A Father Of Ancient Thought In Modern Dress and the Seventh-Day Adventist Church

compiled by Frank Klin

I write not these things to shame you, but as my beloved sons I warn you. For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, yet have ye not many fathers: for in Christ Jesus I have begotten you through the gospel. - (1 Corinthians 4:14-15 KJV) This document was compiled for my brothers and sisters in the Seventh-Day Adventist church with a goal to help us understand the Fathers of ancient thought and how they survive today in modern dress. While one man is the catalyst of our focus, this examination is primarily about representations, associations, principalities and powers. This is not intended to denigrate any persons past or present. It was prepared with love and respect in the hopes of facilitating prayerful Scripture study and soul searching. Personal commentary is minimal to allow others to speak for themselves. Will the teachings of ancient thought, as you see presented here, turn our hearts and minds to our Heavenly Father through our Saviour Jesus Christ? Are they based on Scriptural truths that can help us in our daily walk and witness? Please pray for discernment as we all must work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.

What do these pictures have in common?

To unravel the relationship of the pictures our journey begins on October 31, 2010. This day found me in a private library doing research on Christian church history when I copied something from a book originally published in 1907. The very next day someone showed me an advertisement from the October 29, 2010 edition of the Coeur d'Alene Press newspaper. I was amazed to discover that a name from the history book I read was related to a name in the ad.

The Advertisement that started this examination. Who is Athanasios Paul Thompson?
On the right hand column we let him speak from his Seven Holystones website.
Fr. Athanasios Paul Thompson has been catholic in belief since 1990 when he was known as Pastor Rob. (This sentence has since been removed. Our screen capture is on November 3, 2010 at 9:29:57 pm. There is a running clock on his website) Athanasios Paul is an ecclesiastical name given by the Orthodox Catholic Patriarch of Alexandria at the time of his ordination to the priesthood in 1994. His birth name Robert remained in common use throughout his early ministerial career from 1973 through 1991. He briefly served as a license minister in the Adventist church in the 1970s before establishing an independent ministry. He pastored and did evangelism from 1977-1990, prior to a four year formation and preparation period, which included living in Egypt and Northern Africa for a year finally being ordained the Apostolic priesthood. Ordination in many Orthodox and Roman Catholic orders may recommend and sometimes requires a new name for the newly ordained. The Coptic Patriarch selected the two names Athanasios and Paul After the famous 4th century Bishop turned Patriarch, St Athanasios The Great who defended the deity of Christ against Arianism and after St Paul, the Hermit the first solitary monk on record from Thebes. The former Pastor Robert Thompson has been recognized by those two names ever since. Taking an early retirement from active priestly ministry he has crossed a cultural bridge and recently identified with American Evangelicals and Adventism in particular in a renewed commitment to Bible oriented Gospel faith. On October 30, 2010 he rededicated himself through a symbolic act of immersion in the waters of baptism. He still honors the sacramental baptism at the hands of the highly esteemed orthodox Patriarch. The re-baptismal is just a symbol of [leaving the old and embracing the new (removed from current website)] returning to a Biblically dependant rather than a tradition dependant Christian faith. Fr Athanasios Paul aka Robert Thompson will still be known as Athanasios or simply Athans but will no longer use the title Father [though he has no disdain for those who do (removed from current website)]. (Spelling and grammar left intact)

Orthodox Priest baptized in Coeur d'Alene Church

On Sabbath, Oct. 30, Athanasios-Paul Thompson, Orthodox priest, officially retired and was baptized at the Coeur d'Alene (Idaho) Adventist Church. This was a statement of commitment to both his faith in Christ and the Adventist message (Jim Reinking, Northwest evangelist, Gleaner, May 2011) As a high-ranking priest, Thompson, was one of five individuals who bore a ring from the Patriarch in Alexandria, Egypt, as a symbol of their special relationship. Thompson spent much of his ministry in the world of religious diplomacy. He often went on missions on behalf of the Patriarch and on occasion met with church leaders and heads of state. In 2000, he was one of 75 individuals who were present when Pope John Paul II and the Patriarch Shenouda III, met and embraced, removing the excommunications each side had from the time of the separation of Eastern Orthodox churches from the Roman Catholic Church. (Ibid) Before becoming a priest, Thompson first learned of the Sabbath and about Adventism from a literature evangelist. Furthermore, he was a protg of Walter Martin, an expert on the cults. For seven years he became an expert in his own right, defending Adventists against cult accusations and defending the biblical Sabbath. He reports there are some 200,000 Orthodox who keep Sabbath in the Middle East while also observing Sunday. On one occasion, he successfully defended Ethiopian Orthodox Sabbath-keepers who the local hierarchy had determined must cease from Sabbath observance. He has led priests, monks and some bishops in both the Orthodox and Catholic worlds to embrace the Sabbath. (Ibid) Thompsonmade the decision to leave orthodoxy Leaving orthodoxy was very difficult, but he determined to follow his conscience (Ibid)

Athanasios Paul Thompson has been catholic in belief since 1990

Seven Holystones

The Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria is the official name of the largest Christian church in Egypt. It is a part of the Oriental Orthodox communion which comprises six groups: Syriac, Coptic, Ethiopian, Eritrean, Malankara Orthodox Syrian Church of India and the Armenian Apostolic Church. The Oriental Orthodox believe that they are the "One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic" Church of the ancient Christian creeds. (Coptic Orthodox Church/List of Coptic Popes, wikipedia) According to tradition, the Coptic Orthodox Church was founded by St Mark the Evangelist and produced great scholars and defenders of truth as St Clement, St Cyril, St Athanasius, as well as the source of monasticism and the anchoritic example of asceticism with St Paul the first hermit, the Great St Anthony, St Shenouda the Archimiandrite and St Bachomious the father of monastic communal living throughout the world. The writings of these desert fathers continue to bless the world and our Christian lives, whilst our ancient liturgical worship teaches us wonderful spiritual truths that provide a sense of peace in todays world. The tunes we sing and chant as we worship come from the oldest school of music in existence, and are sourced from the ancient Phaorohs, the ancient Greeks and also from the Jewish Temple. (4 Incorporeal Creatures)

The current head of the church and the See of Alexandria is the Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of All Africa on the Holy See of Saint Mark, is Pope Shenouda lll. (Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria, Wikipedia)

Pope Shenouda lll gave Robert Thompson the name Athanasios Paul
His Holiness Pope Shenouda is well known for his deep commitment to Christian unity. In an address he gave at an ecumenical forum in Cairo in 1974, His Holiness declared that: "The whole Christian world is anxious to see the Church unite. Christian people, being fed up with divisions and dispersion, are pushing their Church leaders to do something about Church unity and I am sure that the Holy Spirit is inspiring us." (Shenouda III of Alexandria, orthodoxwiki) In June 1989, His Holiness opened the conference of the International Commission for InterOrthodox theological Dialogue. A part of the agreed statement said: " Great indeed is the wonderful mystery of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, one True God, one ousia in three hypostaseis or three prosopa. Blessed be the Name of the Lord our God, for ever and ever. (Ibid)

Whats in a name? Who are Athanasios and Paul from history?

Athanasios Paul is an ecclesiastical name given by the Orthodox Catholic Patriarch of Alexandria at the time of Roberts ordination to the priesthood in 1994. Athanasius (Athanasios) was born at Alexandria about 297 A.D., and died in 373 A. D. As an archdeacon and the attendant of the bishop Alexander, he took a prominent part against the Arians at the Council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. From that time during his whole life he struggled for the doctrine of Christ's essential divinity and eternal coexistence with the Father, and his importance as a theologian is that he developed this idea. Five times he was sent into exile and five times returned to power by the swing of the pendulum-like church politics of the Eastern emperors, but he lived to see his idea conquer, and it is to-day an essential part of the Catholic creed. (1907, Library of Original Sources, Vol. 4, edited by Oliver Joseph Thatcher, page 71-72. & Source Book for Bible Students, 1940 revised, Review & Herald Publishing Assoc., page 40) His feast day in the Orthodox Church is January 18. At the First Council of Nicaea, Athanasius argued against Arius and his doctrine, But we say and believe, and have taught, and do teach, that the Son is not unbegotten, nor in any way part of the unbegotten; and that He does not derive His subsistence from any matter; but that by His own will and counsel He has subsisted before time, and before ages, as perfect God, only begotten and unchangeable, and that before He was begotten, or created, or purposed, or established, He was not. For He was not unbegotten. (Arius quoted in The Ecclesiastical History of Theodoret, Book 1, Chapter 3, 'Letter of Arius to Eusebius of Nicomedia')

Athanasius held that not only the Son of God was consubstantial with the Father, but so also was the Holy Spirit, which held a great deal of influence in the development of later doctrines regarding the trinity. (Will Durant, Caesar and Christ, 1972. & Encyclopedia Americana, vol. 2, 1997) Athanasius was bishop of Alexandria from 328 to 373. These were turbulent times in the church with fierce arguments about what was the true catholic faith. (Benedict Baker, Vitae Patrum) During his exile in Treve and his flight to Rome in 339 AD, Pope Athanasius was influential in the introduction of the monastic movement to Roman religious life. (Bishop Angaelos, The Altar in the Midst of Egypt, page 35) During his lifetime Athanasius became Patriarch of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. Paul of Thebes 228 A.D. 341 A.D., commonly known as Saint Paul the First Hermit or St Paul the Anchorite is regarded as the first Christian hermit. Jerome relates the legendary meeting of Anthony the Great and Paul, when the latter was aged 113. They conversed with each other for one day and one night. When Anthony next visited him, Paul was dead. Anthony clothed him in a tunic which was a present from Athanasius of Alexandria and buried him, with two lions helping to dig the grave. His feast day is February 2 in the Oriental Orthodox Churches. (Paul of Thebes, wikipedia)

Athanasios still honors the sacramental baptism at the hands of the highly esteemed Orthodox Patriarch
There is a confessional commitment to discipleship. When we baptize disciples, the disciples identify with a specific God. From the earliest doctrinal debates, the church has worked hard to distinguish the Trinity with accuracy, e.g., the Apostles Creed, the Nicene Creed. (Fred Sanders, The Deep Things of God: How the Trinity Changes Everything) Baptism is a Holy Sacrament by which we are born again by being immersed in water three times in the name of the Holy Trinity; the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. (Baptism, CopticChurch.net) In Christian belief and practice, a sacrament is a rite, instituted by Christ, that mediates grace, constituting a sacred mystery. The root meaning of the Latin word sacramentum is to make sacred. A sacrament is something you do within the church to become closer to God. (Sacrement, search.com) The most conventional functional definition of a sacrament is that it is an outward sign, instituted by Christ, that conveys an inward, spiritual grace through Christ. The two most widely accepted sacraments are Baptism and the Eucharist; the majority of Christians recognize seven Sacraments or Divine Mysteries : Baptism, Confirmation (Chrismation in the Orthodox tradition), and the Eucharist, Holy Orders, Reconciliation of a Penitent (confession), Anointing of the Sick, and Matrimony. Taken together, these are the Seven Sacraments as recognised by churches in the High church tradition - notably Roman Catholic, Eastern Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Independent Catholic, Old Catholic and some Anglicans. (Ibid)

The traditions of Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy do not limit the number of sacraments to seven, holding that anything the Church does as Church is in some sense sacramental. To be more accurate, for the Eastern Orthodox and Oriental Orthodox Christian the term Sacrament is a Westernism that seeks to classify something that may be impossible to classify. Preferably the term Sacred Mystery is used, the reason being that the How it is possible is unanswerable to human understanding. God touches us through material means such as water, wine, bread, oil, incense, candles, altars, icons, etc. How God does this is a mystery. On a broad level, the Mysteries are an affirmation of the goodness of created matter, and are an emphatic declaration of what that matter was originally created to be. (Ibid) If the person to be baptized is a man, then after completion of the Rite of Renouncing Satan and recitation of the Orthodox Creed, and the Liturgy of Baptism, the attendants should leave the Baptismal room, so the baptized may undress, and go down into the Baptismal font immersed up to his neck, then the priest comes and dips his head in the Baptismal water three times saying: I baptize you ... in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. (Baptism, CopticChurch.net) Then the priest leaves the room, and the baptized person arises out of the Baptismal water and dries his body by the prepared towel, then wears his underwear. Then the priest comes and anoints him with the Myron oil 36 times. Then he dresses in garments appropriate for this happy occasion. (Ibid) The Sacrament of Myron, also known as the Holy Anointment, or the Sacrament of Confirmation, is a holy Sacrament, with which we receive the seal of the Holy Spirit. The word Myron is a Greek word which means ointment or fragrant perfume. (Sacrement of Confirmation, CopticChurch.net) The baptized person receives it immediately after Baptism, so as to become a temple of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit aids him to grow in his spiritual life. Although it is received directly after Baptism, it is an independent Sacrament and the priests have to be very careful to grant it accurately to the baptized, anointing them with 36 crosses. (Ibid) The 36 anointments are on all the joints and senses of the human body, and the anointment protects them against Satanic warfare, so that the devil does not abide in this person by any means. A Christian who is possessed by a demon, is said to be Myron deficient, which means that he was not anointed by the Myron as required, and so the devil was able to penetrate into his body and dwell there. (Ibid) Being baptized, we are enlightened: being enlightened, we are adopted as sons: being adopted, we are made perfect; being made complete, we are made immortal. The Scripture says I said, You are gods, and all are sons of the Highest. This operation has many names; gift of grace, enlightenment, perfection, and washing. Washing, by which we are cleansed from the filth of our sins; gift of grace, by which the penalties of our sins are cancelled; enlightenment, through which that holy light which saves us is perceived, that is, by which our eyes are made alert to see the divine; perfection means the lack of nothing, for what is still lacking to anyone who has the knowledge of God? (Clement, Patriarch of Alexandria: "Paedagogus" I vi (26) c 200 AD)

