Losing Our Identity

Sociological studies of religion have demonstrated that religious movements usually emerge from a desire to reform the culture in which they exist.

But by the second and third centuries of existence —after the pioneers and their associates are gone— these movements tend to lose their identity and be reabsorbed into the very culture they originally intended to reform.

This process is easily seen in post-apostolic Christianity and post-Reformation Protestantism. In the mid-nineteenth century, American Methodism was one of the most vibrant and dynamic Christian denominations.

But with the passing of time, it began to lose its original fervor. On April 21, 1972, the General Conference of the United Methodist Church officially accepted doctrinal pluralism. The great Protestant principle of sola Scriptura (the exclusiveness of Scripture) was replaced by four equal sources of doctrinal authority.

The Methodist Church asserted, “The Christian faith was revealed in Scripture, illuminated by tradition, vivified in personal experience, and confirmed by reason.” By this action, the denomination opened itself to a variety of conflicting teachings and cultural values. Jerry L. Walls’s insightful book The Problem of Pluralism: Recovering United Methodist Identity 33 points out how pluralism seriously undermined the Methodist identity. The Seventh-day Adventist Church is today in its second century of existence and is being strongly influenced by contemporary culture. More than ever, we must take Paul’s advice in Romans 12:2 seriously. The Message translation reads, “Don’t become so well-adjusted to your culture that you fit into it without even thinking. Instead, fix your attention on God. You’ll be changed from the inside out. Readily recognize what he wants from you, and quickly respond to it. Unlike the culture around you, always dragging you down to its level of immaturity, God brings the best out of you, develops well-formed maturity in you.” As Seventh-day Adventists, we live in a real world, and we live as people live today. But we must be careful that our culture does not undermine the universal principles and values of God’s Word.