“For the first time in a decade, I actually felt hopeful watching a GC sermon…”
I took the time this morning to watch yesterday’s sermon from our new world church president, Pastor Erton Köhler. Taking the sermon at face value, there were several things I really appreciated:
1. His call for unity was framed as one amidst diversity - a stark contrast from his predecessor’s constant insistence on uniformity.
2. His posture as figurehead for a diverse church rather than as its ruler.
3. Köhler quoted widely from sources and philosophies beyond the Adventist ecosystem - again breaking from the tone I’ve come to expect from the GC.
4. I appreciated that he took the time to learn greetings in so many people’s home languages and seemed to have practiced pronouncing those greetings beforehand. He communicated respect for each person’s homeland.
5. He took time to recognize the importance of young people and intergenerational ministry.
6. I appreciated his focus on hopeful communication rather than fear-based rhetoric.
Köhler’s sermon was a welcome relief from what’s come out of the GC since I started paying attention to SDA organizational politics around a decade ago. It’s clear that the new president is a gifted communicator and has, at the very least, a working knowledge of issues that are important to Adventists like me.
But I was still left with many of the questions I’ve carried for the past decade:
What actionable changes can I let myself hope for?
Will I reach old age and still never see my church take significant moves toward women’s equality? Toward being safer for my queer friends and family? Toward intentional action on behalf of those being thrown into detention centers without due process? Toward the many, many communities afraid to go out in public thanks to our current political regime? Toward equity for our Black American churches doing powerful work in spite of constant mistreatment and ignorance by our leadership? Can we hope for any more ability to work in the places and cultures where we live in more relevant ways?
Will I see the organized world church show up to relieve the fear and suffering of my neighbors - or will “progressive” Adventists continue to be villainized when we try to do it without them?
I’m skeptical. But I sure would love to be wrong.
Kaleb Eisle is the host of Oregon Conference podcast, Bridges Over Walls. You can listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
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