Athanasios Paul was one of 75 individuals who were present when Pope John Paul II and the Patriarch Shenouda III, met and embraced
His Holiness Pope Shenouda told Pope John Paul II in their February 2000 meeting I hope that all efforts for Christian unity may go forward through your help. (H.H. Pope Shenouda III 29th) During Coptic Orthodox Pope Shenouda III's visit to Rome from May 4 to May 10, 1973, Pope Paul VI gave the Coptic Patriarch a relic of Athanasius. (International Commission on Theological Dialogue Between the Catholic Church and Oriental Orthodox Churches, 2004) In his homily on that occasion, His Holiness Pope Paul VI mentioned the following: How propitious is todays liturgical reflection, celebrating as it does the glorious memory, as we have said of Saint Athanasius, the intrepid and undaunted defender of faith! Saint Athanasius is a Father and Doctor of the universal church and thus merits our common commemoration The Word of God, declares Saint Athanasius, came himself, so that, being the Image of the Father, he might create man anew in the image of God (cf. De Incarnatione, PG.) (Ibid)

Former Adventist Pastor Robert Thompson went through a four year Formation and Preparation period before being ordained in the Apostolic priesthood as Father Athanasios Paul
Athanasios Paul Thompson has another ministry called Ancient Truths Media where we find the following quote. Over the years I was to learn of amazing connections between ancient monasticism in Russia, Greece and Egypt, secret scrolls and twenty first century bible prophecy. It was through the writings of American Monk Seraphim Rose that I first heard of the Christian east and the Orthodox faith. I thought Orthodox churches were more Catholic than the Pope but still Catholic. By Gods providence in our own times Orthodox Christianity has been returning to the West which departed from it some 900 years ago. Christian Monasticism was born in Egypt and was instrumental in the formation of the Coptic Orthodox Church character of submission, simplicity and humility, thanks to the teachings and writings of the Great Fathers of Egypt's Deserts. All Christian monasticism stems, either directly or indirectly, from the Egyptian example. (Coptic Orthodox Church & Desert Fathers, wikipedia) Many individuals who spent part of their lives in the Egyptian desert went on to become important figures in the Church and society of the fourth and fifth century, among them Athanasius of Alexandria, John Chrysostom, John Cassian, and Augustine of Hippo. Through the work of these last two, the spirituality of the desert fathers, emphasizing an ascent to God through periods of purgation and illumination that led to unity with the Divine, deeply

affected the spirituality of the Western Church and the Eastern Church. For this reason, the writings and spirituality of the desert fathers are still of interest to many people today. (Ibid) The contemplative movement traces its roots back to these monks. They were the ones who first promoted the mantra as a prayer tool. The desert fathers believed as long as the desire for God was sincere--anything could be utilized to reach God. If a method worked for the Hindus to reach their gods, then Christian mantras could be used to reach Jesus. (Ray Yungen, A Time of Departing) St. Athanasius of Alexandria wrote, God became man so that man might become god (On the Incarnation 54:3, PG 25:192B). His statement is an apt description of theosis. Theosis ("deification," "divinization") is the process of a worshiper becoming free of hamarta ("missing the mark"), being united with God, beginning in this life and later consummated in bodily resurrection. For Orthodox Christians, Theosis is salvation. Theosis assumes that humans from the beginning are made to share in the Life or Nature of the all-Holy Trinity. Therefore, an infant or an adult worshiper is saved from the state of unholiness for participation in the Life of the Trinity which is everlasting. (Theosis, wikipedia & orthodoxwiki) Through theoria, the contemplation of the triune God, human beings come to know and experience what it means to be fully human (the created image of God); through their communion with Jesus Christ, God shares Himself with the human race, in order to conform them to all that He is in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness. As God became human, in all ways except sin, He will also make humans god (Holy or saintly), in all ways except his divine essence (uncaused or uncreatedness). (Theosis, wikipedia) For many fathers, theosis goes beyond simply restoring people to their state before the Fall of Adam and Eve, teaching that because Christ united the human and divine natures in Jesus' person, it is now possible for someone to experience closer fellowship with God than Adam and Eve initially experienced in the Garden of Eden, and that people can become more like God than Adam and Eve were at that time. Some Orthodox theologians go so far as to say that Jesus would have become incarnate for this reason alone, even if Adam and Eve had never sinned. (Vladimir Lossky, The Mystical Theology of the Eastern Church, 1957) The journey towards theosis includes many forms of praxis (practice). Living in the community of the church and partaking regularly of the sacraments, and especially the Eucharist, is taken for granted. Also important is cultivating "prayer of the heart", and prayer that never ceases, as Paul exhorts the Thessalonians. This unceasing prayer of the heart is a dominant theme in the writings of the (Desert) Fathers. (Theosis, orthodoxwiki)

He who is humble in his thoughts and engaged in spiritual work, when he reads the Holy Scriptures will apply everything to himself and not to his neighbor.
St Mark, the Ascetic, fifth century (Athanasios Paul, sevenholystones.org)
It is not possible for the mind to be quiet unless the body is quiet also nor is it possible to tear down the wall between them without contemplative quiet and prayer. (Mark the Ascetic, Counsels on the Spiritual Life)

Mark the Ascetic was born in Athens in the fifth century, and lived in the Egyptian desert as a monk. His feast day is commemorated on March 5. St. Mark was an ascetic and miracleworker, sometimes known as Mark the Faster. In his 40th year he was tonsured a monk by his teacher, St. John Chrysostom. Mark then spent 60 more years in the wilderness of Nitria (a desert in Lower Egypt) in fasting and prayer, and in writing many spiritual works concerning the salvation of souls. He knew all the Holy Scriptures by heart. He was very merciful and kind, and wept much for the misfortunes that had befallen all of God's creation. (Mark the Ascetic, orthodoxwiki) Silence fosters stillness; it is indispensable for stillness. Inner stillness, however, goes beyond silence insofar as its aim is to purify the heart and issue in pure prayer. That purification involves the body in its entirety, because body and soul, like mind and heart, are ultimately inseparable. In the words of St Mark the Ascetic, The intellect cannot be still unless the body is still also; and the wall between them cannot be demolished without stillness and prayer. (John Breck, On Silence and Stillness) To silence the mind is an extremely difficult task. How hard it is to keep the mind from thinking, thinking, thinking, forever thinking, forever producing thoughts in a never ending stream. Our Hindu masters in India have a saying: one thorn is removed by another. By this they mean that you will be wise to use one thought to rid yourself of all the other thoughts that crowd into your mind. One thought, one image, one phrase or sentence or word that your mind can be made to fasten on. (Anthony de Mello, Sadhana: A Way to God (Institute of Jesuit Resources, 1978), p. 28) Asceticism refers to the idea that a higher spiritual and moral state is attainable through the practice of self-denial. It is characterized by abstinence from various sorts of carnal or mundane pleasures such as cultivating power, engaging in sexual activity or consumption of alcohol. It is often accompanied with the objective of pursuing religious and spiritual goals. (Asceticism, Theological Dictionary, Timothy Ministries) Some non-Judaeo-Christian religions teach that salvation and liberation involve a process of mind-body transformation that is effected through practicing restraint with respect to actions of body, speech and mind. The founders and earliest practitioners of these religions (e.g. Buddhism, Jainism, the Christian desert fathers) lived extremely austere lifestyles refraining from sensual pleasures and the accumulation of material wealth. This is to be understood not as an eschewal of the enjoyment of life but a recognition that spiritual and religious goals are impeded by such indulgence. (Ibid) Asceticism is most commonly associated with monks, yogis or priests, however any individual may choose to lead an ascetic life. Lao Zi, Gautama Buddha, Mahavir Swami, Saint Anthony, Francis of Assisi, Mahatma Gandhi and David Augustine Baker can all be considered ascetics. Many of these men left their families, possessions, and homes to live a mendicant life, and in the eyes of their followers demonstrated great spiritual attainment, or enlightenment. (Ibid) Asceticism within Christian tradition is the set of disciplines practiced to work out the believer's salvation and further the believer's repentance as well as for the purpose of spiritual enlightenment. Although monks and nuns are known for especially strict acts of asceticism, ascetic practices are evident among other early Christians. (Ibid)

Christian authors of late antiquity such as Origen, Jerome, John Chrysostom, and Augustine of Hippo interpreted meanings of biblical texts within a highly asceticized religious environment. Through their commentaries, they created a new asceticized Scripture, and in the process an "asceticized" version of Christianity. (Asceticism, Theological Dictionary, Timothy Ministries) Eastern Orthodox Christianity has an old form of meditation practice called hesychastic practice, that has been practiced by Christian ascetics and Desert Fathers from the earliest days of the church. Based on Christs injunction to go into your closet to pray, hesychasm (which translates as stillness, rest, quiet, silence) involves the process of retiring inward, withdrawing from the senses, so as to achieve a direct experiential knowledge of God. These practices even involve physical postures and breathing exercises, reminiscent of Hindu yogic practices. (Professor Rafael Espericueta, Christian Mystics) Subsequently, for many people seeking engagement with spirituality it means withdrawal into a solitary place and also from social interaction. Following the example of St Antony in third and fourth-century Egypt, many others have sought peace and solitude in order to find a more meaningful relationship with God through disciplines such as prayer, contemplation and selfdenial. (Keating 1999; Stewart 2005, 86 87) The origin of mystic asceticism can also be traced to the same root. These categories of spiritual activity have a long tradition The experience of God can even now be conceived at the core level in mystical terms not as a transcendent Other but as an immanent Self. (Perrin 2007, 241) (Harri Kuhalampi, Holistic Spirituality in the Thinking of Ellen White, Academic Dissertation, University of Helsinki 2010) The Coptic Church has seasons of fasting matched by no other Christian Church in their length, depth and rate of practice by the faithful. Out of the 365 days of the year, Copts fast for over 210 days All fasting seasons are seen as periods of preparation, preceding a particular feast; for example: Lent precedes the feast of the Resurrection (Easter), Advent precedes Christmas, and so on. (Bishop Angaelos, The Altar in the Midst of Egypt: A Brief Introduction to the Coptic Orthodox Church, page 18) Fasting has been used by almost every major religion as a tool to help purify ones desires and to increase the experience of contentment. The purpose is to give your mind and body a break from something that you typically feel a need for in order to engage in a more intense opportunity for spiritual activities, for spiritual focus. Fasting helps to restore the belief that we, not our appetites, are in control of our lives. (How Can I Be More Compassionate and Centered?, iFollowdiscipleship.org, Discipleship Resource for Seventh-Day Adventists) Monasticism is a total withdrawal from every person and every material thing to connect to the One and Only "God", who fills the heart, mind, and time.A monk will never achieve this spiritual level if he still desires worldly things. This is why monasticism is a life of loneliness.In loneliness a monk may continue a life of prayer, contemplation, and songs without delay or distraction of any kind. A true monk escapes people to be with God. (His Holiness Pope Shenouda, What is Monasticism?)

10

To find more about Formation practices and how they relate to the Seventh-Day Adventist church read, Ancient Thought In Modern Dress: Spiritual Formation & the Seventh-Day Adventist Church.

