The ignorant majority

[Mankin]

I have noticed in my church and in many other Adventist churchs an ignorant majority of slightly moderate Adventists. They don't even know what progressive Adventism is.

I find this slightly appaling. I guess people just get used to a revised EGW and refuse to question the traditional doctrines. Many of them are blissfully ignorant about the true roots of the doctrines and what they trully demand. Also they are blissfully ignorant about the works of Desmond Ford. They simply write him off as an apostate.

 

[Your Neighbor]

I've noticed ignorance, too.
Could you reduce ignorance by commenting on my thread about the vision of progressives?

 

[Mankin]

I did comment on that thread in fact.

 

[moicherie]

Well I did not know who Desmond Ford was either. till I joined CF. To be honest most Adventists I know have a life apart from the church. If the organisation closed down tomorrow it would hardly effect them perhaps in thier minds they have more important things to worry about like paying bills, going to school, putting food on the table in stead of who are the Adventist big church stars....

 

[Xenon]

Well I did not know who Desmond Ford was either. till I joined CF. To be honest most Adventists I know have a life apart from the church. If the organisation closed down tomorrow it would hardly effect them perhaps in thier minds they have more important things to worry about like paying bills, going to school, putting food on the table in stead of who are the Adventist big church stars....

As an aside, I've been visiting different SDA churches recently to "get out more", so to speak. The one thing that I've found that sticks out from everything else is that it really doesn't matter that I'm apart from the people who I usually share a church with. If I go somewhere, and we have the same beliefs, then I feel like family.

Note that this observation has nothing really to do with SDA. My point is that a church isn't organizational so much as the people within the organization. I'm sure that if I visited a church where I could not fellowship due to attitudes (no love for God or neighbor), then it wouldn't be a church to me. If a church organization were to collapse, then it would certainly live on through the people in it, no matter what religion it was.

 

[StormyOne]

how many beliefs must be shared before one can say "we have the same beliefs?"

 

[Xenon]

how many beliefs must be shared before one can say "we have the same beliefs?"

That is almost certainly a question that a person has to answer for themselves.

 

[foofighter]

I was an ignorant Adventist on many things. Some big issues were the true history of the church, the whole story of EGW, and a very selective Biblical teaching. Not a whole lot of Paul's writings. Mostly OT and the stories of the Gospels, and of course, the gross misinterpretation of Revelation. Also, all dissenters were of the devil. Oh brother!!! But, that stopped the people that questioned Ellen back in the day and continues to work today, although not as much thank goodness.

The irony and tragedy of SDA'ism is, they are so sure that they know the Bible and they have the truth. But when you realize how Scripture is proof-texted or omited altogether, then get out of the "bubble" and are able to read the Bible without it having to fit with Ellen, well, then it starts to make sense and is cohesive. I'm sure not saying, I have all the answers. I feel like I'm just starting. How can an individual or an organization learn anything if they already know everything? Smugness and arrogance just don't lend itself to correction or reproof. I know I may sound harsh, but it is truly what I saw and experienced. There are many sincere and dedicated people in the Adventist church, but...unfortunately it is such a closed system, what can they do? It is a dead end, because the prophet has spoken, and officially the church is between the proverial "rock and a hard place".

 

[mva1985]

Well I did not know who Desmond Ford was either. till I joined CF. To be honest most Adventists I know have a life apart from the church. If the organisation closed down tomorrow it would hardly effect them perhaps in thier minds they have more important things to worry about like paying bills, going to school, putting food on the table in stead of who are the Adventist big church stars....

We don't often agree, but you have made some good points here I think.

 

[IntoTheCrimsonSky]

I was one of those ignorants, Mankin. I thought that everyone who heard the SDA truths could not argue them, cause they were so perfect. I thought every Adventist believed it all and was just.. I don't know, some perfect church.

When I went to my little church of like 30 people, everyone was so friendly, caring, supportive...we had great talks and seemed to be very God-focussed. Granted, I noticed a few differences where some were more prayer-focussed, while others maybe more..not..and such. Otherwise, untill I came here I had no idea.

Granted, as a baby Christian I'm still very ignorant in a lot of things. I don't have much time to read and have no idea who most of the authors and speakers are who you guys talk about. I'm still trying to get to know my Bible on its own before I know any of that stuff. *lol*

 

[Mankin]

That's the mindset Sarah that I fight against.

Need more proof? Most people barely know anything about progressive. They think it's an offshoot. Take a load off of this post from another website.

I'm all for positive change, but this so-called Progressive Adventism scares the bejabbers out of me. Why? Look at Isaiah 8:20.

To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.

I can't count on two hands the number of "new light" or "new evidence" or "the Bible should be taken with a grain of salt due to translation issues" movements, ideologies, and theories in this world today. Maybe I'm just paranoid. Or maybe I'm seeing prophecy unfold before my very eyes.