Mastodon

mackenzian

Keisha E. McKenzie | communication | systems | social good

Adventist Today

By

Beyond the temptation to clock-watch

A text poster, black narrow all-caps on a teal-green background. The poster is framed in a simple black poster frame and hangs between two white round wall-clocks, one white-framed and the other black-framed.
Photo credit: Jonathan Simcoe

Where evil—hunger, prejudice, bigotry, oppression, materialism, greed, and global warming—persists, God’s reign remains a hope rather than a realization.” —Olive Hemmings

During the Exvangelical podcast interview I did a few weeks ago, Blake Chastain and I talked a little about Adventist apocalypticism: the preoccupying worldview that, when in shadow, drives some Adventists to see in every negative headline and tragedy an unambiguous sign of coming apocalypse. The fall 2016 issue of Adventist Today tackles this topic with “a new look at the end times.”

I appreciated a short commentary from Washington Adventist University professor Dr. Olive Hemmings. In “Prophetic Eschatology and the Ethics of the Kingdom,” Hemmings attempts to redirect Adventists from passive eschatology—clock-watching in anticipation of a time when God “cleans up Earth for us”—to what she calls “ethical eschatology.”

Ethical eschatology is the active waiting I wrote about during the pre-Christmas Advent season. The phrase doesn’t emphasize the eschaton event as much as it emphasizes ethics. The teachings of Jesus are chock-full of ethical demands. These teachings deny that we have anything to do with the divine timeline and rather insist that we’re responsible for how we regard the stranger: whether we recognize strangers as neighbors, neighbors as kin, and kin as the visible handiwork of God.

So the kingdom (or kindom) is less about location, where we are, and more about relation, how we interact wherever we are. As Hemmings explains, “The kingdom of God becomes an ethical reality defined by righteousness [mishpat and tzedakah, that is, justice]… Divine perfection resides in the heart and in the world where justice reigns.”

It’s fitting that reflections on the Second Coming dovetail with reflections on the First. In a companion web article, writer Warren Nelson explains that he is an agnostic who enjoys the atmosphere and rituals of Christmas in the United States, and it’s the Christmas’ story’s ethical implications  that energize him most: “This is one time when I am willing [to] suspend my disbelief and actually accept the idea that changing our minds about each other can actually change how we treat each other… Can you imagine the number of people in the world who would respond to a message of no fear and tidings of great joy? Earthly peace and goodwill? And that’s what this baby brings? Who wouldn’t rejoice, believer or not?”

“We don’t have to wait for some future moment to ‘get to heaven,'” Nelson continues. “It’s here. We just need to get past the fear and find it among us by, of all things, loving one another.”

Herb Montgomery of Renewed Heart Ministries has been working through this theme since last January in an extended series on a compilation of Jesus’ sayings. Follow his work on his site.

[The full fall issue of Adventist Today is only available to subscribers; sign up on the AToday website.]

By

How religious analogies mimic political structure

On a black velvet background, a large gold seven-point crown with blue and pink gems inset. The crown is to the far left of the image.
Photo credit: JD Hancock

Monarchy as the traditional theological model

All Western religions have taken the form of celestial monarchies, and therefore have discouraged democracy in the Kingdom of Heaven. Until, as a consequence of the teachings of the German and Flemish mystics in the 15th Century, there began to be such movements as the Anabaptists, the Brothers of the Free Spirit, and the Levelers, and the Quakers: a spiritual movement which came to this country and founded a republic and not a monarchy.

“And how could you say that a republic is the best form of government if you think that the Universe is a monarchy? Obviously, if God is top on a monarchy, monarchy is the best form of government. But you see, ever so many citizens of this republic think they ought to believe that the Universe is a monarchy, and therefore they are always at odds with the republic.” —Alan Watts, Jesus: His Religion

Democracy as the contemporary social model

The ideal ground of thin democracy is generic consensus—a common contract that authorizes a sovereign, who is accountable to the contractees, to provide for their interests. James Buchanan thus describes democratic government as an efficient means of achieving our individual objectives. The ideal ground of unitary democracy is substantive consensus—common beliefs, values, and ends that precede government and predefine the community in and through which individual scan realize themselves (these selves being defined by the community). And the ideal ground of strong democracy is creative consensus—an agreement that arises out of common talk, common decision, and common work but that is premised on citizens’ active and perennial participation in the transformation of conflict through the creation of common consciousness and political judgment.” —Benjamin Barber, Strong Democracy

Agriculture as the original relational model

I am the true vine, and my Father is the gardener. He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful. You are already clean because of the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I also remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me.

“I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. If you do not remain in me, you are like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. This is to my Father’s glory, that you bear much fruit, showing yourselves to be my disciples… You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you so that you might go and bear fruit—fruit that will last—and so that whatever you ask in my name the Father will give you. This is my command: Love each other.” —Jesus, John 15:1-8, 16-17

The muddle of models

This week, Seventh-day Adventists have read a lot about “kingly power,” “God’s highest authority on Earth,” and whether all humans set apart to work with the laity may share the same classification. These questions are widely discussed but they aren’t widely determined: the delegates to the General Conference in session aren’t representative of the church at large, and the General Conference executive, meeting this week, is even more homogeneous.

Some commentators are weary of this fuss over recognizing the call and work of female ministers. And some church administrations have very strong opinions that women should not share the same ministerial classification with men and that being in community requires uniformity of practice. We’ve circled this mulberry bush before. It’s not fun for anyone.

Both Adventist Today and Spectrum Magazine have some fascinating materials on the implications of this week’s deliberations at Annual Council. Each also links to the source documents, which you can read in full if so inclined this weekend.

Today’s update from Spectrum includes the news that the General Conference proposes to downgrade women-ordaining conferences to “missions.” We’ll see.

Stay tuned for more.

By

Beyond Apathy

Two toddlers stand on a rocky beach facing the water and way from the camera. Overlaid is a quote: "Our job is not to toughen our children up to face a cruel and heartless world. Our job is to raise children who will make the world a little less cruel and heartless." —L. R. Knost

“Our job is not to toughen our children up to face a cruel and heartless world. Our job is to raise children who will make the world a little less cruel and heartless.” —L. R. Knost

I’m back home from the Adventist Today panel in Loma Linda, CA, that I spoke at this weekend. It was a fantastic event, and I’m proud and grateful to have been involved. When AToday posts the evening’s recording, I’ll share it with you; in the next week or so I’ll also record the full version of my presentation and make it available here as well.

Before I comment extensively, I want to take a few days to reflect on what I saw and heard. But I’m comfortable saying now that I hope to see other panels that, like this weekend’s, amplify parts of the Adventist family that only appear in official media in caricature or don’t appear at all.

Many thanks to the Adventist Today Foundation and staff for holding space for Freddy Lee, Courtney Ray, Syd Shook, Edgar Momplaisir, Ryan Bell, and me to share parts of our spiritual journeys with the LLU community and discuss our visions of the future of our church.

My biggest hope? For us to move beyond pessimism, beyond apathy, beyond delegating our power to act and impact to others; for us to accept instead co-responsibility for what happens to our community and our part in making it happen. If attendees on Saturday missed everything else I said, I hope this wish sunk in.

—
HT to Daneen Akers for sharing the photo-quote at the top of this post. So good.