Athanasios Paul states he recently identified with American Evangelicals and Adventism in particular
Evangelicals are Christians who define themselves, their faith, and their lives according to the Good News of Jesus of Nazareth. (Evangelical comes from the Greek word for good news, or gospel.) Believing that the Gospel of Jesus is Gods good news for the whole world, we affirm with the Apostle Paul that we are not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation. (An Evangelical Manifesto, (2007), anevangelicalmanifesto.com) Defined and understood in this way, Evangelicals form one of the great traditions that have developed within the Christian Church over the centuries. We fully appreciate the defining principles of other major traditions, and we stand and work with them on many ethical and social issues of common concern. Like them, we are whole-heartedly committed to the priority of right belief and right worship, to the universality of the Christian church across the centuries, continents, and cultures, and therefore to the central axioms of Christian faith expressed in the Trinitarian and Christological consensus of the early church. Yet we hold to Evangelical beliefs that are distinct from the other traditions in important ways distinctions that we affirm because we see them as biblical truths that were recovered by the Protestant Reformation, sustained in many subsequent movements of revival and renewal, and vital for a sure and saving knowledge of God in short, beliefs that are true to the Good News of Jesus. (Ibid) Evangelicals adhere fully to the Christian faith expressed in the historic creeds of the great ecumenical councils of the church, and in the great affirmations of the Protestant Reformation, and seek to be loyal to this faith passed down from generation to generation. But at its core, being Evangelical is always more than a creedal statement, an institutional affiliation, or a matter of membership in a movement. We have no supreme leader, and neither creeds nor tradition are ultimately decisive for us. Jesus Christ and his written word, the Holy Scriptures, are our supreme authority; and whole-hearted devotion, trust, and obedience are our proper response. (Ibid) From the Millerite controversy of the mid-19th century to the phenomenal sales of books like The Late, Great Planet Earth (overall best-selling book of the 1970s) and 88 Reasons Why the Rapture Will Occur in 1988 (over 4 million copies sold that year), to the popularity of the Left Behind series of end-time novels, interest in the apocalyptic has been a highly-visible aspect of the evangelical subculture. (Institute for the Study of American Evangelicals, website) [T]he evangelical church is trying to recover its holiness. We have started paying a lot more attention to the older traditions of prayer, spiritual direction, and liturgy. They are not being left as an individualistic thing that can be reduced to whatever you do in your quiet time.Suddenly, people are feeling thin, impoverished, and realizing our spiritual ancestors have rich resources which we need to recover.Spiritual direction deals much more out of health, and an identity of Christian holiness, so I think it's an obvious response to the failure

11

to transcend.It's very Trinitarian. Unfortunately, we have lost that Trinitarian wholeness, a sense of relational wholeness.The Trinity is a very active concept, if you lose that you just end up with doctrines; a doctrine of God, a doctrine of justification, all propositions that you continually have to reactivate in your life. (Michael J. Cusick Mars Hill Review, excerpts from A Conversation with Eugene Peterson author of The Message Bible, 1995) Adventists can subscribe to the World Evangelical Alliance Statement of Faith. They fully accept the authority and supremacy of the Word of God, the Trinity, the person of Jesus Christ and his saving work, justification by faith, prayer, conversion, sanctification, and the Second Coming of Christ. (Joint Statement of the WEA and the Seventh-day Adventist Church, 2007)

Former Adventist Pastor Robert Thompson aka Athanasios Paul has crossed a cultural and religious bridge from ancient Christian Tradition to fully embrace a Biblical Movement of Destiny
The current Baptismal Vow asks the candidate to agree to live in harmony with the Fundamental principles of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Principle two states: Trinity: There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, a unity of three co-eternal Persons. God is immortal, all-powerful, all-knowing, above all, and ever present. He is infinite and beyond human comprehension, yet known through His self-revelation. He is forever worthy of worship, adoration, and service by the whole creation. (Deut. 6:4; Matt. 28:19; 2 Cor. 13:14; Eph. 4:4-6; 1 Peter 1:2; 1 Tim. 1:17; Rev. 14:7.) Most of the founders of Seventh-day Adventism would not be able to join the church today if they had to subscribe to the denomination's Fundamental Beliefs. More specifically, most would not be able to agree to belief number 2, which deals with the doctrine of the Trinity. (George R. Knight, Ministry Magazine, October 1993) Illustration to the left is found in, Principles Of Life From The Word Of God, A Systematic Study of the Major Doctrines of the Bible. Prepared by and Published for The Department of Education General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, (1952), Pacific Press Publishing Association, Chapter 7, The Godhead Or Trinity. Others use the same symbol. That we have chosen this symbol is perhaps no mere accident. The priests and seers of antiquity regarded the circle enclosing the triangle as a means of warding off spirits of evil . . . (Bill Wilson, Alcoholics Anonymous Comes Of Age, page 139) "Unless (people) keep this Faith whole and undefiled, without doubt (they) shall perish everlastingly. And the Catholic faith is this: we worship one God in Trinity. The mystery of the trinity is the central doctrine of Catholic faith. Upon it are based all the other teachings of the church." (Handbook for Todays Catholic, p.16)

12

After hearing the above statement in prayer meeting an Adventist pastor exclaimed, We Are Catholic!!! Not catholic as in Roman Catholic, but catholic as in Universal. Someone commented, I have never heard the Adventist church in any way shape or form referred to as catholic. That word has connotations. His reply, Its just a word. I know what I meant when I said it. At a church business meeting an Elder demanded I read the definition of catholic from the dictionary wherin the pastor declared, There are only two denominations that meet the definition of catholic from the dictionary, the Roman Catholic Church and the Seventh Day Adventist Church. (Eyewitness account from Frank Klin, 2009) "When I use a word," Humpty Dumpty said, in rather a scornful tone, "it means just what I choose it to mean - neither more nor less." "The question is," said Alice, "whether you can make words mean so many different things." "The question is," said Humpty Dumpty, "which is to be master - that's all." (Lewis Carroll, Through the Looking Glass [1872], ch. 6) Alice was too much puzzled to say anything. Like Alice who did not know the language games of a nonsense world, the alert (theological) student (studying exegesis and hermeneutics) could wish for a bit of help in grasping what words really mean, especially when their masters stretch them beyond recognition. (Origens Contribution to the Doctrine of the Trinity) Just teach that they (the Scriptures) mean something different from what they say, and you will be all right; and the farther you get from the plain declaration of the text, the nearer right you are, according to the Fathers. That method is a very easy one, but it will ever fail to promote Christian growth. The sincere milk of the word alone can bring men up to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. (E. J. Waggoner, Fathers of the Catholic Church, page 154, 1888) The question does not so much center on the use of a particular English word, namely, Trinity, but rather on the concept/idea that is being conveyed. Ask yourself if you believe in the personhood of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and that all three are fully divine in nature. If you do, then you believe the concept that is officially held by the SDA church regarding the nature and character of God. If you do not like the word Trinity because it is used by the Catholic church, thats okay. Dont use it. The real question is, Do you believe that the Father is God, that the Son is God, and that the Holy Spirit is God, and as such that they are three personal beings who are one in essential nature and character? This is one of the 28 Fundamental Beliefs of the Adventist church, and has been since the time of Ellen White. *** (Seventh-Day Adventist minister, evangelist, Ty Gibson, personal correspondance July, 2010) *** The word Trinity was not added to a Fundamental Belief statement of the Adventist Church until 1931. This addition was without a General Conference Session vote. The official vote as a Fundamental Belief came at the 1980 Dallas General Conference session. The heavenly Trinity met and developed a plan for our salvation. We describe it using the word atonement. (Atonement and the Cross of Christ, Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide 4th Quarter 2008, Principal Contributor: Angel Manuel Rodriguez)

13

Entirely through Their own initiative, the Godhead arranged for One among Them to become a human being (Our Wonderful God, Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide, 4th Quarter 1998, Principal Contributor: Edwin R. Thiele) At precisely the right time and in the right way, the three Members of the Godhead put into operation a plan They had devised before the world was created. They surrendered a portion of Themselvesthe Divine Sonto become the Saviour of the world. (Ibid) While God the Father didnt have a baby boy named God the Son, we use those terms to help understand that the parts of the Godhead are separate yet closely linked, the way a father and son bond together. (Steve Case, why was it Jesus?", Signs of the Times, March 2011) I dont know of a specific verse in the Bible that explains how Jesus was the Member of the Trinity that was chosen to come to earth to live and die I dont know how the Trinity decided that it would be Jesus who would come to earth (Ibid) Let me be crystal clear about something. I am confessedly noncommittal about the word Trinity. I am confessedly noncommittal. In other words, to me I couldn't care less about the word. And so heres a robust piece of advice. If you dont like the word Trinity, dont use it. Its so easy. I remain committed to the biblical picture of Gods unity and Gods plurality." (Seventh-Day Adventist pastor, evangelist David Asscherick) A confession of the Trinity is required through the agreement to live by the fundamental statement of Seventh-day Adventists. To be non-committal to the term trinity, is to be non committal to the fundamentals of Seventh-day Adventists. It is not as easy as Pastor Asscherisk is stating. If it could be that simple, then a lot of problems could be solved. (Adrian Ebens, A Crystal Clear Confession, Maranatha Media) "We are left with no alternative than to accept that Jesus could not have become a literal son of God in eternity He could not be His own son. He clearly accepted that role for the purposes of the Plan of Redemption His Sonship can only be figurative. Correspondingly, the Father has not always been the Father. These must have been adopted titles suitable for the parts the Two played in the Plan of Redemption." (Max Hatton, The Trinity Doctrine for Seventh-Day Adventists.) But imagine a situation in which the Being we have come to know as God the Father came to die for us, and the One we have come to know as Jesus stayed back in heaven (we are speaking in human terms to make a point). Nothing would have changed, except that we would have been calling Each by the name we now use for the Other. That is what equality in the Deity means. (The Wonder of Jesus, Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide 2 nd Quarter 2008, Principal Contributor: Roy Adams.) According to GenesisGod lived in a kind of united community we cannot begin to understand, so we argue about it all the time. God lived within something we call a Trinity, or Godhead, and even then, began to create other beings to love. This Word of Love eventually created this world, hand-sculpted beings to live on it, personally breathed Life or Spirit into them, and put itself into some sort of form that could walk and talk with them in the cool of the evening. (Love, iFollowdiscipleship.org, Discipleship Resource for Seventh-Day Adventists, 2010)

14

Q. Do you observe other necessary truths as taught by the Church, not clearly laid down in Scripture? A. The doctrine of the Trinity, a doctrine the knowledge of which is certainly necessary to salvation, is not explicitly and evidently laid down in Scripture, in the Protestant sense of private interpretation. (Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, August 22, 1854 -Quoted from A Doctrinal Catechism: Wherin Divers Points Of Catholic Faith And Practice Assailed By Modern Heretics Are Sustained By An Appeal To The Holy Scriptures, The Testimony Of The Ancient Fathers, And The Dictates Of Reason, Rev. Stephan Keenan, 1846. ***The 1876 edition states that the book does Conform Ably To The Decrees Of The Council Of The Vatican) Our opponents sometimes claim that no belief should be held dogmatically which is not explicitly stated in Scripture.But the Protestant churches have themselves accepted such dogmas as the Trinity, for which there is no such precise authority in the Gospels. (Graham Greene, Assumption of Mary, Life magazine, October 30, 1950)

Doug Batchelor knew Robert Thompson

(centerered photograph below featuring Doug and Robert is dated 1980)

Doug now acknowledges Robert as Athanasios because they both support the central doctrine of Universal faith.
Excerpt from a congratulatory E-mail greeting - Evangelist, Doug Batchelor. Hi Athanasios, Wow Sounds like you have had quite a journey, Im so happy to hear the Lord is still on your heels Im very thankful you have made your decision to rejoin the Adventist church family, that is wonder-ful! Give me a call the next time youre through and we can visit over a burrito - warm regards Doug (Seven Holystones)

Reginald Heber (1783-1826) was a Bishop in the Church of England. He wrote the hymn Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty in 1826 for Trinity Sunday celebration. (Athanasios Paul website sevenholystones.org) The tune (of Holy, Holy, Holy) is named Nicea in memory of the famous council of 300 bishops which convened there in A.D. 325. They had met to decide the controversy concerning the relationship to Christ and the Holy Spirit to the Godhead. Arius denied the divinity of Jesus, but then the comparatively unknown Athanasius defended the doctrine of the Trinity with such success that it has been an article of faith ever since. (Edward E. White, Singing With Understanding, A Commentary On Each

Hymn in the Official Hymn-Book of the Seventh-Day Adventist Church, 1968)

15

Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty! Early in the morning our song shall rise to Thee; Holy, holy, holy, merciful and mighty! God in three Persons, blessd Trinity! Holy, holy, holy! All the saints adore Thee, Casting down their golden crowns around the glassy sea; Cherubim and seraphim falling down before Thee, Who was, and is, and evermore shall be. Holy, holy, holy! though the darkness hide Thee, Though the eye of sinful man Thy glory may not see; Only Thou art holy; there is none beside Thee, Perfect in power, in love, and purity.

