventist Today:

In Episode 1 Monte talks about community organizing, urban ministry, being a lead pastor, working with ADRA, and more.

In Episode 2, Monte reflects on racial issues within Adventism, the National Religious Campaign Against Torture, Adventist Today magazine, his hopes for the Adventist community, and publications he plans to complete now that he has retired from Adventist Today.

Here’s Monte’s bio per the podcast show notes:

Monte Sahlin was the chairman of the board for the Center for Creative Ministry, he was a senior fellow at the Center for Metropolitan Ministry, and taught as an adjunct faculty member at Eastern University in Philadelphia and in the Doctor of Ministry program at Andrews University.

Sahlin is an ordained pastor in the Seventh-day Adventist Church. He served for 12 years at the denomination’s North American headquarters with responsibility for church ministries, media projects, social action, and research and development. He then served eight years as a regional vice president.

In addition to leading Adventist Today from 2012 until the end of 2020, Sahlin has authored 26 books, more than 120 research monographs, and hundreds of magazine articles. Some of his book titles include: Community Assessment for Faith-based Organizations, Mission in Metropolis, Ministries of Compassion, One Minute Witness, and Understanding Your Community. In 2005, he coauthored with Harold Lee, Brad: Visionary, Spiritual Leadership, a history and evaluation of the career of Charles Bradford, the first African American to serve as president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in North America.

It is hard to get a sense of the breadth of his work: Sahlin has worked as director, board chairman or strategic consultant with more than 100 innovative, community-based ministries, church plants and nonprofit organizations. In 1994 he was awarded an Outstanding Public Service Award by the United States government and in 1996 he participated in the Presidents’ Summit on Volunteerism as well as the preparatory gathering of 50 representatives of the nonprofit sector at the White House.

Adventist Society for the Arts (ASA) is hosting INSPIRE 2021 ART SHOW on Sunday, May 16, 2021. The title of the show is Creative Cure: Art in the Age of COVID.

Adventist Society for the Arts (ASA) provides a venue for Seventh-day Adventist church members who have an interest in art in its many forms–architecture, calligraphy, digital graphics, drama, drawing, film, painting, photography, songwriting, street art, sculpture and more—to network, collaborate and produce art that speaks to today’s culture and world.

Submissions can feature nature, urban objects, people, and more. We would love to see art that somehow addresses the difficult times we are passing through. We’re looking for art that is healing and hopeful. If you are submitting works that feature people, please indicate on the registration form that you have their permission (model release).

Show Target: Adventist creatives throughout the Pacific Union Conference and North America.

Awards Offered: Awards will be given (in both categories) based upon juried evaluations. First ($300), Second ($200) and Third ($100) places will receive monetary recognition, and up to 5 honorable mentions will be selected for special recognition online).

Submission Rules: Each person can submit up to 3 images in one of two categories:

(1) Painting (Watercolor, acrylic, oil, and pastels)
(2) Alternative (Collage, fiber art, printmaking, photography, digital illustration, and computer generated graphics).

File Size Requirement: Each submission must be a jpg file—set to best quality. Save images at least 5 inches wide (300 dpi). Here are tips for taking photos of your art.

Who is Eligible: Adventist members throughout North America who are 16 years-of-age or older can submit.

How to Submit: Upload your files via the ASA website. Give each submission a name and short description.

Submission Fee: Each submission is $10, or you may submit up to three works for $25.

Submission Link: Creative Cure: Art in the Age of COVID.

Submission Deadline: (Submission cut off is Sunday, April 18, 2021)

Leadership Focus International Presents the Webinar:
Christian Identity and Christian Nationalism
Wednesday, March 24, 2021, 7pm GMT, 8pm CET

An international group of panelists will share their insight into the current wave of Christian Nationalism in the US and Europe, and seek answers to challenging questions from the perspective of their understanding of Christian identity.

What is Christian and religious nationalism? How do Christian nationalism, conspiracy theories (QAnon), bad theology and bad politics feed off each other and what are the consequences? Why is Christian nationalism, or any kind of nationalism that merges with faith, offensive to the teachings and character of Jesus? What are the threats of Christian nationalism, and where do you see the damage done by the current wave of Christian or religious nationalism? What is the Gospel’s answer to Christian nationalism? What should followers of Jesus do? How could a proper understanding of our primary identity in Jesus help us overcome Christian or any other nationalism?

Our panelists are: Camilla Bocaniala, Romania, Co-founder of Polylogos Association, a leadership development organization; David Austin, US, Worked in international and humanitarian development, including UN and US Government; Jyl Hall Smith, US, Professor at United Theological Seminary, Ohio; Heather Staff, UK, Political Adviser on Refugee and Migration Policy to UK Parliamentarians; Zdravko Plantak, US, Professor of Religion and Ethics at Loma Linda University.

This webinar will be moderated by Tihomir Kukolja, Director, Leadership Focus International, and Liviu Bocaniala, Director, Polylogos Association).
Live on Facebook.

Join our conversation via zoom by registering now.

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