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Allen Davis Bakersfield Hillcrest SDA church Biblical Interpretation Complimentarian Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) Crisis Ahead Cultural reconstructions Culturally driven Daniel Mesa Daniel R Mesa Distinct roles Doctrine of Unity Edward Krentz Elizabeth Shussler-Fiorenza Ellen G. White Equality Feminist Theology General Conference Session 2015 San Antonio Genesis Headship Hermeneutic of Suspicion Heteropatriarchalism Heterosexism Historical-Critical Method Historical-grammatical method Homosexuality Jennifer Arruda Julie Mesa Larry Kirkpatrick Laurel Damsteegt Liberation Theology Mainstream Feminist Theology Male-sex specific roles Marcella Althaus-Reid Methods of Bible Study 1986 NAD TOSC Report North American Division (NAD) Ordination Without Regard to Gender OrdinationTruth.com Postmodernism Pre-fall headship Principle-based Historical-cultural Method Rio Document 1986 Roy Clements SECC Second Wave Feminist Theology Secrets Unsealed Seventh-day Adventist Church Stephen Bohr The larger issues Theology of Ordination Study Committee (TOSC) Trajectory theology Trisha Famisaran Unity William Webb Women in Ministry Women's Ordination Women's Ordination Symposium

Bakersfield Hillcrest WO Symposium: June 13

WO Symposium “Dangers on the Horizon” | Pr. Larry Kirkpatrick

DOWNLOAD HANDOUT for Kirkpatrick Bakersfield presentation.
WO Symposium PANEL DISCUSSION Allen Davis, Gerzon Gomez, Larry Kirkpatrick, Laurel Damsteegt, Jennifer Arruda, Daniel Mesa

WO Symposium “The Forgotten Story of 1989″ | Laurel Damsteegt

WO Symposium “Gift Versus Appointment” | Allen Davis

WO Symposium “We the People, Must Speak” | Jennifer Arruda

WO Symposium “Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth” | Pr. Daniel Mesa

WO Symposium “The Impact of Culture and the Desire for Unity” | Allen Davis

WO Symposium “A Woman’s Full Participation in Ministry” | Julie Mesa

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Angel Rodriguez Biblical Interpretation Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) Ellen G. White Eternal functional submission Eternal submission Genesis Headship Hermeneutic of Suspicion John W. Peters Ordination Without Regard to Gender Pre-fall headship Seventh-day Adventist Church Submission Theology of Ordination Study Committee (TOSC) Women in Ministry Women's Ordination

Peters–Response to Rodriguez on headship: the Trinity and Genesis 1-3

John W. Peters is a pastor in the Pennsylvania Conference. As part of the Theology of Ordination Stdy Committee he has been among the presenters in the TOSC meetings. Some of his materials were critiqued by Angel Rodriguez in his 76 p. anaylsis of the [pro-biblical qualifications arguments (arguments opposing women’s ordination). In the paper now made available on OrdinationTruth.com, Peters responds to Rodriguez’ particular critique of Peters. READ IT HERE.

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Attitude Biblical Interpretation Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) Culturally driven General Conference General Conference Session 2015 San Antonio Hermeneutic of Suspicion Historical-grammatical method Methods of Bible Study 1986 NAD TOSC Report Ordination Without Regard to Gender OrdinationTruth.com Principle-based Historical-cultural Method Rio Document 1986 Seventh-day Adventist Church Theology of Ordination Study Committee (TOSC) Unity Women in Ministry Women's Ordination

January 2014 TOSC: a report

Recent days have found some of us in communication with participants in the Theology of Ordination Study Committee. Thus, it has been interesting when several persons not present in that meeting have urgently sought to post in links and comments copies of certain news reports to OrdinationTruth.com. (Indeed, one significantly slanted report has been quietly withdrawn.) We have read these reports, comparing notes with some present at TOSC. It is even being reported that the chair of the committee feels most of the divisions are willing to accept women’s ordination and that the time for study has passed.
Whether or not this individual is being quoted in context we do not know. We do know this: the Seventh-day Adventist Church will determine whether or not to ordain women in the 2015 General Conference session. It will not be determined by TOSC or any news network, website, conference, union, or division.
We also know that current deliberations are of necessity conducted in an atmosphere of biases, influences and threats. Some articles in print and online with women’s ordination under discussion have included reminders that funding supporting church mission in overseas divisions is, in measure, dependent upon North American dollars. Neither are we unaware that for the past several decades, pro-WO North American Adventist academic opinion has been exported round the world through an influence traceable to Andrews University international students. Therefore, it is no surprise to us if the current dominant North American academic perspective has filtered into the leadership ranks in places far afield.
The January 2014 TOSC included a more significant and contentious discussion of hermeneutics than previous meetings. Positions on hermeneutics within TOSC at present are in sharp disagreement. This is no surprise, since proposed changes to how the Church interprets Scripture would be unparalleled in our history, and have the most far-reaching impact on its ability to maintain a distinct Seventh-day Adventist identity and mission going forward.
Never before in Seventh-day Adventist work have changes contemplated been so significant. This situation seems an unlikely time to discontinue investigation. If the goal of this most extensive study is an enduring solution for the Church, the issue of hermeneutics cannot be avoided. It is impossible to envision any unifying solution with the church markedly divided over methods of interpretation. The Church has long agreed that the Historical-grammatical approach be used while avoiding even a modified use of methods that approach the Scriptures from a critical standpoint. The North American Division is asking the church to embrace hermeneutical pluralism, to approve the practice of a method of interpretation in direct contradiction to the Historical-grammatical.
Is this the path to unity?
When the Council of Adventist Pastors began publishing this website a year ago, we stated that a part of the reason for its operation was as an alternative resource for church members where information provided might sometimes be at odds with “officially” presented news and views. None should be surprised when OrdinationTruth.com chooses not to echo lines that have been predetermined to sustain certain preferred perspectives.
God has His hand on the wheel. A world church is considering these matters. Issues are becoming more sharply defined. The Holy Spirit is working. Pray for all as the Church seeks to follow the lead of He who is still its Head, Jesus.

