Where are we headed?: Adventism after San Antonio

176 Pages·2017·3.75 MB·English

by  William G. Johnsson

Where Are We
Headed?
Adventism after
San Antonio
William G. Johnsson
Where Are We Headed?
Adventism after San Antonio
William G. Johnsson
Oak Acorn
PUBLISHING
Westlake Village, California
Where Are We Headed? Copyright © 2017 by William G. Johnsson
All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this
book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without writ­
ten permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical
articles or reviews. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are
from the King James Version of the Bible.
For information contact:
Oak and Acorn Publishing
PO Box 5005
Westlake Village, CA 91359-5005
Cover image: Gergen Bakhshetyan/Shutterstock
Cover design by Lindsey Weigley
First Edition: April 2017
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For
The Undaunted—women in ministry
I
Contents
About This Book................................................................................ ix
Foreword.............................................................................................. xiii
Preface
Tipping Point.......................................................................................... 1
Chapter One
Women’s Ordination: The Battle Is Over....................................... 7
Chapter Two
The Chosen:
Exclusive or Inclusive?..........................................................................23
Chapter Three
Waiting for Jesus:
The When or the Who? ..........................................................................39
Chapter Four
The Message:
Will We Keep the Main Thing the Main Thing?.............................51
Chapter Five
Organization:
Thinking the Unthinkable....................................................................69
Chapter Six
Adventists and Creation:
Jubilation or Confrontation? ...............................................................87
Chapter Seven
Mission:
Beyond Counting Heads ....................................................................105
Chapter Eight
Interpreting Scripture:
Will Ellen Have the Last Word?.......................................................119
Chapter Nine
The Promise of Adventism..............................................................137
Chapter Ten
Unity—Top Down or Bottom Up?...................................................141
About This Book
No tears in the writer, no tears in the reader. No surprise in the writ­
er, no surprise in the reader. —Robert Frost
YOU MIGHT CALL THIS BOOK MY ISAAC. No, I’m not quite
up to Abraham’s century yet, but the project was conceived
and written within my 82nd year.
Isaac was unexpected; so was this book. Usually my mind works
on ideas for a book for a long time, often years. But not this one: it
came out of the blue, over and done in less than a year.
Put it down to the 2015 General Conference Session in San An­
tonio. I didn’t attend the Session, but I followed it from afar. Some of
what I heard and saw affected me profoundly, especially the manner
in which the most-awaited item on the agenda—the issue of ordina­
tion of women ministers—was handled.
For a couple of weeks after the Session, I moped and grumped
around the house and generally made life miserable for my sweet-
natured spouse. Then it hit me: Instead of fussing, do what you do
best—write about it!
So I did. I worked the issue out of my system. That was that. Done.
No plans to take it further.
But, even while I was writing on the women’s issue, I kept get­
ting emails and telephone calls about other aspects of the Session. I
x | William G. Johnsson
resisted the thought of going further, but slowly a pattern began to
form in my head.
So I tried another topic. The writing came fast, easily. Then an­
other and another....
Recent thinking, speaking, and writing all came together. Almost
before I realized it or planned for it, I had a book.
Unexpected. Like Isaac.
The name Isaac means “he laughs.” Abraham and Sarah laughed
when the angels told them that Sarah would give birth to a son. They
laughed in unbelief, at the absurdity of the idea.
But Sarah gave birth. Now there was laughter all around—the
laughter of joy, of amazement, of gratitude.
Not quite all around. Abraham already had a son, but not by Sar­
ah. He had grown tired of waiting, taken Hagar to his bed, fathered
Ishmael.
Now Isaac was born. Hagar and Ishmael weren’t laughing with
the rest.
Likewise with my Isaac: I have experienced sharply mixed emo­
tions in writing this manuscript. In a few places what I have to say
may give heartburn to some of my former colleagues, whom I still
consider friends. So, dear friends, I recommend that you keep a bottle
of Turns nearby as you read! Whatever you may think of my ideas, be
assured that I wrote what I did only after a lot of consideration and
prayer. I promised the Lord and myself that the book would not go
forward unless I was clear that its impact would be redemptive.
Several people provided invaluable assistance in this project.
First, as ever, my guiding star Noelene: she not only keyed in the
manuscript from my handwritten scrawl but also gave wise counsel
concerning the content. When once or twice I hesitated, contemplat-
Where Are We Headed? | xi
ing what publication might cost me personally, she encouraged me
to look at the bigger picture—the benefit to hurting pastors and lay
people.
Ray Tetz and Brad Newton from the Pacific Union gave enthu­
siastic support to the project and its publication. I am indebted to
them.
Rosy Tetz edited the manuscript; Alberto Valenzuela translated it
into Spanish. Many thanks! Muchas gracias!
In several chapters the book draws upon my recent speaking and
writing: chapter 3, “The Chosen,” on my address to the Adventist So­
ciety for Religious Studies’ annual meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, of No­
vember 21, 2015; chapter 4, “Waiting for Jesus,” on my address given
at the Charles E. Weniger Award for Excellence, February 21, 2015;
chapter 5, “The Message,” on my presentation to The One Project in
Seattle, February 2016; and chapter 7, “Adventists and Creation,” on
my article “Christ and Creation,” published in the book In the Begin­
ning: Science and Scripture Confirm Creation, ed. Bryan W. Ball (Pacific
Press, 2012). In chapter 6, “Organization,” I quote James Standish’s
editorial, “Thoughts,” published in the South Pacific Record, July 2015.
I thank Dr. Standish for this material. And in chapter 10, “The Prom­
ise of Adventism,” I quote from the story told by Dr. Richard Hart,
President of Loma Linda University Health, in the June 2016 “Notes
from the President.”
All royalties from this book will go to a worthy ministry. In the
end it’s not about me or for me—only Jesus.