God in three persons, blessed Trinity! 2007 Amazing Facts cartoon book What About The Trinity? by Jim Pinkoski with Doug Batchelor

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty! All Thy works shall praise Thy Name, in earth, and sky, and sea; Holy, holy, holy; merciful and mighty! God in three Persons, blessd Trinity! http://sevenholystones.org/index.html

God over all who rules eternity replaced God in three Persons, blessed Trinity in all Seventh-Day Adventist hymnals until the mystery of the trinity was officially voted in as a Fundamental Belief of the church in 1980. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with GOD, and the Word was GOD. The same was in the beginning with GOD. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. John 1:1-3 (Emphasis in original) (2007 Amazing Facts cartoon book What About The Trinity? by Jim Pinkoski with Doug Batchelor and Pastor Anderson, page 25) Jesus was The Word But notice that there is a Trinity of God mentioned here! A Trinity ! GOD, GOD, and GOD! (Emphasis in original) (Ibid) Jesus had to lower himself into human flesh to be able to die for our sins but Eternal Beings cannot die, especially a GOD who pre-existed the creation of the universe ! So how did GOD arrange it so that GOD could die for us? One of Him decided to lower Himself into human flesh, into a body that could die. (Emphasis in original) (Ibid, page 46) Pastor Doug, I wonder if anyone has considered what would happen if GOD was really only ONE BEING, and it had to be GOD THE FATHER who would have come to earth and DIE for lost humanity? What are your thoughts on this? (Emphasis in original) (Ibid, page 47) Hmmmmm First of all, God the Father couldnt do it in His present form, His glory would KILL US ALL . . . So lets imagine GOD THE FATHER somehow managed to work that out, so He comes to earth and Lets people PUT HIM ON A CROSS and KILL HIM Ah, then we would have a really BIG problem on our hands !(Emphasis in original) (Ibid, page 47) THIS ONE GOD SUSTAINS THE ENTIRE UNIVERSE ! IF HE WERE TO DIE FOR EVEN ONE MOMENT, THE ENTIRE CONSTRUCTION OF THE WHOLE UNIVERSE WOULD COME APART AND CEASE TO EXIST ! . . . (Emphasis in original) (Ibid, page 47) YOURE RIGHT ! And that is undoubtably (spelling in original) Why God decided that He would need to be 3 SEPARATE BEINGS ! God has always known the END from the

16

BEGINNING And because of His unlimited LOVE, He decided to do it by being a TRINITY ! (Emphasis in original) (Ibid, page 47) When Jesus hung on the cross, suffering for our sins, every fiber of His being was torn as the eternal relationship with His Father and Spirit was ripped apart. In agony He cried out, My God [for the Father], my God [for the Spirit], why hast thou forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46). If there had been only one person in the Godhead, there would not have been this excruciating pain of separation to wring the life out of the heart of Jesus. (Doug Batchelor, The Trinity, 2003) OK, heres where it gets really COSMIC and a bit Spacey BECAUSE NOBODY CAN SEE THE HOLY SPIRIT! The Holy Spirit is a Self-Aware member of the ONE TRUE GODHEAD ! The Holy Spirit is able to see things within us on a level that no scientist can measure. There are LOTS of things all around us that we CANNOT SEE So whats the problem with accepting an Invisible God? The Invisible things in the Universe are probably Not Invisible to the Invisible Person of the Godhead ! (Emphasis in original) ((2007 Amazing Facts cartoon book What About The Trinity? by Jim Pinkoski with Doug Batchelor and Pastor Anderson, pages 29, 32, 33 Emphasis in original) Back in the 4th century the people wrestled with the 3 In 1 idea because it defied all the mathematical categories that had been in use since the days of ARISTOTLE. (Emphasis in original) (Ibid, page 44) ***On the same page the Nicene Creed is highlighted.

Robert Thompson was a protg of Walter Martin, an expert on the cults

The Doctrine of the Trinity teaches that within the unity of the one Godhead there are three separate persons who are coequal in power, nature, and eternity. (Walter R. Martin, 1928-1989) The Adventists specifically repudiate any teachings by ministers or members of their faith who have believed, proclaimed, and written any matter which would classify them among Arians. (Donald G. Barnhouse, Eternity, September, 1956) Some contemporary Seventh-day Adventists would no doubt be aghast to discover that their church was once widely considered (at least in conservative evangelical circles) a theological cult. (Kenneth Richard Samples, Evangelical Reflections on Seventh-day Adventism: Yesterday and Today, from a talk originally given at the Questions on Doctrine 50th Anniversary Conference at Andrews University, Berrien Springs, MI (October 2427, 2007) primitive Seventh-day Adventism, in the wake of the failed Millerite movement, were far from biblically orthodox. Their early views (though hardly unified and systematic) reflected a non- or anti-Trinitarian view of God, a semi-Arian Christology, a message of restorationism, and a strongly legalistic understanding of the gospel. From the standpoint of historic Christian or creedal orthodoxy, the primitive Adventist movement was a cultic movement or a heretical sect in its basic theology. Several present-day Adventist scholars have documented that these sub-Christian doctrinal views were present, if not prominent, at various stages within early Adventist history. (Ibid)

17

Evangelical theologian Walter Martin was soaring to the reputable position in the Protestant world as the authority on non-Christian cults. In the first printing of his book Rise of the Cults, (1955) he included a section about Seventh-day Adventists. To be classified as a cult disturbed some Adventist leaders, therefore, arrangements were made to thoroughly discuss the issue. In 1955 and 1956, Walter Martin and Donald G. Barnhouse, then editor of the evangelical magazine Eternity, held a series of secret conferences with four prominent Adventist leaders: LeRoy E. Froom, Walter E. Read, T. Edgar Unruh and R. Allan Anderson. (edit by FK from Something new about the 1955 Evangelical Conferences: Not the first time by Bobby B., Maranatha Media) The major purpose for the conferences between the Evangelicals and (Seventh-Day) Adventists were: 1. For these four Adventist leaders to prove that the denomination should not be classified by the Evangelical Protestant world as a non-Christian cult. 2. For the Evangelicals to re-classify the Seventh-day Adventist denomination from a non-Christian Cult, to one of the Evangelical brethren. (Ibid) What do you folk believe about the Trinity? Was a question put to me some years ago [1955] by two gracious Christian gentlemen [Walter Martin and George Cannon] who came unannounced to the General Conference headquarters in Washington, D.C.... Our answer concerning the Godhead and the Trinity was crucial, for in some of the books they had read that Adventists were classed as Arians;... They discovered that we were in harmony with sound Biblical scholarship, not only on the Trinity but on every other cardinal doctrine of Christianity. (Roy Allan Anderson, Adventists And The Trinity, Adventist Review, Sep. 8, 1983) The following is from a taped conference at Campus Hill Church, Loma Linda. California. January 1989. Walter Martin said: The climate at that time [1955,56], Adventism was considered like Jehovahs Witnesses, like Mormonism, like most of the major cultic structures of the day....When I first met with L.E. Froom, he took me to task for about fifteen minutes on how I could ever possibly think that Adventism was a cult. Adventism rings as true as steel. I said, do you think Arius was a Christian? And he [Froom] was an excellent church historian and he said, of course he wasnt a Christian, he denied the deity of Jesus Christ. I said, so did Ellen White. Dr. Froom said, What! I said yes and then I produced the quotations, and I opened up a suitcase and produced at least twelve feet of Adventist publications stacked up and marked for Dr. Frooms perusal, and for the perusal of the committee to check the sources in there. And they found everything I said was there was there. And they were in mortal shock I might add, to think that it was as pervasive as it was. Mrs. White reversed herself later on very quickly, and affirmed the doctrine of the trinity very strongly and taught it, but she was influenced by Uriah Smith. She did deny the eternal deity of Christ at one time and relegated Him to the place of a second deity. Thats why you were classified with the Jehovahs Witnesses early on, because of the Arian emphasis in Adventism, and because of the fact that you affirmed Michael the Archangel to be Christ. Dr. Froom and the committee decided that they would peruse this material immediately. So we adjourned the meeting and they took all the material with them and I guess others, and went through the materials. They came back and said, well, a great deal of these things youre

18

calling attention to are there, we agree, and we dont agree with those statements. They do not reflect orthodox Adventist theology, and we reject it. I said, good, happy to hear that, now can you fault us, because we read this material and its not peripheral issues we are talking about. We went through all kinds of materials and then the idea came for a book where we would question and the Adventist denomination would respond...Out of that came the book called Questions on Doctrine. (End of 1989 Walter Martin quotes)

Over the decades, Dr. Martin has become the central figure in the ongoing evangelical-Adventist discussions... Kenneth Richard Samples
I think, as I said before, that the men who spoke to me [in the 1950's] represented a conservative Adventism which wanted fellowship with the body of Christ. (Walter Martin, 1983 interview with Adventist Currents magazine) Froom thought he was an apologist though he was a great church historian, he was not an apologist. And Froom was convinced that he wasnt going to give me one inch. Obviously, I was a young man and he was a great historian and he was. I would controvert him in specific dialogue, he would shout at me, and we would really get going. I would shout back, too. We had a couple of sessions there that were really something. Poor Roy Anderson sat there and would say, Now brethren, we must be calm here. He is a dear, dear soul. He was editor of Ministry then. And hed calm Froom down. (Ibid) [Edgar] Unruh didnt quite know what to make of either [George] Cannon or myself. I brought Cannon along because he was working on his doctorate in Greek. He is brilliant, as history has now shown us; he is one of the best Greek scholars the Church has. And he was convinced, as I was in the beginning, that Adventism was a cult because we had materials which were just flagrantly disobedient to exegesis, to Scripture; and we knew it was wrong, and we could put it out very simply. I mean, a first-year Greek student could point it out. So we thought, Hey, you know, we really ought to put our heads together on this. George was a Christian Missionary Alliance professor and I was a teacher. OK, lets go at it; you take the Greek and Ill take the apologetics. Well put them together and see what we can come up with. So, that is how we approached it. (Ibid) I thought some of Mrs. White's material was prophetic. I felt some of her insights were extremely helpful and I regarded her as a sister in the Lord. I wasn't out to attack Ellen White's character I was out as a Christian brother and scholar to evaluate Mrs. White, as I thought she ought to be evaluated. And I thought she really believed what could have very well been religious reveries (we see it in charismatic circles today all the time) - "The Lord has shown me this." And it doesn't happen, now what are you going to do? And some of Mrs. White's statements in the early days, as I pointed out to the General Conference representatives, were theologically off the wall. They just wouldn't stand up. (Ibid) I never met D.M. Canright, but he was a personal friend of Mrs. White's. A lot of his personal reminiscences are very revealing about her personality. She was an ill-educated person; she was a person given to religious reveries, some of which her own husband didn't buy. She was a person who believed absolutely that she had received some messages from God; and in some instances I think maybe she did. That doesn't guarantee you are going to be an infallible

19

prophet, and that whatever you say about Scripture and interpreting Scripture is going to guarantee it for other people. (Ibid) D.M. Canright said she was whipped up in a lather about the slaughter house techniques and how the meat was bad to eat, etc. Of course this is a well-known fact of the time and she picked it up from Kellogg and others, not through divine revelation. It was a fact in the newspapers, but Mrs. White turns around and has a pork sandwich in Canright's presence. Canright almost choked. I believe Canright. I believe she ate a pork sandwich in his presence when she got through telling people they shouldn't eat pork, because she was a sinner. (Ibid) I am a friend of Adventist people and a lover of truth. I did my level best at great risk in 1956 and from then on to take a strong position on the basis of Questions on Doctrine. If they are going to repudiate the book and turn back the pages, I have no other alternative but to rewrite the chapter in The Kingdom of the Cults. And Ill have no other alternative but to come out and do another tape or series of tapes. I mean, just lay the whole thing out. I dont want to do that. Id much rather see them come around to a solid position. (Ibid) In retrospect, Walter Martin had a significant and abiding influence upon the Adventist church itself. He also greatly influenced how an entire generation of evangelical Christians came to view Seventh-day Adventism. (Kenneth Richard Samples, Evangelical Reflections on Seventh-day Adventism: Yesterday and Today) Here is an interesting televised debate from the John Ankerberg Show between Dr. Martin and William Johnsson, who was at the time of the program the Editor of the Adventist Review.

Athansios Paul Thompson became an expert on cults in his own right

Since Seventh-Day Adventism does accept the foundational doctrines of historic Christianity (the Trinity, Christ's true deity, His bodily resurrection, etc.) we do not believe that it should be classified as a non-Christian cult. It is our conviction that one cannot be a true Jehovah's Witness, Mormon, Christian Scientist, etc., and be a practicing Christian in the biblical sense of the word; but it is possible to be a Seventh-day Adventist and a true follower of Jesus, despite certain distinctive Adventist doctrines which we consider to be unbiblical. (Seventh Day Adventism, Christian Research Institute Statement) I believe Jesus started a church and that it is apostolic in nature but defused through the passing of centuries into a diverse cultural expression. I come from a catholic/protestant background and affiliate with all professing Christians based on a trinitarian christology. I fellowship largely within the Seventh day Adventist community and endorse their beliefs as "a" reflection of early apostolic doctrines re-imagined in an American based reform movement. I acknowledge the essential authenticity of historical Orthodoxy. I am a retired priest with a cultural religious affinity with some things catholic while not feeling obligated by conscience to endorse their authority to dictate and define all Christian beliefs for all Christian people. I admire the tenacity of the LDS church in its struggle to grow, transform and "fellowship" with other Christian churches even when it is received with skepticism. I praise Adventism and endorse the essential writings of its American prophet, Ellen W. (Athanasios Paul Facebook page)