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Biblical Interpretation CAP authors Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) Culturally driven E.D. Hirsch Headship Hermeneutic of Suspicion Historical-Critical Method Historical-grammatical method Jim Brackett Larry Kirkpatrick Male-sex specific roles Methods of Bible Study 1986 NAD TOSC Report North American Division (NAD) Ordination Without Regard to Gender OrdinationTruth.com Postmodernism Principle-based Historical-cultural Method Reader-response criticism Redemptive hermeneutic Rio Document 1986 Seventh-day Adventist Church The Welcome Table Trajectory theology Women in Ministry Women's Ordination

NAD's PBHC hermeneutic: a closer look


This short program examines the North American Division “Majority Report” proposed “Principle-based, Historical-cultural” (PBHC) method of biblical interpretation. The method has been proposed as a means of dealing with certain “difficult texts” proponents of women’s ordination (WO) have struggled with. With the use of the PBHC method, the difficult texts disappear, and “no conclusive evidence prohibiting the ordination of women can be found in the Bible.” This video examines proposed guidelines for when to use PBHC, notes its close relation to the Historical-critical method, and discusses its embrace of reader-response criticism. Finally, the question is answered, can this method be considered to be compatible with longstanding Seventh-day Adventist use of the Historical-grammatical method. In behalf of the Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) host Jim Brackett interviews Pr Larry Kirkpatrick.

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1 Corinthians 1 Timothy Attitude Biblical Interpretation CAP authors Complimentarian Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) Culturally driven Distinct roles Doctrine of Unity Ephesians Gender General Conference General Conference Session 2015 San Antonio Genesis Headship Hermeneutic of Suspicion Historical-Critical Method Historical-grammatical method Jim Brackett Krister Stendahl Larry Kirkpatrick Male-sex specific roles Methods of Bible Study 1986 NAD TOSC Report North American Division (NAD) Ordination Without Regard to Gender OrdinationTruth.com Postmodernism Principle-based Historical-cultural Method Redemptive hermeneutic Rio Document 1986 Seminary Seventh-day Adventist Church Submission The Welcome Table Theology of Ordination Study Committee (TOSC) Trajectory theology William Webb Women in Ministry Women's Ordination

New NAD WO hermeneutic, pt. 2


This video continues the Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) interview by Pr. Jim Brackett of Pr. Larry Kirkpatrick. Part 1 was posted separately yesterday. This is part 2, and immediately follows part 1 to complete the full segment. Part 1 had concluded with a restatement of the longstanding Seventh-day Adventist principle of not judging Scripture with independent human reason, but letting Scripture judge our reason. The above video compares this with the NAD’s “Majority Report” proposal. NAD asks that the church make its authority an imaginary future point after the New Testament where God’s ideal will for male and female roles would reach fruition. Comparisons continue to the end of the segment.

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1 Corinthians 1 Timothy Biblical Interpretation CAP authors Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) Culturally driven Distinct roles Doctrine of the Church Doctrine of Unity Ephesians Gender General Conference General Conference Session 2015 San Antonio Headship Hermeneutic of Suspicion Historical-Critical Method Historical-grammatical method Jim Brackett Krister Stendahl Larry Kirkpatrick Male-sex specific roles Methods of Bible Study 1986 NAD TOSC Minority Report NAD TOSC Report NAD Year-end Meeting North American Division (NAD) Ordination Without Regard to Gender OrdinationTruth.com Postmodernism Principle-based Historical-cultural Method Rio Document 1986 Seventh-day Adventist Church Submission The Welcome Table Theology of Ordination Study Committee (TOSC) Women in Ministry Women's Ordination YEM

