I have found the typical Adventist church to be a lonely place, in the sense of not being a place where I can freely speak about my burden for Jewish-Christian reconciliation. This is why I am motivated to promote this forum. I need a community of Seventh-day Adventists who share my conviction that we need to change our widely and generally held views on Israel and the Jewish people.
I am encouraged that there is hope for change within Adventism by some comments by Ellen White. In a letter written in 1910, she writes “The work for the Jews, as outlined in the eleventh chapter of Romans, is a work that is to be treated with special wisdom. It is a work that must not be ignored.” She goes on with some statements that suggest that we must make changes so that this work will be possible. “The wisdom of God must come to our people. In all wisdom and righteousness we must clear the King’s highway.” (Letter 96, 1910) In another manuscript, she writes concerning the Jewish people, “We are altogether too narrow, we need to be broader minded”. (Manuscript 66, May 25, 1905). These statements are carefully spoken— she is cautious in her council. Nevertheless, a careful reading of these and other statements leaves the impression that there is a reform needed in the church with respect to the Jewish people.
There are many places in the writings of Ellen White where I find encouragement that we are not yet in possession of perfect truth. “New light will ever be revealed on the word of God to him who is in living connection with the Sun of Righteousness. Let no one come to the conclusion that there is no more truth to be revealed. The diligent, prayerful seeker for truth will find precious rays of light yet to shine forth from the word of God. {CSW 34.1}” I could list many more, but I will leave that to a separate post.
My conviction is that there is “new truth” in the field of Jewish-Christian relations. I believe we, as cultural heirs of the western (Latin) church, do not realize how much we inherit false views about Israel and Judaism. I also believe that there are many in the church who share or are discovering this understanding. A great deal of work in this field has already been done within the church, but I fear that most of this work remains unknown to most Adventists. I believe that we will have a much better chance of success in promoting positive change within the church if we are connected, learning and sharing together. Undoubtedly there are small communities of like-minded people around the universities. Academic papers are being published, books are being written and conferences attended. But in 2016 we have the tools to build broader communities and disseminate information much more rapidly. The older, more formal methods are all very good— we need them still. However, we also need the ability to share using short, informal, and rapid interactions within a world-wide community— we need an online forum.
We need this forum to be a safe place— a place where we can speak freely without fearing judgement or accusation. I would like this to be a place to be vulnerable. I would like us to be willing to re-examine some assumptions about our beliefs— informal or “fundamental”— that are relevant in connection with this field of study. If we are sincere seekers for truth we should have nothing to fear. “No true doctrine will lose anything by close investigation” {CW 35.2}. If we keep the following statement by Ellen White in mind, we should do well. “We should not study the Bible for the purpose of sustaining our preconceived opinions, but with the single object of learning what God has said” – {GW92 125.1}.
I would like this forum to be practical. My natural inclination is to enjoy learning, to appreciate information for its own sake. But I believe that we have a mission to accomplish. We need a place to share and discover ideas and methods for effective influence— what works, what doesn’t. I would benefit from the resources you are creating and/or discovering. I would like this forum to be a venue for all of us to share these resources with each other, in the hope that we can then share them with others.
I am speaking for myself now— I would like this to be a place where I can learn, a place where the truths of the Bible are earnestly examined, a place where I can be taught and corrected, a place to be humble, a place to be positive, a place to hope.
The goal of this forum is to be a place for positive exchange of ideas for making our church a better representative of Jesus of Nazareth— a son of Israel, Jewish Rabbi, and the Messiah to the whole world. With this goal in mind, we reserve the right to rescind forum membership and delete any posts that we feel are not in keeping with this goal, or for any other reason.