20

Pictured below is Father Athanasios and former Latter Day Saints President Gordon B. Hinckley (June 23, 1910 January 27, 2008). On April 5th, 2011 Athanasios Paul Thompson wrote: The site, Ancienttruthmedia.com is planning to publish an article on Mormonism. It is the first in a series of articles on companion American religions that hold to a Christianized orientation. It will not be a blanket endorsement of each but an evenhanded attempt for honest recognition of the good discovered in other churches. (Having a Testimony commentary) Although not orthodox and outside of the normal categories of heterodoxy, the Latter Day Saint theology and practice is maturingThe ancient apostolic faith tradition embodied in Eastern and Oriental Orthodoxy and expressed in Roman Catholicism must accept the challenge to fairly evaluate other churches. Mormonism rightly acknowledges that there is both a subjective as well as objective revelation to be realized by believers. (Ibid) It is no longer appropriate to simply label non Orthodox Catholics as heretics. Both Greek expressions apprehend a necessary accuracy when apologetics are done but modern thought often distorts the intentional meaning behind the words. To call someone heretical today is to insult the righteously inclined with what they deem to be a decisively offensive tone. (Ibid) At its apostolic heart the ancient church testifies to objective long held dogmatic standards of belief. The Nicene and Apostles Creeds are at their best, carefully worded statements of belief. Within those statements the reality of the Holy Spirit is exemplified. The Philosopher Plato once remarked, The beginning of truth is to wonder at things. Creedal statements in their unique exactitude are important to the Orthodox self-understanding and Christian world view. But the words describing others who do not conform to them namely the heterodox (some truth or partly true) and heretical (false and absent of truth) were never intended to be used as a heavy sledgehammer to offend and insult other brothers in the general faith of God and Christ. The Holy Spirit leads and guides into truth and also moves in mysterious ways as defined in various biblical accounts in the Gospel of St. John and the Book of Acts. (Ibid) Christians should have a testimony. We all need a personal account as to how and when we came to understand who God is and what He has done in and through Jesus Christ, Pantocrator! There is the declarative testimony of the Word of God in history and also the living Word incarnate in the soul of a believing Christian through personal conviction about objective truth. Our LDS friends must not abandon good language which may more than adequately describe a potentially holy and life changing experience in order to better understand objective truth. Both are needed. (Ibid) Press on dear Mormon friend into the fullness of Gods revelation and confirm your calling as secure in Christ, Savior of mankind! (Ibid)

21

On Sabbath, Oct. 30, Athanasios-Paul Thompson, Orthodox priest, officially retired and was baptized into the Seventh-Day Adventist Church.
All the quotes below were written by Athanasios about himself after his baptism. November 2010- Fr Athanasios Paul will no longer use the title Father. February 9, 2011- Fr Athanasios Paul Thompson, "A bold new voice for conservatism ..." recently spoke of the RADICAL CHANGE MACHINE. The Orthodox Catholic priest turned prophetic orator is director of the Sevenholystones.net and Ancienttruthmedia.com ministries. March 31, 2011- Though a priest, I would prefer dueling at thirty nine paces. April 1, 2011- Fr. Athanasios Paul Thompson says April 14, 2011- Popular renewal speaker, Athanasios Paul Thompson April 14, 2011- Writer, lecturer and priest Fr Athanasios Paul Thompson. April 16, 2011- Former rock musician and friend of Robert Zimmerman during his Gospel born again period, is now a priest and Director of AncientTruthMedia.com. Fr Athanasios Paul says April 19, 2011- Christian Spokesperson, Athanasios Paul Thompson April 20, 2011- Priest spokesperson on cultural issues and Director of AncientTruthMedia April 21, 2011- Athanasios Paul Thompson is a retired Orthodox priest. spokesperson on popular American culture, a writer and lecturer. He is a

April 28, 2011- the Director of AncientTruthMedia. com, well known Cultural Analysis expert, Fr Athanasios Paul Thompson writes April 30, 2011- Cultural Spokesperson and Director of Ancienttruthmedia.com - Fr Athanasios Paul Thompson writes: April 30, 2011- Fr Athanasios Paul Thompson, Director of Ancienttruthmedia.com

Names, words and phrases used by Athanasios Paul after his baptism into the Adventist church that may be unfamiliar: Thrice Holy God, Jesus Christ Pantocrator, Inscripturated, Staniloae, Natural Supernaturality, Gods Divine Energies, Revalatory Experience, Supernatural Pneumatic Naturality, Kyrie Eleison

22

Thrice Holy God- God is thrice-Holy [Isaiah 6:3] because the co-eternal hypostases of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are equal in power, majesty, and all other divine perfections. (The Banana Republican, Thrice-Holy-God & Thrice-Blessed Mary) The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC-2565) teaches that "prayer is the living relationship of the children of God with their Father who is good beyond measure, with his Son Jesus Christ and with the Holy Spirit...Thus, the life of prayer is the habit of being in the presence of the thrice-holy God and in communion with him. This communion of life is always possible because through Baptism we have already been united with Christ." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition) Trinity: There is one God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, a unity of three co-eternal Persons. God is immortal, all-powerful, all-knowing, above all, and ever present. He is infinite and beyond human comprehension, yet known through His self-revelation. He is forever worthy of worship, adoration, and service by the whole creation. (Principle #2, Fundamental Principles of the Seventh-day Adventist Church) Pantocrator- The word Pantocrator is of Greek origin meaning "ruler of all". In Christian iconography, Christ Pantokrator refers to a specific depiction of Christ represented full or halflength and full-faced. He holds the book of the Gospels in his left hand and blesses with his right hand. (Pantocrator, Orthodox wiki and wikipedia) The icon portrays Christ as the Righteous Judge and the Lover of Mankind, both at the same time. The Gospel is the book by which we are judged, and the blessing proclaims God's loving kindness toward us, showing us that he is giving us his forgiveness. (Pantocrator, Orthodox wiki) Although ruler of all, Christ is not pictured with a crown or scepter as other kings of this world. The large open eyes look directly into the soul of the viewer. The high curved forehead shows wisdom. The long slender nose is a look of nobility, the small closed mouth, the silence of contemplation. (Ibid) The Pantokrator, largely an Eastern Orthodox or Eastern Catholic theological conception is less common by that name in Western (Roman) Catholicism and largely unknown to most Protestants. In the West the equivalent image in art is known as Christ in Majesty, which developed a rather different iconography. (Christ Pantocrator, wikipedia) The primary transference of the title "Pantokrator" to refer to Christ rather than the Creator was a result of the Christological shift that occurred during the fourth century, reflected through iconography; Christ Pantocrator has come to suggest Christ as a mild but stern, all-powerful judge of humanity. (Ibid) Inscripturated Word/Revelation- Inscripturation is the work of the Holy Spirit by which He guided the minds of the human authors and writers so that they chose the precise words necessary to accurately reflect the exact truth God intended, while reflecting their own personality, writing style, vocabulary, and cultural context. (Dr. Rodney Decker, Inspiration and Translation)

23

Staniloae- Dumitru Stniloae (1903-1993) was a Romanian Eastern Orthodox priest, theologian, academic, and professor He produced valuable comments on the works of the Fathers of the Church, such as Gregory of Nyssa, Maximus the Confessor, and Athanasius the Great. (wikipedia) On April 5, 2011, Athanasios Paul wrote, The brilliant Staniloae brings illumination to shadowy places of the soul. God has made us for union with Himself and that is apprehended not only by the mysteries of faith but through the natural order already elevated by the simple truth that it is the result of the Creator. There seems a natural supernaturality as well as a supernatural pneumatic naturality. St Paul offers understanding to the matter in his letter to the Romans, chapter one in particular. Revelation itself may be a mystery while being defined by all that it is not. In the end one may say that Christ in His glorious advent explains it all both the natural and supernatural realities of revelatory experience. (T h e o p h i l o g u e, Dumitru Staniloae on Natural Revelation, Eastern Orthodox Theology) Natural Supernaturality- Natural Supernaturalism, Thomas Carlyle's name in Sartor Resartus for the supernatural found latent in the natural, and manifesting itself in it, or of the miraculous in the common and everyday course of things; as the Hegelian philosophy teaches, and the life of Christ certifies, of the finiting of the infinite in the transitory forms of space and time. (1907 Nuttall Encyclopdia of General Knowledge) Thomas Carlyle embraced a natural supernaturalism, the view that nature, including human beings, has the power and authority traditionally attributed to an independent deity. (Goodman, Russell, "Transcendentalism", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2011 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.) "Natural Supernaturalism," where Christian images and symbols are transposed onto nature. (schmoop.com) Supernatural Pneumatic Naturality- This term does not exist explicitly, though we know that pnuema is the Greek word translated as Spirit in New Testament Scripture. Here are some clues that may help us identify the meaning of the phrase: We fervently desire to get back to those earliest beliefs and practices and as close to the historical Apostles as possible, in hopes of finding pneumatic phenomena duplicated in our day. We must utilize the most ancient yet accurate tools we havea more extensive list and description of common writings well known to the New Testament evangelists sources outside the received Scriptures, quoted or referenced in the New Testament and early Apostles. (Jackson H. Snyder II, Spiritual Gifts Revelation, Charismata Theory, Assessment, Problem-solving) The pneumatic dimension is the place (not in spatial sense) of communication with the indwelling God and this inner dialog is often unconscious even if it might have initiated by a conscious desire that is when one begins to pray. All prayer can reach the depths of the pneumatic unconscious but this characteristic is more manifest and directly intended in non-conceptual contemplative prayer, sometimes called also the prayer of the heart, to which category also centering prayer and the Jesus prayer belongs. The Christian mystical life is the living and transforming dialog with the indwelling God, and the fruits of this dialog are realized in the concreteness of love outward. Thus to be mystics means to

24

love all creatures of God from the source of love in the depths of ones pneumatic dimension. (Our Lady of the Graces Hermitage, The pneumatic dimension: The presence of God in the human heart and its therapeutic function) Revelatory Experience- History exists as the necessary and objectifying self-interpretation of transcendental experience. In human history, therefore, there will be ever more intensely an explicitly religious self-interpretation of the supernatural, transcendental and revelatory experience of God. There is the possibility of a genuine history of revelation (and therefore self-interpretation) outside the Old and New Testaments. Nonetheless, we maintain that it is not complete because it can only be complete in Jesus Christ. However, when such an interpretation is correct, it must be understood as positively willed and directed by God because of his real salvific will and providence. (Pyong-Gwan Pak, Foundations of Christian Faith, Karl Rahner (1904-1984) Even arguments which rely primarily on scripture to prove or disprove the doctrine of the trinity ultimately fail because they are unable to reproduce the revelatory experience which led the first Christians to proclaim a triune God. (Bishop Browning, Is the Trinity for Real?) Green is the color of revelatory experience, and so is the color of the feasts that celebrate Gods revelation to mankind: Epiphany and Trinity. Epiphany, the season after Christmas, celebrates Christs revelation as the Incarnate God to the Gentiles, while Trinity celebrates the revelation of the One Eternal God as revealed in the persons of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The season after Trinity falls within the late Spring and Summer months, when we see the natural world grow green with leaves, vines, and crops. Therefore, green symbolizes our own spiritual growth in Christ, nurtured by the Church and the Gospels. (Liturgical Colors of the Church) Gods Divine Energies- The incarnation made it possible for humanity to be united with God. Orthodox writers often refer to this union as deification. It is not a union with God's essence, but with God's divine energies. God reveals Himself through His energy. Through deification, humanity may participate in these divine energies. The road to deification involves prayer, meditation, asceticism, and the performing of good deeds, as well as receiving the holy sacraments. (Bill Gordon and Paul Negru, Eastern Orthodox) Humans are, by nature, human. GodFather, Son, and Holy Spiritis, by nature, divine. When a human is divinized, a human is united to God's divine energiesthe "'divine nature' in which humanity participates is not the essence of God but God's divine energies" which are God himself but only insofar as God is participable. (Meyendorff and Tobias, Salvation in Christ, 49.) Kyrie Eleison- The acclamation Kyrie eleison (Lord have mercy!) antedates Christian worship and is the one part of western liturgy that remained in Greek throughout the Middle Ages. It was used in various forms of pagan worship including the imperial cult in which the emperor was called kyrios (lord). Since Christians early on adopted the title lord to call on Jesus of Nazareth the acclamation kyrie eleison was quickly incorporated into Christian worship. [1] Since the early centuries of Christianity, the Greek phrase, Krie, elison, is also extensively used in the Coptic (Egyptian) Christian liturgy, which uses both the Coptic and the Greek language. [2] Of the Greek Fathers of the fourth centuryit occurs often in St. John Chrysostom. [3] ([1] Definitions for Medieval Christian Liturgy, yale.edu, [2] wikipedia, [3] Catholic Encyclopedia)

25

It is quite a privilege to have Athanasios join the Life Discovery Ministry.