New NAD WO hermeneutic, pt. 1


On November 4, 2013, the North American Division’s biblical research committee brought its completed study on women’s ordination to its Year-end Meeting. The document was approved by 182 of 216 NAD delegates. Astonishingly, the study (we refer to the “Majority Report”) proposed a new method of biblical interpretation. They claimed it to be in harmony with longstanding Seventh-day Adventist use of the Historical-grammatical method. Most Seventh-day Adventists are unaware of this officially proposed NAD approach to the Bible. The Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) has produced video interviews discussing the NAD’s “Principle-based Historical-cultural” method (PBHC). In three segments, Pr Jim Brackett interviews Pr Larry Kirkpatrick to unpack the implications.
CONTINUES IN PART 2 POSTED ABOVE…

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Biblical Interpretation Biblical Research Institute Clinton Wahlen Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) Culturally driven Darius Jankiewicz E.D. Hirsch Feminist Theology Hermeneutic of Suspicion Historical-Critical Method Historical-grammatical method Lake Union Conference (LUC) Ordination Without Regard to Gender OrdinationTruth.com Postmodernism Principle-based Historical-cultural Method Reader-response criticism Rio Document 1986 Seventh-day Adventist Church Women in Ministry Women's Ordination

Hermeneutics and Scripture in the 21st Century

Earlier this year we reported that the Lake Union had held a prayerful discussion on the matter of women’s ordination and had chosen rather than to move into a position of opposition to the Church, to work with the Church with reference to this topic. Among the presentations at the Lake Union was “Hermeneutics and Scripture in the 21st Century,” by Clinton Wahlen.
Wahlen points out how methods of interpreting Scripture continue to adjust and modify. The use of the historical-critical method has waned but a new focus has arisen. This new focus moves away from locating meaning in the text of Scripture and places meaning instead in the reader. It is fascinating that, while this material was presented nearly a year ago, reader-response criticism forms a central part of the NAD’s “new” proposed women’s ordination hermeneutic released last month (NAD Report, pp. 23-31). The NAD Report actually critiques the Church’s 1986 “Methods of Bible Study” (Rio) document for lacking this emphasis. However, we agree with Wahlen who warns in this paper, “…all of these methods [“literary ” and reader-focused”] as classically defined employ a critical approach to the text ‘which subordinates the Bible to human reason’ and should therefore be ‘unacceptable’ to Seventh-day Adventists, as the 1986 ‘Methods of Bible Study’ document voted in Annual Council has made clear” (“Hermeneutics and Scripture in the Twenty-First Century,” p. 1). The paper by Wahlen linked above provides important background for those who peruse the NAD Report.

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Biblical Interpretation Doctrine of Unity Ellen G. White Feminist Theology Foundations of Women's Ordination General Conference Headship Hermeneutic of Suspicion Historical-Critical Method Larry Kirkpatrick Neo-Protestant Postmodernism Unity

Foundations of Women's Ordination, part 8: Last Bits, On Unity, Conclusion

This is the concluding article in the “Foundations of Women’s Ordination” series. Final notes on biblical interpretation, the impact of postmodernism on the WO question, on unity and what the church will have to decide. Read this important concluding article! FIND IT HERE.

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Biblical Interpretation Daniel Augsberger Denis Fortin Donna Jeane Haerich Elizabeth Shussler-Fiorenza Ellen G. White Feminist Theology Foundations of Women's Ordination Gender Hermeneutic of Suspicion Heteropatriarchalism Heterosexism Historical-Critical Method Homosexuality Jacques Doukhan Jerry Moon Jo Ann Davidson Larry Kirkpatrick Larry Richards Mainstream Feminist Theology Nancy Vyhmeister North American Division (NAD) Patriarchy Paul Jewett Peter van Bemmelen Randall Wisbey Raymond F. Cottrell Richard Davidson Rio Document 1986 Robert Johnston Rosemary Radford Ruether Russell Staples Seminary Seventh-day Adventist Church The President's Report The Welcome Table Trisha Famisaran Walter Douglass Women in Ministry

Foundations of Women's Ordination, part 7: Feminist Theology in Adventism

Part 7 in an 8 part series offers reviews of The Welcome Table and of Women in Ministry, the two most prominent pro-Women’s Ordination books published in the Adventist Church. After the first six articles in the series, this one at last brings things together to show how Feminist Theology has manifest itself in the Adventist Church. FIND IT HERE.

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Androcentric Atonement Betty Frieden Biblical Interpretation Elizabeth Cady Stanton Elizabeth Shussler-Fiorenza Experience Feminist Theology Hermeneutic of Suspicion Historical-Critical Method Larry Kirkpatrick Mainstream Feminist Theology Neo-Protestant Rosemary Radford Ruether Second Wave Feminist Theology Simone de Beauvoir

Foundations of Women's Ordination, part 4: Second Wave Feminist Theology

Larry Kirkpatrick continues his series, this time coming to some core concerns. This article outlines what might be called Mainstream Feminist Theology, and looks particularly at the theology of Rosemary Radford Ruether and Elizabeth Shussler-Fiorenza. It is important to note that the theology outlined in this article forms the core of Feminist Theology; virtually all contemporary theological influence in this vein truly begins here. If you read only one article in the series, read this one. FIND IT HERE.