Czecho-Slovakian Union Conference Issues Statement in Favor of Ordaining Women

Spectrum Website
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The Czecho-Slovakian Union Conference has issued a statement that regrets the decision of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, during the July 2015 Session in San Antonio,Texas, against allowing divisions to make provision in their territories for the ordination of women. The statement cites the example of Jesus and the early Christian Church in favor of equality between men and women. The statement was adopted by the Czecho-Slovakian Union Conference on November 11, 2015.

Statement of the Executive Committee of the Czecho-Slovak Union Conference Regarding the General Conference of SDAs Decision on Women’s Ordination

The executive committee of the Czecho-Slovakian Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists issues the following statement in response to the decision of the General Conference, which rules it not acceptable for executive committees of the Divisions of the church to accept provisions towards women’s ordination to full pastoral ministry, if they deem it appropriate.

In accordance with Scripture, stating in Galatians 3:28 that “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” and the 14th Fundamental Belief of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church on the “Unity in the Body of Christ,” Adventists in Bohemia, Moravia, Silesia and Slovakia profess that “the church is one body with many members, called from every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. In Christ we are a new creation; distinctions of race, culture, learning, and nationality, and differences between high and low, rich and poor, male and female, must not be divisive among us.”

Following the example of Our Lord Jesus Christ and the early Christian church, the efforts to rehabilitate the position of women in church characterised Czech and later also Moravian and Slovak Christian reformation movements in the Middle Ages. Pious women such as the Czech Queen Sophia of Bavaria or Anna of Mochau greatly helped God’s work in sharing the gospel in the life of a well-known Czech reformer Jan Hus. As continuers of the reformation in Central Europe, we proudly profess our responsibility to this spiritual legacy of the revival of the church and society. The pursuit of dignified and just position of women belongs to the eminent values from which our formerly joint Republics were born in the last century. A woman is in our Central European culture socially more important than a man.

For these reasons, the delegates of the Czecho-Slovak Union Conference clearly expressed in May 2014 that they “agree that women can be ordained to full pastoral ministry in our union conference”. They voiced their full “support to the position of the executive committee of the Inter-European Division to women’s ordination, which was approved at the meeting of the committee in November 2013.” Our stance was further reinforced in June 2014 by the Final Report of the Church’s world-wide Theology of Ordination Study Committee (TOSC), which studied the issue for two years and concluded that there exists no biblical or theological obstacle to women’s ordination.

Virtuous women filled with the Spirit represent a powerful testimony of Christ and are used by the Holy Spirit as His collaborators in preaching the kingdom of God. The Holy Spirit lends gifts to all believers irrespective of gender and women have played an important role since the beginning in the life of the church. Their determination, gifts and talents are a blessing for the whole of the body of Christ.

We are saddened by the decision of the General Conference regarding women’s ordination to full pastoral ministry, which contradicts everything described above. We therefore interpret the decision as related to the authority of the church and not to Scripture and our beliefs, which guarantee equality of men and women in the church. We respect cultural specificities of our fellow believers in other parts of the world, but also expect them to respect ours. At the same time, we invite the women from Seventh-day Adventist congregations in the Czech and Slovak Republics to join the church service including pastoral ministry, if they feel that God calls them to it. We consider the participation of women in the service the gospel in our territory very needed and desirable and are willing to do anything that achieves this.

Executive Committee of the Czecho-Slovak Union Conference, November the 11th 2015

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This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at http://spectrummagazine.org/node/7237
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#2

How many more conferences adopting equality in the ministry will there be before a NAD conference ordains more women? Why the delay? What action can the G.C. possibly take when it has not invalidated those women already ordained? Why is the G.C. approval needed under the rules of the Working Policy giving unions the sole decision on ordination in their conferences? What is there to fear?

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#3

RE: “We respect cultural specificities of our fellow believers in other parts of the world, but also expect them to respect ours.”

I couldn’t have said it better myself if I tried.

This surfaces perhaps the most basic issue I have had with the church since childhood, in that the perceived conservative position is always by default assumed to be the most pious and most correct, and everyone else is expected to accommodate that position.

In the case of WO, cultures that view men as superior to women, or those who have strong culturally based roles for men and women, and do not think those should change or be shared, are consistently accommodated. At the same time there is little or no expectation that members of those cultures should accommodate those who think men and women are equal and that any specific roles assigned to them are a personal decision and not innate.

For example, we openly hesitate to send a female pastor to a culture that traditionally has only male pastors, because we expect that those members in that culture will not accept her. This is a disservice to those members and is a condescending attitude. Instead, we should assume the opposite, that such an emissary will be accepted. And we should actually insist on acceptance, because acceptance follows the biblical example of Christ and his early followers, and as Christians we should be following that lead.

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#4

Tim
I think another statement is very telling as to where they are.
And very telling as to where Pastor Jackson is at this time, and his supporters of the North American Unions at this time.
QUOTE [with a little liberality on my part]
"We interpret the decision of the Church — General Conference and SA2015 — as to the Authority of The Church Officers and NOT to Scripture and OUR Beliefs."
PS — I think this adds more clarity to this statement.
Sola Scriptures.
Perhaps WE need to become Huss-ites! Here in North America.