(Jim Reinking, Evangelist for Life Discovery Series, an Associate Ministry of It Is Written)
These are difficult days we live in, pressures and forces coming against this remnant church from outside and from within. You know its the truth. You must dare, with respect, with love and with the Bible, challenge those in your midst and even those with higher positions of leadership when something comes down the highway of spiritual delivery that simply does not comport well with the clear teaching of Scripture as identified, described and aptly defended in those twenty seven - - twenty eight doctrinal positions in the book the Statement of Beliefs published by the church. (Athanasios Paul Thompson testimony, February 2010, Life Discovery Series)

I too am a stranger here. I want to know more about Orthodoxy so as to better know myself. I
do not have all answers though I have tasted much some of it at a deeper level than most. I was a priest in the Oriental tradition (Coptic), though Irish/English American. A white, Irish/English American can be a stranger too. Among major ethnic jurisdictions in some Orthodox circles I have been treated as zeno. I lived in Egypt for a year and traveled extensively in the Middle East and Africa, usually looked at through a different lens, often with intolerance. I found the greatest acceptance with Ethiopian Orthodox. I have much and done much. The challenge to our holy Faith in both East and West is from hostile Islamic political philosophies and practices. It is a wrenching, unyielding problem. But we still isolate from fellow Christians in and outside of the apostolic faith tradition. (Written April 23, 2011) Most are not aware of the divisions that exist in Orthodoxy away from the main flow of Eastern Orthodox history. Even within a family unit there is strive and the refusal to accept the other. My wife is Adventist, my children are Mormon and Lutheran and independent Evangelical. They all, like Dad, remain in the larger sphere of American Christian church cultural identity. How do we treat the seemingly wandering believer who has an eclectic religious background? Frankly, it is common for me to be judged as neither fish or fowl because of Orthodox Catholic cultural affinity on the one hand while maintaining SDA practical beliefs and practices on the other. To be a retired priest when he was (is?) a priest affiliated with Adventists is a special category of conflict for the fundamentalists on all sides. Let me be clear, there is much of Christ in the amalgam of Protestant sects and churches. Orthodoxy is however unique. I am on a journey trying to understand the fullness of the Christian faith without resorting to insult or condemnation of those I do not agree with and the many I do not understand along the way. (Ibid) To find peace in life one should look to the ancient past and discover the revelation of the cross in the middle of history. And then one must travel to the preincarnate God in the garden of beginnings and see the glory of the triune Deity communing with Adam. Learning will take place from the back side of far away beginnings and then lead one through the apostolic age to our present era, world without end beyond. Humility is indeed the key which unlocks the future but cannot be fully realized apart from the ancient truth. (Written on April 13, 2011 at Gladsome Light Dialogues An Orthodox Blog in response to The Counter Culture Church Sermon for the Sunday of St. John of the Ladder)

26

The Bible as the holy inscripturated revelation is our first textbook, read in the light of Gods divine energies. Second to the Bible is the natural world around us and then the reflection of both may be found in the wisdom of the Spirit borne fathers and mothers of faith. I recommend to the reader St Anthony, father of monks and St Paul of Thebes, both examples of God revealed humility. (Ibid) For the Christian, Jesus Christ and His sacrificial death ought to be the essential and foundational truth upon which the entire Gospel message is known and understood. There are many enticements that could draw us away. Involvement in secretive fraternal organizations is certainly one of them. WE are all on a journey to better know Christ and His truth. For the Christian, Jesus Christ and His sacrificial death ought to be the essential and foundational truth upon which the entire Gospel message is known and understood. There are many enticements that could draw us away. Involvement in secretive fraternal organizations is certainly one of them. WE are all on a journey to better know Christ and His truth Pastor, Priest, Rabbi and all who listen to us pontificate must bow before the cross of Christ (and I do not speak of the symbol but the reality) and plead for strength. These are troubling times and the reading and study of God's Word is not optional but vitally necessary. (Written April 30, 2011) Why is the [Adventist] church in North America in such a confused and troubled condition (or so it seems)? Catholic Charities still does a laudable job by any reasonable standard when it comes to caring for the poor and disenfranchised. But there are a few questions that could be asked that might balance the tendency to handclap too much over minimalist growth and good work accomplishment stats. (Written April 19, 2011 on the Spectrum Online blog as commentary on the story in the news of Adventist growth statistics.) How about the following: - How many medical institutions approve of abortion for less than life and death physical health crisis reasons and how many were performed? (Ibid) - How many clergy have been found guilty of sexual improprieties or physical abuse of children and how has the church and dealt with them? (Ibid) - How many scandals involving the stealing of donations or manipulation of non profit finances, including those used for purposes other than what they were designated for? (Ibid) - How many students graduating from church owned and operated schools went in as Adventist and graduated either as agnostics or practical atheists? (Ibid) It is time for another conference. If the traditionalists, left leaning progressives, ultra right fundamentalists and mid road conservatives could meet, respect one another and pray before talking maybe they could exit the meetings with something resembling an honest report of the state of our church that engenders more humility and less handclapping. (Ibid) Having tasted the out of the box theological diversity that threatens (Adventist) church cohesiveness over this past year I am perplexed. Will the new GC President be able to create an agenda that calls liberals, conservatives and progressives and fundamentalists together to the table of fellowship? Elder Wilson has set a course it seems to bring the denomination back to its essential traditional core - a journey back to the pre 1970s. The germination for the present divisions were cultured into existence in the decade of the 1960s. Many believe

27

Wilson's overt and intensive move toward the past is the only action that will save the Remnant church from spiritual self immolation in the Age of Obama. At the least we must dare to confront these issues. Two Thompson's can't be all wet ... maybe they are just damp from a little latter rain. Peace, love and Kyrie Eleison! (Written on April 21, 2011 in response to Alden Thompson Reflects on Changes in Adventism) On the Good Jesuit, Bad Jesuit blog of Fr. James Martin, S.J., Athanasios Paul wrote, FR ATHANASIOS PAUL THOMPSON, The Director of the ancienttruthmedia.com website spoke recently about the good that may accrue to religious institutions because of easy contact via the internet He said, Whatever our longheld and yes at times even critical theological differences, we need to promote kinder rhetoric between fundamentalist Adventists and conservative Catholics. He went on to suggest that an artificial ecumenism of polite words and meaningless agreements based on fuzzy religious terms and social pressure will not suffice. That is true. The often critical contrasts between Protestant denominational opinion and Catholic religious structures make friendship a difficult if not impossible reality. (Written April 20, 2011) We should ask our Adventist friends (and of course other fundamentalist evangelical types) to be respectful in their use of criticisms and especially in their descriptions of the sins of the catholic church during the Reformation period and when giving statistical references about the Spanish inquisition and the Holy Crusades. But frankly, those of us who claim membership in a Catholic church - both Eastern Orthodox Catholic as well as Roman Catholic must take the same high road." He further suggested that though the SDA vision of their prophetic role includes interpretations of biblical passages in Daniel and Revelation (Pope is viewed as the anti Christ beast of the apocalyptic revelation of St John?!), there is no need for their thrust to be hostile and condemnatory toward Catholics. Admittedly, this is not an easy hurdle to jump for either church. Perhaps new websites could be created whereby interested members of both churches could dialog. (Ibid) Expecting Adventists to compromise dearly cherished doctrinal beliefs will not build anything good. Catholic Bishops and priests should approach them. Mutuality of interest and a desire to engender a respectful tone and honest disagreement over prophetic imagery in the Bible may soften the anger and improve Christian brotherhood at the very least. (Ibid) There seems a passivity that spreads like a slippery serpent into our better selves, anesthetizing the conscience while stimulating self indulgent inclinations. But there is yet another reason. We are afraid. And what fears? We fear radical Islam. We fear to appear judgmental by speaking the truth about the unseemly admonishments to violence against Jews and Christians in the Quran. We fear the pandering concilatory apologists who bow and weep to Islamic leaders for (alledged) Amercian abuses. We fear the charge of intolerance from the Christian left and secularists. We fear, we fear, we fear. Shame on us! Why should we be so weak? Think of it although we Christians are not perfect, by Gods grace many of our American churches do great good in the world. (Written April 29, 2011 as a comment on the Dennis Prager blog Why Dont Christians HelpChristians? at orthodoxytoday.org) Seventh-day Adventists for example send medical and educational teams to far away places to build schools, hospitals and churches. They even have a modest presence in Egypt and Turkey, for example. Adventists along with Mormons and Catholics often work side by side with one another and the Salvation Army reps to feed, clothe and shelter and perform emergency medical services for people here at home following earthquakes and violent storms. This is a direct result of the gentle Jesus whose example and words still inspire great goodness. As much

28

as we do here at home and in missionary endeavors in other countries, we say and do little about the hateful persecution of our fellow Christians in Arab controlled regions of the world. It is time to be bold, strong and courageous. (Ibid) It is time to move to a higher plain of commitment. We must continue god works of help and healing wherever there is hurt. But when we ignore or back burner the wicked persecution of our brothers and sisters we sin against a thrice holy God! We are our brothers keeper and a Jewish friend has now challenged us. God bless Dennis Prager and the foundational monotheistic religion, Judaism. Our beliefs are very different and will remain so, but our morality and ethics are so similar as to be from one divine source. Of course, that source is the revelation of the inscripturated Word. Let us read our Bible, say our prayers and stand for truth! Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God have mercy upon me and upon all those called by your name. Through Christ our Lord. Amen! apt+ (Ibid)

The Black Robe now Speaks in a Black Hat

Before his baptism into the Adventist church Athanasios Paul preached to Adventist congregations wearing his black Coptic priest robe. He says he no longer wears the robe. He now sports a black hat for his video messages entitled The Black Hat Speaks. Justin Martyr (c. 100 - c. 165, Feast Day, June 1), born in modern day Palestine, was an early Christian apologist and martyr. "He claimed to have been raised a Gentile, and in his search for truth he studied with the Stoics, Aristotelians, Pythagoreans, and Platonists. Impressed by the devotion of Christian martyrs, he was eventually converted to Christianity by an old Christian who taught him about the Hebrew prophets. According to Justin, Christianity filled the highest aspirations of Platonic philosophy and was, therefore, the 'true philosophy.[1] In his First Apology, Justin argued that there were traces of Christian truth that could be found in pagan writings.God had prepared a way to his final revelation in Jesus through hints of truth found within classical philosophy. (Justin Martyr, theopedia, [1]-Elise M. Bender-Ecole Glossary) He (Justin Martyr) wore his philosophers gown after his conversion, as a token that he had attained the only true philosophy. And seeing, that, after the conflicts and tests of ages, it is the only philosophy that lasts and lives and triumphs, its discover deserves the homage of mankind. It survives in the pulpits of ChristendomGreek, Latin, Anglican, Lutheran, etc.to this day, in slightly different forms. (A. Cleveland Coxe, The Ante-Nicene Fathers, 1886 American Introduction) The great trouble with Justin and the others who are misnamed Christian Fathers, is that their Christianity consisted largely of heathen philosophy. This it was that clouded their minds to the simple truth of the gospel, and made them such blind leaders of the blind. Whatever they learned of Christ, they learned in spite of their study of philosophy, and not because of it. (E. J. Waggoner, Fathers of the Catholic Church, page 147) Of course there are very few nowadays who stop to think of the significance of the vestments of the church; but we may be sure that Justin Martyr had a distinct purpose in retaining his philosophers gown after he professed Christianity. It was not a matter of convenience merely, but it signified that he was a philosopher still, but with a new idea. It signified that he could discern no incompatibility between Christianity and pagan philosophy. (Ibid)

29

"I tell you, "Jesus replied, if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out." Luke 19:40

Seven Holystones
A Ministry of Athanasios Paul Thompson
The Stones Bear Witness - Edinburgh, Scotland, June 3, 2010--In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus says that if his disciples stopped bearing witness to him, "the stones would shout out." (Elliott Wright, The Stones Bear Witness, Global Ministries, United Methodist Church) A dramatic reminder that all creation figures in God's mission took place in Edinburgh on June 3 as delegates to the World Mission Conference brought stones from their homelands to lay at the foot of the cross. (Ibid) A litany for the ceremony declared that Christian mission is about more than people: It is for the world and not just humanity that Jesus was born and lived and died and rose again. The litany said that people who love God have the responsibility to care for the earth, to love, admire, and preserve it for others. (Ibid) The ceremony of the stones was part of opening worship on the first full day of the conference that brought together 300 delegates from more than 60 countries and from every Christian communion: Protestant, Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Pentecostal, and Independent. (Ibid) Centennial Observance - The 2010 conference marks the centennial of a 1910 World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh that led to urgency about Christian mission, an urgency responsible in large part for the enormous spread of Christianity throughout the 20th century. (Ibid) Mission of the Cross - The theme of the cross at the center of mission and witness was developed by the Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tvit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches. The council not only helped with the 2010 event but inherited the heritage of Edinburgh 1910 when the International Missionary Council, spawned in 1910, became part of the World Council in 1961. (Ibid) The Norwegian clergyman (Tvit) said that a witness to Christ required "a mission movement of the cross. This means that if there is a will to be one in Christ, there must be an ecumenical movement of the cross. (Ibid)

30

Building Bridges - The Rev. Dr. Geoff Tunnicliffe, international director of the World Evangelical Alliance, also spoke at the worship that included the stones around the cross. His alliance represents 128 evangelical organizations and 100 Bible colleges around the world. (Elliott Wright, The Stones Bear Witness, Global Ministries, United Methodist Church) Among the 250 delegates of churches and Christian World Communions attending the conference will be Seventh-day Adventists Cheryl Doss, director of the Church's Institute of World Mission in Berrien Springs, Michigan, and John McVay, New Testament scholar and president of Walla Walla University in Washington. Ganoune Diop, director of the Adventist Church's Global Mission Study Centers and member of the Edinburgh 2010 General Council, has been invited to co-chair the Foundations for Mission session during the conference. Jon Dybdahl preceded Diop as the Adventist representative on the Edinburgh 2010 planning committee. (Advent Media Trust) Common Call - As we gather for the centenary of the World Missionary Conference of Edinburgh 1910, we believe the church, as a sign and symbol of the reign of God, is called to witness to Christ today by sharing in Gods mission of love through the transforming power of the Holy Spirit. (edinburg2010.org) 1. Trusting in the Triune God and with a renewed sense of urgency, we are called to incarnate and proclaim the good news of salvation, of forgiveness of sin, of life in abundance, and of liberation for all poor and oppressed. We are challenged to witness and evangelism in such a way that we are a living demonstration of the love, righteousness and justice that God intends for the whole world. (Ibid) 3. Knowing the Holy Spirit who blows over the world at will, reconnecting creation and bringing authentic life, we are called to become communities of compassion and healing, where young people are actively participating in mission, and women and men share power and responsibilities fairly, where there is a new zeal for justice, peace and the protection of the environment, and renewed liturgy reflecting the beauties of the Creator and creation. (Ibid) As we strive toward a mission spirituality that embraces the contributions of a diversity of cultural spiritualities, we have seen that some of our terms may need to change. Instead of discipleship, we may, as the Orthodox do, need to talk about a path to holiness or a path of devotion, as Indian spirituality espouses. Instead of mission, we may need to speak of a path of love, of dialogue or of ecclesiastical or community duty. (Edinburgh 2010 Volume II, Witnessing to Christ Today, page 249) What should an authentic discipleship path look like? What sort of spirituality will it embrace? This will of course in some ways vary from culture to culture, and yet, we can glean some seeds of commonality. We have seen that discipleship should be holistic.To speak about spirituality is to speak about living a life oriented toward the fulfilment of Gods purposes for all creation. Rene Padilla has made the following point: (Edinburgh 2010 Volume II, Witnessing to Christ Today, page 249) Christian spirituality is a gift and a task. It requires communion with God (contemplation) as well as action in the world (praxis). When these two elements are separated, both the life and the mission of the church are deeply affected. Contemplation without action is an escape from concrete reality; action without contemplation is activism lacking a transcendent meaning. True spirituality requires a missionary contemplation and a contemplative mission. (Ibid) (C.

