A Journal for Seventh-Day Adventists in Military and Public Service FLEETING FREEDOMS
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Issue 1 2021 A Journal for Seventh-day Adventists in Military and Public Service FLEETING FREEDOMS By Mario E. Ceballos, D.Min, BCC Director/Endorser, World Service Organization–General Conference he theme for this issue of For these events inspired members to be God and Country is Religious more united in prayers via electronic T Liberty. I encourage you to means but have severely limited in- closely examine the main articles, person interaction. reading them carefully and prayerfully. The United States of America, a As we move closer and closer to country colonized in part by people the end of time, we see signs of “the looking for a place to exercise their end of the world.”1 We know that religion, had a rocky beginning. we will lose our freedom to worship French Protestants known as the God. We don’t exactly know how “Huguenots” who settled close to this will happen, but it will happen. Jacksonville, Florida, were massacred. Today, many of our churches are The Spanish commander said of either closed or meeting under them in a report to the King of Spain strict regulations set by local and that he “had hanged the settlers state governments. We have lost for ‘scattering the odious Lutheran some of our liberty to worship as doctrine in these Provinces.’”2 a congregation. That is due to not Throughout history, many of only government mandates but the major atrocities, massacres, mainly due to the pandemic known and wars have been in the name of as COVID-19. In some churches religion. They have been a violation Table of 2 Perspective 4 An Uncomfortable Truth About Contents Religious Freedom 12 From the Counselor’s Desk 14 It’s All in the Story 18 When Testing Strengthens Convictions 22 Create Your WSO Profile Today 24 NAD Director’s Thoughts 26 Freedom Is Not Free 2 PERSPECTIVE THROUGHOUT HISTORY, MANY OF THE MAJOR ATROCITIES, MASSACRES, AND WARS HAVE BEEN IN THE NAME OF RELIGION. of people’s religious liberty. In This freedom further includes the right ancient times, Christians were fed to change one’s religion, as well as to to the beasts to be killed and eaten respectfully invite others to do so.”5 in the Roman Coliseum. A modern We can see that many of our beliefs case in point is the holocaust in are impacted. Often we are asked Germany.3 Today, minority religious not to share our beliefs in different communities are under attack, some most recently in Iraq.4 settings. That goes against our Many believe that what we position that says, “and to disseminate are seeing in the world today is religious views by public preaching, or unprecedented in our lifetime. Even through the media.”6 though similar to in times past, these I pray that the articles in this events are just the beginning. They are magazine will help you prepare for the affecting our freedom to worship and times in which we live. Soon and very practice our beliefs as a community. soon, we will see our Lord descending Think about it! When was the last from the clouds of Heaven. I want to time you had communion? In my be there, and it is my desire that you local church, we have not been able to partake for over a year. The same also will be there. Until then. has happened to many other religious practices that have been impacted by 1 the condition of the world today. Matthew 24:3 (KJV) The position of our church on 2 https://www.history.com/topics/united-states-constitution/ religious freedom is: freedom-of-religion “As loyal citizens, Adventists believe 3 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Holocaust they have the right to freedom of religion, 4 https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-48333923 subject to the equal rights of others. 5 https://www.adventist.org/articles/religious-freedom- This implies the freedom to meet for 1/#:~:text=Religious%20Freedom%20For%20more%20 instruction and worship, to worship on than%20a%20century%20Seventh-day,Adventist%20 the seventh day of the week (Saturday), Church%20has%20a%20presence%20in%20209%20 and to disseminate religious views by countries. public preaching, or through the media. 