Since it readily admitted that the officers of the several conferences are not ecclesiastical, are they anything but political? For an approved fiction of agreed-upon symbol(ogy)s - metaphysical at best?
Practice the Presence of God.
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In one way that is true, Jeremy, but I believe D. Jackson was primarily speaking to Christians; his audience was not secular people. Also, he didnt actually quote anything, but rather referred to Mat. 25. Very wise move. He was reminding Christians what he believes it means to be a follower of Christ, and I’m sure every, if not most, secular people would have understood that.
Anyway, thats the way I read it. I could be wrong of course.
I well and truly had that in mind, Allen, when I wrote it, and I hear what you are saying. You bring up an interesting question however: Does the story of the good Samaritan only apply if you are alone?
By the way, I am not saying that a government should just allow any person in without the strictest vetting process, esp. atm. And it may be necessary to make it even harder for men of fighting age from those regions to enter. Its just the reality of the situation. But! To refuse genuine refugees from entering is so wrong I dont even know where to begin. That may be us one day Allen. Where does it say that the West will always prosper?
Tom, DJ, or anyone for that matter, is not advocating for anyone willy nilly to enter the U.S. But that we should not close the door because of fear.
DJ: This does not mean that the doors are left wide open. This country has the right to defend itself from radical militants who wish to bring terror to its shores. And refugees from Syria and Iraq must already pass through a stringent process to enter this country.
Edit:
Boy, Jeremy, and here I thought you believed in the SoP 
…our country shall repudiate every principle of its Constitution as a Protestant and republican government…—Testimonies for the Church 5:451 (1885). {LDE 131.4}
I believe he’s talking to Christians in general. But I will take another look at the story. Thanks Jeremy.
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Most of the time I agree with Dan Jackson, but on this one I am with the opinion of Ben Carson. After the shootings by Muslim terrorist in San Bernadino I think we need to go slow and double check refugees coming from the Muslim states. I would give priority to christians trying to flee from those areas. I think Obama is an abomination and the worst president we have ever had. His sympathies lie with Islam and not christians. Just look at his track record… Nixon was a scoundrel, but Obama is worse. He should be impeached.
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I pretend I found an imagery seat close to Pastor Dan Jackson the defense lawyer bench making his opening statements in court to tell jurors like yourself something about the case you will be hearing on the Syrian refugees. The opening statements by the defense lawyer are confined to fact: “As followers of Jesus, we are compelled to welcome ALL who are seeking refuge”. The evidence: “ to close the door at refugees cannot be an option.” The burden of proof, “The Seventh-day Advent Church is responding and meeting the needs of refugees.” Now that you have read Pastor Dan Jackson closing argument, he proposes, “ I ask that you not close the golden door –the door that offers sanctuary and the possibility of a new life to strangers in far greater need.” Whether lives run smoothly or lives hit many surprises, the near and distant future, love begets love. There are more tears shed over answered prayer than over unanswered prayers.
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Good article by Dan to espouse humanitarian principles we should never lose sight of.
Dan also states:
“This does not mean that the doors are left wide open. This country has the right to defend itself from radical militants who wish to bring terror to its shores.”
He is specifically referencing that we have a responsibility to manage how “wide” the doors are left open. Everyone should be good with this.
“…And refugees from Syria and Iraq must already pass through a stringent process to enter this country.”
This however, is where he gets into trouble. Dan cannot make this statement. While this could be true, he does not KNOW this. He WANTS it to be true, but unless he has personally reviewed all of the procedures and has audited their implementation or references an external review… well… I guess “faith” is not strictly left to the realm of religion.
However, I posit the real intent of this article, …
One moment please, please standby… … …
Back from covering up my broccolini/arugula/carrots/romaine… from hail in sunny San Bernardino. Well, not so sunny as such. Yes hail. Quite colorful language I came up with while doing this.
Back to the “real intent”, it was an opportunity for the SDA church to officially distance itself from Dr. Ben Carson. That was the primary reason. Secondary, was marketing of ADRA(excellent move), tertiary was a message of alignment on principles to SDAs everywhere (a reminder), and then all that other “stuff”…
Dan reminded us all of the larger principles at work here, not to close off. Just keep in mind that visions have to “modified” to be practical in this world which he acknowledged.
All good.
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And what should happen to Bush? A mass murderer of millions of afghans and Iraqis as well as two major leaders. Should he be given a Medal of Honor?
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They are missing one of the points of Dr. Carson. The current vetting process needs to be changed before we accept them. I just wonder if Pastor Jackson is willing to take one of the families in his home. There is a saying in the bible “be humble as a dove. Be wise as a serpent”.
@webEd If you are not going to impose this, remove it! Integrity is not an an ongoing challenge.
Pass The Peace.
Moderators work to ensure that the commenting policy is maintained. Sometimes it takes a while for moderators to catch up when many comments are posted in succession. Thanks to readers who help expedite the process by flagging offending comments. -webEd
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Dan Jackson, it’s not a surprise that you have written your Op-Ed for the far left Huffington Post. After all, you have banned denominational employees from speaking about Ben Carson’s platform while you preach the platform of Hillary and Bernie. Talk about hypocrisy! Are you feeling the burn? https://www.bencarson.com/issues
Annual Council coming up in the Spring. He is worried about “Spring Cleaning!”
While I had great respect for Ben Carson (and of course still do for his achievements) he has completely sold ou his values and is no longer someone I am proud to say is Adventist to my friends and family.
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