Ecumenism games in Adventism

Koot van Wyk (DLitt et Phil; Thd) Visiting Professor, Department of Liberal Education, Kyungpook National University, Sangju Campus, South Korea, Conjoint lecturer of Avondale College, Australia

Let us make one thing very clear: The Elijah message is not ecumenical in spirit and action but particularistic biblically with no compromise or attempts to compromise. In the same manner, the Baal-syndrome of the Israelites originated with feministic inroads in religion like Jezebel whose name included the epithet for this god of Phoenicia, Baal who insisted that a soft approach should be cultivated in the society with people of other religions. The Baal prophets were brought together by Ahab from the “sons of Israel” or from the remnant weed of spiritual Israel (1 Kings 18:20). Ahab intermarried with a heathen from Sidon and went to serve Baal and to worshiped him/it (1 Kings 16:31). But the trouble-maker of the weed in the spiritual Israel was Elijah: “Is it you, you troubler of Israel?” (1 Kings 18:17). No doubt, if anyone is standing firm with God and if the whole society and modern jurisdiction go lopsided with mixed sources of authentication for extrapolating epistemological truths as pillars for a common pluralistic society make-over, then the remnant seed is separated from the remnant weed, if some members start to follow these practices also.

And that is what happened a few days ago.

Before I continue to present the data of what happened, I like to compare the event or phenomenon with what I read in Highschool as literature in language education. N. P. van Wyk Louw wrote the epic poem called Raka. It is the story of a traditional African kraal or compound with a grass roof house and mud floors and walls. The compound is protected by sticks and poles planted in a circle and a gate could keep the wild animals out. Also Raka, a night entity that use to come close to “civilization” and “culture” represented by the humans in the dwelling. But then the fires burn large at night and Raka could not come close or in. They heard chaos or Raka sniffing on the wooden walls of the poles at night. One day disaster came when one of the members left the gate open and that night Raka who was always outside, now entered civilization and the deterioration of culture started.

The Remnant of Adventism is a special group of “called-out” people that are different than the other denominations and religions and non-religions around them. Catholicism was traditionally viewed by Adventism as “baptized paganism” due to incense, lamps, candles, holy water, images, rosaries, wedding rings, golden altars, black robes for priests, magnificent temples, shaving of the head, and Sunday observance (see “Closing Events” Study 3 – Part II: Catholicism, by Elder Gordon Collier, 1960’s, page 39). He cited Ellen White who said in Great Controversy pages 588-589 “Papists, Protestants, and worldlings will alike accept the form of godliness without the power, and they will see in this union a grand movement for the conversion of the world, and the ushering in of the long-expected millennium” (Catholicism, Part III, page 12). “Church-members love what the world loves, and are ready to join with them”.

And now we are ready to consider the current data.

The news of the Methodists who met with the Pope is described in detail in the Catholic Herald of 7^th April 2016. Said the pope: “Religious leaders must also ensure that members of both congregations ‘meet regularly, come to know one another and encourage one another to seek the Lord and his grace’”. Senior members of the Methodist church came to meet with the pope. The pope quoted John Wesley by saying that Methodists and Catholics must help each other to “whatever leads to the kingdom”. The center they created, said the pope, ‘is a sign of a ‘growing closeness’ between the two churches and the desire to ‘overcome all that stands in the way of our full communion’”. Now we know where it all will lead to.

Ellen White says something about this in 5 Testimonies 451: “When Protestantism shall stretch her hand across the gulf to grasp the hand of the Roman power, when she shall reach over the abyss to claps hands with Spiritualism, when, under the influence of this threefold union, our country shall repudiate every principle of its Constitution as a Protestant and Republican government, and shall make provision for the propagation of Papal falsehoods and delusions, then we know that the time has come for the marvelous working of Satan, and that the end is near”.

So a shocking as this attempt by John Wesley followers is to reach across the table for inter-religious faith activities, more are to come for us as Adventists in this writing. The views of the Reformers on Catholicism and the Papacy were well studied and are known through publications like that of Katherine R. Firth (1979).

Protestantism is going to play inter-religious games in the end time, says Ellen White, Methodism did so a couple of times now and again on the 7^th of April 2016. Raka sniffed on the ecumenical meetings of liturgical churches for quite some time now, and then we heard Anglicans started to play games and then the Lutherans and now we face Methodists doing so. Maybe not all Anglicans, and all Lutherans and all Methodists. But they did and it is reported online for the whole world to see and verify. Ellen White is also online, so is Raka.

