With the approach of the General Conference session of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in San Antonio, Texas in 2015, advocates of women’s ordination in the church have begun to launch new articles, videos, and websites promoting their views. Some sixty days out from the beginning of the session, six retired church leaders launched a site with video and text doing this very thing. Their site identifies them as “elder statesmen” of the church.
They argue that it is now time for the church to embrace women’s ordination on a per-division basis. They also speak of fracture in the church if women’s ordination is not permitted by the upcoming vote in San Antonio.
The Council of Adventist Pastors (CAP) have viewed the site and video and the arguments of the “elder statesmen.” In the document linked to this post, CAP considers this material and reacts to the ideas and arguments presented by the retired leaders. The Council of Adventist Pastors invites delegates and readers to consider our response in reference to these serious matters.
CLICK ON THIS LINK TO READ THE ARTICLE
Category: The larger issues
Women's ordination and Adding to God's Word
CLICK HERE to download your copy of Phil Mills MD Sabbath School class notes “Adding to God’s Word: Humility and Truthfulness vs. Pride and Lies (Proverbs 30:1-8). While women’s ordination is not directly mentioned until the third page, the lessons are drawn sharply.
Mills’ short document makes important observations about the way the women’s ordination question has been handled by the North American Division (NAD). At the highest level the world church has repeatedly expressed its will on this matter. The NAD drive for women’s ordination has continued relentlessly. In his notes, Mills especially highlights certain basic elements in a biblical approach to determining what is God’s will in a matter. After presenting clear examples, Mills turns to women’s ordination. He refers to the 2013 NAD BRC Report to TOSC. Mills’ notes succinctly and clearly illustrate key questions.
A response to Adventist World on women's ordination
Secrets Unsealed ministry has released a video featuring CAP Pastor Stephen Bohr, addressing the recent one-sided actions of the North American Division and of Adventist World magazine promoting women’s ordination.
On Defending Marriage and the Sabbath
Physician Ken Mindoro offers a few short but pointed lines relating to recent challenges to marriage, the Sabbath, and women’s ordination. Beware the reasoning you choose, because it may come back to bite you…
FIND IT HERE.
The Connectional Table, a United Methodist body of clergy and lay people gathered from around the world, have revealed their plans to propose a “third way” for that denomination. Addressing concerns about “unity” and a renewed “focus on mission,” the proposal would be voted on at General conference in 2016. For the UMC, the Connectional Table functions as a key leadership council for the denomination, guiding and coordinating that church’s mission, ministry and resources.
The article, published by the United Methodist news Service, is found here:
Church body proposes more open stance on homosexuality.
In the Seventh-day Adventist Church, some have used precisely the same “third way” language for their proposals to permit women’s ordination on a piecemeal basis by individual unions and divisions as locally determined. Consider: can even one Christian denomination be named that has not chosen a “third way” on this kind of matter, that has not in the end settled on an unbiblical way?
An Appeal to the Delegates to the 2015 General Conference Session
More than 18M members, gathered from across the globe, make up the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Every five years delegates are elected and called to General Conference session. They seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit for collective leading in key decisions of the Church. This July (2015), delegates will meet in San Antonio, Texas, USA. The issue of women’s ordination is to be addressed. On two previous occasions (1990, 1995), the General Conference voted not to permit the ordination of women to the gospel ministry. The short video appeal above calls for delegates to reject the proposal to permit each division to decide for itself on women’s ordination, and that the Church instead implement TOSC position #1.
Women in Male Roles, pt. 1
Larry Kirkpatrick compares two viewpoints on human sexuality: the creation viewpoint (or essentialist or complementarian), and the constructionist. One view holds that humans are fundamentally male or female and that this is part of the created order. Another view holds that human sexuality is humanly constructed and therefore shifting, flexible, mash-up-able and humanly redefineable. Does the constructionist approach led itself to targeting institutions with an agenda of societal “transformation”? Part one opens this discussion.
FIND THE ARTICLE HERE: Women in male roles, pt. 1.
Leaders speak out on WO
VIDEO SPECIAL! In this video several participants from the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Theology of Ordination Study Committee (TOSC) share their responses to current questions about women’s ordination and the future of the church. Includes interviews with Laurel Damsteegt, Don Mackintosh, Kevin D. Paulson, Eugene Prewitt, David Read, Daniel Scarone, Ingo Sorke. LENGTH: One hour, 21 minutes.
Secrets Unsealed WO symposium presentations–Oct 3
Women’s Ordination #9 Oct 3 — “The Third Option: A Way Forward or a Step Backwards?” — Jim Howard
Women’s Ordination #10 Oct 3 — “Are Liturgical and Organizational Matters Important?” — Daniel R. Mesa
Women’s Ordination #11 Oct 3 — “Regional Ordination: A Path to Conregationalism?” 2nd Panel
Women’s Ordination #12 Oct 3 — “Reply to NAD and other Pro-Women’s Ordination Arguments” — Docjin Zivadinovic
Women’s Ordination #13 Oct 3 — “Women’s Ordination and the Jerusalem Council” — Phil Mills
Women’s Ordination #14 Oct 3 — “The Present Relevance of 1 Timothy” — Don Mackintosh
WO and the SDA Theological Seminary
Prs. Larry Kirkpatrick and Mike Lambert discuss the theological movement of denominations which approve women’s ordination and their inevitable drift into approval of same-sex unions. They consider how one and only one denomination so far has turned back from this—by reestablishing a historical-grammatical interpretive plan at their seminary. Discussion turns, with some regret, to the current situation of the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary located in Berrien Springs, MI. The women’s ordination-favoring theological approach of the current dean is investigated, the core presupposition identified. 13 minutes.