John Tate reflects on the place Advent Christians find themselves and the opportunity the 2026 Declaration of Principles presents to the denomination.
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You have read the question. The answer is…
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Unless the Lord alters my steps between now and August, I will not be among you in person at the 2026 Triennial Convention. Because I cannot take the floor to speak into the microphone or look you in the eyes during the debate, I am compelled to put my heart on paper regarding the proposed Declaration of Principles (DOP).
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I am going to take a different approach in responding to David E. Dean’s recent article that expresses opposition to the 2026 Declaration of Principles. I will briefly respond to some particular points at the end as a sort of appendix. More than this, I want to give you a context for thinking about these things. And eventually, I am going to invite you to step into my shoes, to look through the eyes of a 34 year old pastor, as we look to the future.
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I read the proposed 2026 Declaration of Principles with interest and acknowledge the thoughtful and extensive work involved in creating this proposal. Upon reflection I have three areas of observation (including concerns in each): scope, historical discontinuity, and content.
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Rev. Matt Rice reflects on the importance of basic doctrinal unity among Advent Christians as they join together in a common mission, leading him to support the 2026 Declaration of Principles.
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In 2024, Chris Date spoke to Advent Christians in Alton Bay, NH at the Eastern Region’s Pastors & Church Leaders Conference. In this clip, he explains how the cause of conditionalism is advance when we put first things first - embracing the essentials of faith, rejecting anticreedalism.
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Do recent denominational proposals betray congregationalism? Tom Loghry compares the standards and practices of the Conservative Congregationalists (CCCC) with the proposed changes for ACGC.
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I write to support the 2026 Declaration of Principles. It is by far the best Advent Christian theological statement written in the 166-year history of the Advent Christian Church. The 2026 Declaration is a clear, concise exposition of the Christian faith through an Advent Christian lens…
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I am responding to those who asked questions and made pertinent comments about my previous post on ACV’s Facebook page. I do not have a Facebook account and was not able to respond on that platform. ..If faith is genuine and saving then when it is presented with the truth of Christ being the Great I Am, who, as the Word, became flesh, in order to save sinners, such faith will welcome this glorious truth and not oppose it.
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I’ve been reading the recent posts on this blog with interest. I too listened to the panel discussion on denominational restructuring at the triennial convention….Comments were made about the need for unity of purpose at all levels of our denomination. Others noted that the question “What is an Advent Christian?” is often answered in terms of relationships. That ties in with things I’ve observed just in the past few weeks, and which I shared with my church following the convention…
Read MoreLast week, my article “Denominational Tectonics” caused a bit of a firestorm amongst the readership of Advent Christian Voices. To be honest, that was one of my goals. I was trying, through confrontational and colorful language, to get people’s attention. What I failed to anticipate, however, is the way that my tone and candor may have deepened the divisions that I desired merely to identify and assess.
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In this last article, I will lay out what will be basically required of any model to complete the unfinished work of our past. On top of this, I will also offer two rudimentary models for restructuring the denomination which would alleviate some of the stress of our leadership shortage and give us stronger footing for revitalizing the denomination.
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All good things, when left to adults, become busy, and this is especially true of religion. There is a hysteria about religion in America of having to endlessly improve or else…
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I've begun to view theology much in the same way. Admiration is a term that comes to mind in describing those who've come before me. The church fathers such as Augustine, the Gregorys, Athanasius, Basil, and Didymus are all crucial thinkers of the Christian thought with whom we should be acquainted. These men helped build roads for the Church to understand God more deeply and fully as they compacted the dirt underneath their tires, forming routes with their faithful exposition of God's Word.
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Sometimes there are blog articles that really get you thinking. Nathaniel Bickford’s article, “Solutions?” is just that kind of piece. Honestly, I’ve thought along his lines for awhile, but I couldn’t help noticing how it grabbed the attention of so many of you.
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Last week, new survey data indicated that only 47% of Americans are connected to a church, synagogue, or mosque; a dramatic drop over the past 20 years. Lots of pundits are worried about that. I'm not and you can read why here.
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