31

Rene Padilla. Spirituality in the Life and Mission of the Church (2009), paper submitted to Edinburgh 2010 Study Group 9) The theological foundation of mission in unity is built on the koinonia of the triune God. Mission is based on the infinite love of God, who created out of nothing the whole of creation and humankind in his image and likeness, so as to make us part-takers of this ineffable love. The Father sent the Son (John 16:5) to fulfill the plan of the Divine Economy. The Word of God became incarnate, born fully human by the Holy Spirit (Nicene Creed). This inner communion of the Holy Trinity is the ultimate source of the unity of the church and the aim of Gods mission: to invite every human being to experience fellowship with God and with one another according to the inner unity of the One God in three Persons (John 17:21) in the eschatological hope of the restoration of the whole created world (Ibid, page 208) Mission is an authentic witness to the Churchs eschatological experience (that is, the inclusive reality of Gods kingdom) as the Holy Spirit blows wherever s/he wills (John 3:8)Thus Christian mission is relational more than rational and is not limited to a proselytizing mission, but has become holistic in character; redemption from sin covers all aspects of social, moral, and ecological concerns. (Ibid, page 26)

Another result of the Council of Nicea

History reveals the church in the wilderness was non-trinitarian and continued to keep the seventh day Sabbath along with the feasts as had the apostolic church before them. Those who were antagonistic towards the apostolic church proclaimed it was the Jews who had crucified Christ and wanted to distance themselves from any association. Let us then have nothing in common with the detestable Jewish crowd; for we have received from our Saviour a different way. (Eusebius, Life of Constantine) The Ecumenical Council of Nicea AD 325 was convened by Constantine in the face of the Arian controversy. Arius, a Libyan preacher, had declared that although Jesus Christ was divine, "there was when he was not. This made Jesus less than the Father and contradicted the doctrine of the Trinity. The formulation of the Symbol of Faithexplicitly affirms the divinity of Jesus, applying to him the term "God". The 381 A.D. version speaks of the Holy Spirit as worshipped and glorified with the Father and the Son. (Nicene Creed & Coptic Orthodox Church, wikipedia) While the Adventist Church is Trinitarian and agrees with the basic intention of the Nicene Creed, its theologians also hesitate to accept and use some of its phrases. In this case, Adventist philosophers have, for instance, been sceptical towards the notion of divine timelessness which reflects Greek philosophy rather than biblical revelation. (Adventist Connect, Theological Questions to the issue of the Trinity) Another result of the Council of Nicea was an agreement on when to celebrate Easter, which was the most important feast of the ecclesiastical or liturgical calendar. The Romish church adapted the spring pagan festival honouring the mother goddess of fertility, and resurrection of her son, as their own Resurrection Sunday feast to counteract the Jews and

32

their Passover even though the apostolic church after Jesus ressurection had continued to observe it and other feasts of the Lord according to Scripture. The English term (Easter), according to the Venerable Bede, relates to Estre, a Teutonic goddess of the rising light of day and spring (Catholic Encyclopedia)
At the Councilall the Churches agreed that Easter, the Christian Passover, should be celebrated on the Sunday following the first full moon (14 Nisan) after the vernal equinox. [1] At the same time it was decided that the vernal equinox would be March 21 in the Julian calendar. ([1] Catechism of the Catholic Church, Imprimatur Potest + Joseph Cardinal Ratzinger (1995) p. 332)

Every Sunday of the year was a commemoration of the Resurrection of Christ, which had occurred on a Sunday. Because the Sunday after 14 Nisan was the historical day of the Resurrection, at Rome this Sunday became the Christian feast of Easter... Easter is the principal feast of the ecclesiastical year. Leo I (Sermo xlvii in Exodum) calls it the greatest feast (festum festorum), and says that Christmas is celebrated only in preparation for Easter. (Catholic Encyclopedia) How prove you that the Church hath power to command feasts and holydays? By the very act of changing the Sabbath into Sunday, which Protestants allow of; and therefore they fondly contradict themselves, by keeping Sunday strictly, and breaking most other feasts commanded by the same Church. (Rev. Henry Tuberville D.D., Douay Catechism of 1649, p.58) How prove you that? Because by keeping Sunday, they acknowledge the Church's power to ordain feasts, and to command them under sin; and by not keeping the rest by her commanded, they again deny, in fact, the same power. (Ibid) Work and celebration are intimately connected in the life of families: they condition choices, influence relations between married couples and between parents and children, affect the relation of families with society and with the Church. Holy Scripture (cf. Genesis 1-2) tells us that the family, work and the feast day are gifts and blessings of God to help us to live a fully human existence. Daily experience attests that the authentic development of the person includes the individual, familial, and communal dimension, activities and functional relationships, as well as openness to hope and to the Good without limits. (VATICAN CITY, SEPT. 26, 2010 -Excerpt from the translation of the letter Benedict XVI sent to the president of the Pontifical Council for the Family regarding the 7th World Meeting of Families, which will be held May, 2012 in Italy) In our days, unfortunately, the organization of labor, conceived and realized in function of market competition and maximizing profit, and the concept of feast as an occasion for escape and consumption, contribute to the break-up of the family and the community and to the spreading of an individualistic lifestyle. Thus, it is necessary to promote reflection and efforts at reconciling the demands and the periods of work with those of the family and to recover the true meaning of the feast, especially on Sunday, the weekly Easter, the day of the Lord and the day of man, the day of the family, of the community and of solidarity. (Ibid) At present Christians throughout the world celebrate the great feast of Easter on two different daysa sad sign of the divisions that tear them apart. However it happens that on 4 April 2010

33

and 24 April 2011 the feast of Easter falls on the same day according to both eastern and western calendars. The signatories of the text below call on Christians of all denominations to use this period to prepare to celebrate the feast of Easter on the same day, on 8 April 2012. This date is calculated according to the rule and method agreed by Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox in 1997. The advantage of this calculation, as all agree, is that it actualises the rule established by the fathers of the First Ecumenical Council of Nicaea. (A Call to Jointly Celebrate the Resurrection of Christ) A conference was held at Aleppo in Syria, 5-10 March 1997, when the representatives of the major Christian traditions agreed on how to establish a common date that would be acceptable to the whole Christian world... This conferencehosted by the Syrian Orthodox Church, included representatives of the Anglican Communion, the Armenian Orthodox Church, the Orthodox Patriarchate of Constantinople, the evangelical Churches of the MiddleEast, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and all the East, the Lutheran World Federation, the Middle East Council of Churches, the Old Catholic Churches of the Union of Utrecht, the Orthodox Patriarchate of Moscow, the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity of the Roman Catholic Church, Seventh-day Adventists and the World Council of Churches. (Ibid) If the astronomical calculation of the Nicaean rule is more accurate in the Gregorian than in the older Julian calendar, the Roman Catholic and Protestant Churches took a step towards the Orthodox at Aleppo by agreeing to fix the date of Easter according to a cosmic calendar rather than by deciding on a fixed date, as the Holy See had proposed before the pan-Orthodox meeting at Chambsy in July 1977. (Ibid) This pan-Orthodox meeting at Chambsy recalled that the symbol of the Spring equinox is that of the first day of creation, marking the separation of day and night and proclaiming the victory of light over darkness. The symbol of the full moon (which earlier marked the Jewish Passover) is that of the fourth day of creation, marking the creation of the two lights, and anticipating the victory of light over darkness. Finally the symbol of the first Sunday after the full moon of the Spring equinox recalls the Resurrection of Christ, the unique and definitive victory of life over death in human history, leading to the eternal eighth day of creation. (Ibid) Thus the feast of Easter is always celebrated according to the Nicaean rule after the Jewish feast of Passover (since the old Jewish calendar linked the covenant between God and humanity with the crossing of the Red Sea and the fourth day of creation). Thus, celebrating Easter according to the Aleppo proposal allows all Christians to recover the meaning of the message of the fathers of the Ecumenical Council of Nicaea, that on the day of the Resurrection the whole earth is given light. One hemisphere receives all the light of the sun, and the other receives all the light of the moon. (Ibid) More info on the Allepo Conference can be found at the World Council of Churches website.

Easter isthe one supreme event of our faith which stands above all others with the Christmas feast next to it. Athanasios Paul Thompson
The media and the blogosphere are abuzz with dumbfounded reactions to the White Houses snub of Christians during the weekend. No presidential proclamation celebrating Christianitys highest holy day of Easter was issued, compounded by the White House chief spokesmans

34

scoffing response to reporters questions about the omission. (L.D. Breen, Why Obama Doesnt Think Much of Easter, April 26, 2011, Orthodoxnet.com) Athanasios Paul commented on the above article. Culture expert and Director of Ancienttruthmedia.com observes: Easter is more than its common (profane?) symbols colored eggs hidden, giant bunnies frolicking, ham and hotcross buns being served. It is the one supreme event of our faith which stands above all others with the Christmas feast next to it. Why is it that President Obama neglects to pay homage by issuing a proclamation from the White House? He has issued official statements honoring Ramadan and other Muslim holidays. He gave special attention to Earth day by issuing a celebratory official statement. Earth day was observed on another Christian holy day, Good Friday. He ignored mention of it. He did attend Easter church services with his family as appropriate for a professing believer. Good for him! (Ibid) Orthodoxy has set the high and holy standard: fasting, prayers, scriptural readings, liturgical celebrations with a myriad of religious symbols and the display of Iconographic story telling all of which witnesses to and recounts the doing and dying of the Son of God, His great atoning sacrifice and finally His glorious resurrection from the tomb. The world of Christian diversity made up of nearly two billion professing believers holds the Easter season and the high point celebration of the resurrection as the most important. In 2010 in the Easter season he (Obama) spoke of aspirations at the heart of Judaism Christianity, and at the heart of all the worlds great religions. This is an ecletic syncretism and an insult to every religion. The resurrection is not a belief held by Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists and a myriad of lesser known religions. Ramadan is not a time to honor Christians nor is Passover. Christians may pay respect to others during their special religious holidays and should. (Ibid) When an American President attempts to reduce the importance of the Christain ethos in America by equalizing the value of all religions to what seems to be his personal philosophy he damages everyone. When he schmoozes a multi religious landscape by diminishing Easter the Feast of the Resurrection, he compromises our faith and drastically reduces its value. This is an insult! Observers to the passing social and political scene will probably live to see this Presidents promise of change to evolve into doing away with federal recognition of Christmas and the further de-Christianizing of our culture. History is being rewritten in Obamas image right before our eyes. Shame! (Ibid)

Therefore my friend, wait for the final outcome for all things will certainly turn out, whether in this life or the life to come. In every circumstance yield to the incomprehensibility of Gods providence. John Chrysostom, fourth century (Athanasios Paul, sevenholystones.org)
Endeared as one of the four great doctors of the Church, St. John Chrysostom was born in 347 in Antioch, Syria.Chrysostom fled from the seductions and tumults of city life to the monastic solitude of the mountains south of Antioch, and there spent six happy years in theological study and sacred meditation and prayer. Monasticism was to him (as to many other great teachers of the Church) a profitable school of spiritual experience and self-