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#5

Thank you for standing for Biblical truth Czecho-Slovakian Union Conference. Your “house” is built on rock and not on sand. Blessings from Rene Gale

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#6

Gratulujeme, Jiří! @GeorgeTichy Tvůj je první slovanský národ udělat krok vpřed.
(Congratulations, George! Yours is the first Slavic nation to step forward.)

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#7

No. 1 - 1054
No. 2 - 2015

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#8

to abuse power is to lose it. I don’t think Ted saw it coming. tom Z

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#9

1066 date, is it for the Battle of Hastings?

Ok, 1054 makes more sense, though it may or may not be an accurate parallel. It was just sad that leadership opted for yet another vote in SA in this matter. Needed to address working policy, and not try to pretend that a vote would settle the matter. There was never going to be conformity by that vote. We have gone a lot farther down he road since 90 and 95. Another approach was needed.

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#12

I’m happy they believe that they will allow God to ordain women. That’s nice of them.

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#14

Děkuji moc Tihomir @odorcic ! Je to v naší krvi, a jsem velmi hrdý na to.
(Thank you much Tihomir! It is in our blood, and I am very proud of it.)

Ted Wilson was definitely counting on the full and unquestionable support from the “world church” for his little agenda favoring continued discrimination of women, but apparently he forgot that the world church is not only in Africa and the Latin Americas. Surprise? Don’t mess with the Europeans, especially the Slavic people… :wink:

I am very proud of the blood running in my veins (100% Czech).
@andreas @elmer_cupino

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#15

“…for his little agenda favoring continued discrimination of women.”

Yes, George. “Little” is an apt adjective to describe Pastor Wilson’s agenda. A step away from “belittling.” Although Pastor Wilson’s intention it is not to be personally cruel, the effect of his theology is experienced as unkind, nonetheless.

To belittle means to put down, or to make another person feel as though they aren’t important. Saying mean things about another person literally (sic) makes them feel “little.” To belittle someone is a cruel way of making someone else seem less important than yourself. (VOCABULARY.com)

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#16

Ted Wilson should have been a better leader than he has been…but he has not. It has been his meddling in church politics that has brought the Adventist church to this place- there was no good reason for it. If there is a schism, it will be Ted Wilson’s fault. Perhaps he will be pleased with the mistaken idea that he is a part of “purifying” the church. Just what Adventism needed: more repressive Fundamentalism i.e. LGT theology. Horrifying.

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#17

This article has made me wonder about another union that as voted to ordain women. That is the Columbia Union. I have not seen a statment by them since San Antonio. Does anybody know how they will proceed? Will they proceed the same way as te Czecho-Slovakian Union?

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#18

Thank you for faithfully reporting the developments around the world. As I read I am wondering: who else is? How is such news distributed - for instance to former delegates of San Antonio?

As has been noted by some (and I agree) the strong reactions to San Antonio probably were not expected. Things were thought to calm down and reconstruction of our church could continue under the buzz words “revival and reformation”. It is noteworthy that countries of the Reformation protest. The word ought to be spread.

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#19

I predict that after Elder Wilson leaves office, if not sooner, this issue will dissolve into a historical footnote–seen as God leading the church from crisis to victory. Women will find a permanent place as ordained team leaders.

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#20

It always is an unfortunate situation to see a leader challenged but this WO issue was a no-brainer from the very beginning. When your own biblical scholars agree there is no theological basis for refraining from WO, and then your advisers begin to twist every available word that can be twisted to satisfy the majority of the male constituents and then pass the voting with “booing and hissing,” no one should convince you that this path is nothing but “trouble.”

Nonetheless, since no one is perfect and a troubleless situation can never be guaranteed in life, the mark of a strong leader is not to avoid conflict but in resolving conflict without further alienation of constituents.

So Elder TW, what would you do now? Ignore the challenge and appear weakened? Follow through with the “grave consequence” as drawn in the sand by your own finger and risk breaking the church? Or come to a satisfying compromise? Your call. The ball is in your court and we all will be praying for you.

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#21

What a great question, Andreas. Just how IS news of post-San Antonio ordination votes disseminated to the delegates? Do they even know what is happening around the world in regard to Women’s Ordination? Who is announcing this besides Spectrum?

I hear crickets.

They don’t know. The delegates would have to venture to Spectrum. Are they? Doubtful.

Has anyone seen these statements announced at the Adventist Review? These statements are real news.

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#22

It is it gratifying to see God working so tangibly in our time to break down the bias of a leader and general church body. We can only hope the Ted does repent from this era and return to quiet membership. Is there any church leader less influential now? No.

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#23

Thank you, Czechoslovakia-Slovakian Union Conference for the reminder that faithfulness to the authority of biblical principles supersedes faithfulness to authority of the corporate church.

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