And then as if it was not enough that chaos sniffed on the outside of Adventism on the poles of Adventist truth, the ANN broadcast of 22 April 2016 of the General Conference on the official church site supportively announced the inter-religious faith meeting organized by Seventh-day Adventists in Italy between Adventists, Catholic and Muslim youth. They organized an inter-religious youth festival under the name “Biblical Festival” but it was all but biblical.

140 children were brought together in Cesena Italy for a Bible Festival. They came from Catholic churches in the area and Muslims from the Islamic Culture Center. Look at some of the ecumenical actions by the “Adventist coordinators”:

“Enthusiastically, the youth participated in the nine workshops organized in the Moretti Square of Cesena, to engage in manual skills and to live moments of reflection presented by the coordinators.”

The manual skills are not from the Bible. “Reflection” will be seen at the last meeting when all the different religions were to talk to the kids to encourage them. But let us consider more data:

“At the start of the course, each young person was given a cardboard box in which they had to put the various items used in the various workshops. "At the end of the day, with these boxes and with the help of the coordinators, all the teenagers created a house together, as a symbol of inclusion, welcome, sharing," added G. Benini.”

Good morning Adventists! It is the end. You better realize it.

“The spiritual leaders of the Catholic Church, the Muslim Imams and the Adventist pastor concluded the initiative with an encouragement to continue the path of dialogue in understanding and mutual respect.”

The news-editor gladfully see it as an outcome of modern global jurisdiction perspectives so that Adventists are just seen as “engaging, fitting-in, joining”. He said: “At a time in which almost every day new barriers are raised in Europe, the message that these youth wanted to give is really strong.”

What did Ellen White say about “this movement a grand union for the conversion of the world”?

“Instead of walls we have to build houses, that is, places where we are all part of a family,” the Editor continued.

Who organized it?

“The Bible Festival is organized by the Adventist community of Cesena, in collaboration with the social services of the Italian Union, the Adventist Institute of Biblical Culture of Florence and the Inter-religious museum of Bertinoro.”

If the General Conference, or our Institutions in the USA find it too difficult to maintain the message of Elijah then it is time to move out of the USA like the call that is made: “Come out of Babylon” call that we are all familiar with that should come at the End Time.

Isaiah saw migrations and pain of refugees who fled from war (Isaiah 21:13-15). He called on inhabitants of Tema and Travelers to take care of the refugees that migrate. These were Arabs seen fleeing. The way to help these people is like ADRA, “Meet the fugitive with bread” and “Bring water to the thirsty”. But ADRA is not evangelism. A focus on relief-work is just an orchestrated effort to help modern global jurisdiction with mixed para-biblical ethics to achieve their goals of integration, pluralism, and other axioms they cherish. ADRA cannot be seen as the main task of Adventism since the Time of Trouble is going to bring with it an increase in wars, earthquakes, floods, disasters and if the Lord permits more disasters, then a time will come that the Adventists cannot help any longer since funds are not available for that help.

So at some point in time, we in 2016 must face the reality of what we are going to do ourselves: with modern jurisdiction views; ADRA objectives and the Time of Trouble reality; social gospel tenets; inter-religious faith initiatives; woman ordination and other feminism projects’ deviant behavior; and gay ministry inroads.

Dear God

When two walk together do they not agree? Walking with You makes our Scriptures to be the requirement for others to walk together. Help us in our walk. Amen

Source:

1. Junno Arocho Esteves, “Catholics and Methodists can teach each other about holiness, says Pope Francis” Catholic Herald 7 April 2016.

2. Elder Gordon Collier, “Closing Events” Study 3 – Part II: Catholicism, 1960’s.

3. Katherine R. Firth, The Apocalyptic Tradition in Reformation Britain 1530-1645 (Oxford University Press, 1979).

4. “Italy: Inter-Religious Bible Festival for Teenagers” Notizie Avventiste, CD-EUDnews (18th of April 2016). Online accessed at http://news.eud.adventist.org/all-news/news/go/2016-04-18/italy-inter-religious-bible-festival-for-teenagers/ Online accessed at http://bibbiafestival.gbem.eu/