6 Ibid. ADVENTISTSINUNIFORM.ORG WORLDSERVICEORGANIZATION.ORG 3 AN UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH ABOUT RELIGIOUS FREEDOM By Bettina Krause, Associate Director, Public Affairs and Religious Liberty, General Conference 4 t was at a meeting in Washington, many different faith traditions and D.C. last year that I began to nationalities. Hindus, Muslims, Iquestion my understanding of Sikhs, and Christians from other religious freedom. denominations. We exchange My years in law school in Australia reports on challenges facing our own had taught me to look at religious communities in various parts of the freedom through the lens of legal world and often work together on theory—as a fundamental human shared advocacy efforts. right, shaped by international and On the day in question, as we met constitutional law. My years as an via Zoom, a representative from Adventist Church member meant a Hindu advocacy organization I also saw religious liberty in terms gave a report on the tremendous of biblical prophecy and traditional discrimination faced by Hindus in Adventist ideas about the separation of parts of Muslim-majority Pakistan. He church and state. spoke of the hardship they faced—the Later, when I began work in the ostracism from their communities, Public Affairs and Religious Liberty the economic hardship, their status as department at the world church second-class citizens. headquarters in Maryland, I began to Ironically, the very next person write articles about religious freedom to give a report was someone who as an individual right—a right we spoke eloquently about the plight assert to protect our ability to keep of Muslims within parts of Hindu- the Sabbath, to be free of religiously majority India! He reported that some motivated discrimination, to gather Muslims were being scapegoated for for worship, and to share our faith COVID-19—blamed for its spread freely with others. and denied access to medical care. But at a gathering of human rights And this is a pattern that’s repeated advocates in Washington last year, the world over. A persecuted group I began to suspect there was more in one context is the persecutor in to religious freedom than I had another. In fact, when we look around previously thought. the world, we see there are no faith or ethnic groups that have a monopoly THE PERSECUTION PARADOX on religiously motivated persecution. Many Muslim-majority countries, My work in Washington for such as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia, are the Adventist Church means I rightly accused of repressing religious regularly meet with advocates from minorities. And yet, on the other WHEN WE LOOK AROUND THE WORLD, WE SEE THERE ARE NO FAITH OR ETHNIC GROUPS THAT HAVE A MONOPOLY ON RELIGIOUSLY MOTIVATED PERSECUTION. 5 THIS HUMAN IMPULSE TOWARD INTOLERANCE AND PERSECUTION IS CLEARLY DRIVEN BY SOMETHING FAR DEEPER THAN SIMPLY WHETHER SOMEONE BELONGS TO A PARTICULAR RELIGION OR CULTURE. hand, in places such as China and genocide, where many thousands Myanmar, it is Muslim minorities who of Tutsis and Hutus were brutally suffer intense persecution. murdered, it was an Adventist Similarly, Christians in many Church leader who was the very first countries experience terrible clergyman to be convicted of genocide persecution and are often the target in the International Criminal Tribunal of brutal attacks. I think of the Coptic for Rwanda. The tribunal found that Christians in Egypt whose places he personally drove armed Hutu of worship have been bombed and attackers to various places where who struggle under discriminatory Tutsis had taken refuge—including an laws. And yet, some Coptic leaders Adventist church where he was pastor. have, in turn, been behind efforts to He ordered the removal of its roof so marginalize other religious minorities that Tutsis could no longer use it as in Egypt. a shelter. They were all then slain in What’s happening here? This cold blood. And this Adventist pastor human impulse toward intolerance was not alone. Members of other and persecution is clearly driven by faith traditions were also convicted of something far deeper than simply similar crimes. whether someone belongs to a What could drive such intense particular religion or culture. hatred that overrides even one’s deeply As I sat in the meeting and held religious convictions? considered this paradox, I was struck History, psychology, and social by another disturbing question. If science teach us there is one common intolerance crosses all boundaries of denominator that links every religion and nationality, were there mass atrocity or large-scale circumstances where I, too, could be persecution, regardless of where tempted to deprive others of their it takes place in the world or rights and freedoms? Where I could the immediate circumstances become the oppressor? that drive it. And that Being an Adventist Church member common denominator is doesn’t automatically exempt me dehumanization. from distorted thinking about other Intolerance and groups in society. Consider the fact oppression can that following the 1994 Rwandan only take 6 place when we dehumanize others in laws, constitutions, and litigation. It’s our minds. If we suspend empathy. If about much more than our biblical we stop thinking of certain people, understanding of end time events or or “categories” of people, as living, our unique perspective on church- breathing, feeling human beings. state relations. These are all important If we close our minds to feelings facets of religious freedom, but of shared humanity. If we refuse to they are not its beating heart.