6 October, 2016

Adventist education declared worthy of becoming Fundamental Belief No. 29

Seventh-day Adventist leaders will declare that Adventist education is key to the fulfillment of the church’s mission to share the gospel and propose a 29th Fundamental Belief on education during a three-day conference that opens Wednesday evening at the world church’s headquarters. The suggested addition to the current 28 Fundamental Beliefs, which would describe the biblical basis for Adventist education, is among a raft of plans for Adventist education that are to be presented to world church leaders at the LEAD conference in Silver Spring, Maryland.

3 October, 2016

U.S. Church offers a Prayer Drive-Thru

The police officer narrowly escaped the wheels of a car when a robbery suspect tried to run over him. A broken leg, scars, and bruises from his close call still ache from the experience. Several days after the accident, his wife asked for a divorce. So the police officer drove into the parking lot at Mountainside Seventh-day Adventist Church in Decatur, Georgia, where he pulled his car close to waiting members and asked, “Can someone pray with me?”

30 September, 2016

UN Secretary-General candidate praises Adventist outreach efforts

Natalia Gherman, Moldova’s candidate for the post of United Nations secretary-general, praised the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s global commitment to health care, education, and humanitarian assistance during a visit to the world church’s headquarters near Washington. Gherman said faith-based organizations such as the Adventist Church could play a major role in promoting peace, development, and human rights around the world.

27 September, 2016

Church governance and unity to be discussed at Annual Council

General Conference Secretariat has released two documents about church governance and unity that are to be considered by church leadership at the Annual Council business meeting in October. The main document, titled “A Study of Church Governance and Unity,” is a 50-page analysis of references from the Bible, the writings of Adventist Church cofounder Ellen G. White, and Adventist Church history as relating to policy and unity.

23 September, 2016

On the sidelines of the G20 Summit, Adventist advocate talks peace-building

As the world’s political leaders gathered earlier this month for the G20 Economic Summit in Hangzhou, China, an international group of religious scholars met in Beijing to consider how religion can help foster international dialogue and problem-solving. Ganoune Diop, director of public affairs and religious liberty for the Seventh-day Adventist Church, was invited to address the group of some 40 scholars and religious leaders. He told the group that before talking about our differences, we must first recognize shared human values.

21 September, 2016

General Conference to review operations amid economic uncertainty

The General Conference, the administrative body of the Seventh-day Adventist world church, announced to its employees that it was facing budgetary constraints amid global economic uncertainty and would review its operations in an effort to reduce costs. General Conference treasurer Juan R. Prestol-Puesán, speaking at a special meeting in the auditorium of the Adventist Church’s headquarters in Silver Spring, Maryland, emphasized the importance of prudence and said the church’s mission to share the gospel would go forward.

14 September, 2016

In Poland, Adventists gear up for release of Mel Gibson’s ‘Hacksaw Ridge’

Seventh-day Adventist leaders in Poland are looking forward to release of Mel Gibson’s film “Hacksaw Ridge” about the life of U.S. World War II hero Desmond Doss. Their interest is not in promoting the movie but in sharing the story of a Doss, an Adventist medic who stood true to God and saved the lives of 75 soldiers during a single battle. Doss became the first conscientious objector to receive the U.S. Medal of Honor.

13 September, 2016

Helping Refugees ‘as Important as Preaching the Second Coming’

Seventh-day Adventist pastor Igor Mitrović once believed that the church’s prophetic calling was to proclaim the Second Coming of Jesus. But after working on the frontlines of Europe’s refugee crisis for the past year, Mitrović sees a second and equally important prophetic calling: to help the helpless. The two callings are not unrelated, Mitrović said in an interview at a refugee crisis center that he helps run in Serbia’s capital, Belgrade. By reaching out to those who cannot help themselves, Adventists are sharing the gospel with as much power as with an evangelistic series.

8 September, 2016

Solomon Islands Prime Minister speaks of slain missionaries and Ellen White

The prime minister of the Solomon Islands paid an emotional tribute to slain Seventh-day Adventist missionaries and cited church cofounder Ellen G. White in a speech celebrating the 50th anniversary of a remote Adventist hospital. Prime Minister Manasseh Sogovare joined hundreds of people for the three-day celebration at Atoifi Adventist Hospital on the eastern side of the island of Malaita, a location that can only be reached by boat or aircraft. The country’s capital, Honiara, is a 40-minute airplane flight away.

7 September, 2016

In Baltics, Adventists learn how to share Jesus through health

Rising at 6:30 a.m. each day, sitting through lectures and practical exercises, and then going to bed early might not be your idea of a vacation. But for 20 people from the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Baltics, plus a couple from Finland, this was their regime for four weeks of health evangelism training. Sound tough? Maybe, but nobody complained. The 22 people joined in music and singing in twice-a-day worships, prayed and supported one another, laughed and cried together, and learned both the theory and practical aspects of sharing a positive message of health.