35

government He embraced this mode of life as "the true philosophy" from the purest motives, and brought into it intellect and cultivation enough to make the seclusion available for moral and spiritual growth (The Life of Saint John Chrysostom, Cornerstone, November 1998) His writings enable us as they did for the faithful of his time, who were repeatedly deprived of him because of his exiles to live with his books, despite his absence. He gave homilies against the Ariansand others on principal liturgical feasts: constituting a great teaching of faith in Christ, in light of his saints Intimacy with the Word of God, cultivated during the years in the hermitage, matured in him the irresistible urgency to preach the Gospel, to give to others what he received during years of meditation. The ideal missionary was thus launched, a soul afire, into pastoral care. Let us pray that the Lord render us docile to the lessons of this great teacher of the faith. (Pope Benedict XVI, Reflection on St. John Chrysostom, Vatican City, Sept. 19, 2007 (Zenit.org)- delivered at the general audience in St. Peters Square) "The festivals of the pitiful and miserable Jews are soon to march upon us one after the other and in quick succession: the feast of Trumpets, the feast of Tabernacles, the fasts. There are many in our ranks who say they think as we do. Yet some of these are going to watch the festivals and others will join the Jews in keeping their feasts and observing their fasts. I wish to drive this perverse custom from the Church right now." (John Chrysostom, Discourses Against Judaizing Christians, trans. Paul W. Harkins) Interestingly, there are several feast days dedicated to him. All Holy Trinity, have mercy on us. Lord, forgive our sins. Master, pardon our transgressions. Holy One, look upon us and heal our infirmities for your names sake. O Only Begotten Son and Word of God, immortal as You are, You condescended for our salvation to be incarnate of the holy Theotokos and ever Virgin Mary, and without undergoing change, You became man; You were crucified, O Christ God, and You crushed death by Your death; You who are One of the Holy Trinity, equal in glory with the Father and the Holy Spirit, save us. We have seen the True Light, we have received the Heavenly Spirit, we have found the True Faith, worshipping the undivided Trinity who has saved us. Let us worship the Father and glorify the Son and Holy Spirit; let us sing together with one voice, O Holy Trinity, save us! O faithful, let us sing to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the one God, the one Lord: for the Trinity, one Sun with a triple radiance, enlightens all those who cry aloud, Remember us also when You come into Your Kingdom! Unity sharing the same throne, Trinity without beginning, Essence without division in whom the glory is shared, Majesty who by nature precede all time: save the faithful who sing to You! (Above Excerpts from The Divine and Holy Liturgy of our Father among the Saints, John Chrysostom Archbishop of Constantinople)

I hope that all efforts for Christian unity may go forward through your help.
36

His Holiness Pope Shenouda to Pope John Paul II

The boasted unity of Romanism was gloriously displayed, by the diversified councils and confessions of the fourth century. Popery, on that as on every other occasion, eclipsed Protestantism in the manufacture of creeds. Forty-five councils, says Jortin, were held in the fourth century. Of these, thirteen were against Arianism, fifteen for that heresy, and seventeen for Semi-Arianism. The roads were crowded with bishops thronging to synods, and the traveling expenses, which were defrayed by the emperor, exhausted the public funds. These exhibitions became the sneer of the heathen, who were amused to behold men, who, from infancy, had been educated in Christianity, and appointed to instruct others in that religion, hastening, in this manner, to distant places and conventions for the purpose of ascertaining their belief. (Samuel Edgar, The Variations of Popery,1838, page 276) "Ecumenical activity has a dual dynamic", the Pope (Benedict XVI) explained. "On the one hand it means searching dedicatedly, passionately and tenaciously for all the unity in truth, devising models of unity, illuminating points of contention and obscurity in order to achieve unity. This must take place through the necessary theological dialogue, but above all in prayer and penance, in that ecumenical spirit which constitutes the pulsating heart of the entire journey. The unity of Christians is and remains prayer, it dwells in prayer. On the other hand there is another operational dynamic which arises from our firm awareness that we do not know the time that the unity of all Christ's disciples will be achieved, and we cannot know it because we do not 'make' unity, God 'makes' it; it comes from on high, ... it is a participation in divine unity. Yet this must not diminish our commitment; quite the contrary, it must make us ever more attentive to recognising the signs and times of the Lord, knowing how to recognise with gratitude what unites us and working to ensure it ... grows. (Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, Vatican City, 18 Nov 2010) For some time theologians from the Roman Catholic Church had manifested interest in holding conversations with Seventh-day Adventists concerning Adventist beliefs. After careful consideration, and motivated by the opportunity to present our beliefs to leading Catholic theologians, the invitation was accepted. Consequently, Dr. Bert Beach and Dr. John Graz of the GC Department of Public Affairs and Religious Liberty, and Dr. Angel Manuel Rodrguez of the Biblical Research Institute met in Rome May 5-6, 2000 with Bishop (now Cardinal) Walter Kasper and Msgr. John Radano from the Vatican. (Angel Manuel Rodriguez, Conversations Between Adventists and Catholics) When we read THE WHOLE STORY of the Father, the SON, and the HOLY SPIRIT, it is Very Clear they are all ONE GOD ! THE TRINITY ! The Only way for us to be SAVED is to accept JESUS CHRIST as your Lord and Savior, And Accept the HOLY TRINITY ! (Emphasis in original) (2007 Amazing Facts cartoon book What About The Trinity? by Jim Pinkoski with Doug Batchelor and Pastor Anderson, pages 54 & 56.) What does Scripture teach? These words spake Jesus, and lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify Thee: And this is life eternal, that they might know Thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom Thou hast sent. That they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me - (John 17:1, 3, 21) To

37

the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them. - (Isaiah 8:20)

The Apostolic Church Became the Church in the Wilderness

And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days. - (Revelation 12:14, 6 KJV) The Church in the Wilderness is the connecting link between apostolic Christianity and God's people today [T]here were Christian people in every country during this long period of history who possessed churches, colleges, mission stations, and theological schools; who followed closely and adhered steadfastly to the beliefs and practices delivered by the apostles to the saints; and who possessed and preserved the original Scriptures given to the church in the first century. These people constitute the Church in the Wilderness. (B.G. Wilkinson, Truth Triumphant: The Church in the Wilderness, page 9) The Church in the Wilderness did not arrive at the truth by opposition to prevailing dogmas and heresies. Its faith was not a faith newly received. The religious beliefs of its members were an inheritance from the days of the apostles. To them men owe the preservation of the Bible. Contrary to almost universal belief, the Church in the Wilderness embraced the true missionary churches during the long night of the Dark Ages. It held aloft the torch of education while the rest of the world about it was falling into the darkness of ignorance and superstition. Its territory was not circumscribed. On the contrary, its influence penetrated into all parts of the known world. (Ibid page 11)
The history of nominal Christianity is the record of bitter theological controversies, and, at

times, even of bloody encounters to achieve its aims; it is a record of incredible activity to secure political power. The history of the Church in the Wilderness is a stirring revelation of consecrated, evangelical labor in continent-wide leadership for the salvation of the hopeless and benighted. It did not, as its rivals did, claim intellectual logic in doctrine; it did not attempt to enforce its views by political cruelty. It severed all territorial and family ties which might have held it to the world and to the rapacious churches of empires, thus successfully preserving its scriptural doctrines and its apostolic organization. (Ibid) Previous to the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70 by the Roman army, at which time the apostles were dispersed, the gospel had gone to Samaria, Ethiopia, Syria, Asia Minor, Greece, Italy, and India. The religion of Christ was enriched in all utterance. As a bright and shining light, it evangelized Zoroastrians, Buddhists, Greek philosophers, and Confucianists, laying strong foundations for the future. (Ibid page 21) Christianity was to enter a new field through the leadership of Paul, strong herald of the cross. In Antioch, the capital of the Roman province of Syria, was to be found a new center for the gospel. When Jerusalem, the original headquarters, was destroyed, the leadership passed to Antioch, where it remained for some time. (Ibid page 23) Long before the establishment of Christianity in Egypt, Alexandria was famous for its various schools, among which was the `Museum', the greatest philosophical school in the East containing in its library between two hundred thousand and half a million books and

38

manuscripts. It was a unique center of a brilliant intellectual life where Egyptian, Greek and Jewish cultures were taught. (Bishop Angaelos, The Altar in the Midst of Egypt: A Brief Introduction to the Coptic Orthodox Church, page 25) The metaphorical way of (Bible) commentary, with its deep spiritual meanings, began in Egypt. Origen composed over 6,000 commentaries of the Bible in addition to his famous Hexapla. In this context, the historian Rees states, 'The most renowned intellectual institution in the early Christian world was undoubtedly the Catachetical School of Alexandria, and its primary concern was the study of the Bible. The preoccupation of this school was to discover everywhere the spiritual sense underlying the written word of the Scripture. (Ibid) Around 190 AD the Catechetical School of Alexandria became an important institution of religious learning, where students were taught by scholars such as Athenagoras, Clement, Didymus, and the native Egyptian Origen, who was considered the father of theology and who was also active in the field of commentary and comparative Biblical studies Coptic prieststo-be and other qualified men and women are taught on subjects including Christian theology, history, Coptic language and art - including chanting, music, iconography, and tapestry. (Catechetical School of Alexandria, wikipedia) Antioch did not so early become a seat of Christian learning, but from e. 270 onward, under Lucian, it came into rivalry with Alexandria as a center of theological thought and influence. In the great christological controversies of the fourth and following centuries Alexandria and Antioch were always antagonists, Alexandria representing a mystical transcendentalism and promoting the allegorical interpretation of the Scriptures; Antioch insisting on the grammatico-historical interpretation of the Scriptures, and having no sympathy with mystical modes of thought. (Albert Henry Newman, A Manual of Church History, Volume 1, page 297, 1899) The Bibles produced by the Syrian scribes presented the Syrian text of the school of Antioch, and this text became the form which displaced all others in the Eastern churches and is, indeed, the Textus Receptus (Received Text) from which our Authorized Version (King James) is translated. (de Lacy O'Lear, The Syriac Church and Fathers, page 49) To the common people, the principal truths of Christianity were explained in their purity and simplicity, and all subtilties were avoided: nor were weak and tender minds overloaded with a multitude of precepts. But in their schools, and in their books, the doctors who cultivated literature and philosophy, and especially those of Egypt, deemed it elegant and exquisite, to subject divine wisdom to the scrutiny of reason, or rather to bring under the precepts of their philosophy, and examine metaphysically, the nature of the doctrines taught by Christ. (Johann Lorenz Mosheim, Institutes of Ecclesiastical History, page 216, 1832) If I depend on a teacher to expound to me (on Scripture), and he should guess at its meaning, or desire to have it so on account of his sectarian creed, or to be thought wise, then his guessing, desire, creed, or wisdom is my rule, and not the Bible." (Ellen G. White, Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, November 25, 1884 par. 24)

Can We Discern The Times?

And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us

39

therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. - (Romans 13:1112) "No man drops in one day from perfect faith to gross error; much less do multitudes of people apostatize all at the same time. Error is insidious in its working, and the people who fall away are rarely conscious that any change is taking place in them." (E.J. Waggoner, Present Truth, Jan. 30, 1902) A truths initial commotion is directly proportional to how deeply the lie was believed. It wasnt the world being round that agitated people, but that the world wasnt flat. When a well-packed web of lies has been sold gradually to the masses over generations, the truth will seem utterly preposterous and its speaker a raving lunatic. (Dresden James) "As fundamental errors, we might class with this counterfeit Sabbath (Sunday worship) other errors which Protestants have brought away from the Catholic church, such as sprinkling for baptism, the trinity, the consciousness of the dead and eternal life in misery. The mass who have held these fundamental errors, have doubtless done it ignorantly; but can it be that the church of Christ will carry along with these errors till the judgement scenes burst upon the world? We think not This class who live just prior to the second advent will not be keeping the traditions of men, neither will they be holding fundamental errors relative to the plan of salvation through Christ." (James White, Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, March 6, 1855) God appointed the church to be the light of the world, and at the same time ordained that his Word should be the light of the church. But when the church becomes unfaithful to her trust, and corrupts the pure doctrines of the gospel, as a natural consequence the world becomes intoxicated with her false doctrine. That the nations of the earth are in such a condition at the present time is too obvious to be denied. The world is intoxicated in the pursuit of riches and honor, but the sin lies at the door of the church; for the church sanctions what the Lord strictly forbade, and she sets the example to the world. If the church had not intoxicated the world with the wine of false doctrines, the plain truths of the Bible would powerfully move the public mind. (John N. Andrews, The Three Messages Of Revelation 14:6-12)

Letting the Word Speak

Thus saith the Lord, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls. But they said, We will not walk therein. - (Jeremiah 6:16) And they rejected His statutes, and His covenant that He made with their fathers, and His testimonies which He testified against them; and they followed vanity, and became vain, and went after the heathen that were round about them, whom the Lord had charged them, that they should not do like them. - (2 Kings 17:15)
Thus saith the Lord, What iniquity have your fathers found in Me, that they are gone far from Me, and have walked after vanity, and are become vain? - (Jeremiah 2:5) Hath a nation changed gods, which are yet no gods? but My people have changed their glory for that which doth not profit. Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the Lord. For My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.

40

Wherefore I will yet plead with you, saith the Lord, and with your children's children will I plead. (Jeremiah 2:10-13, 9) Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ. - (Colossians 2:8) Remember ye the law of Moses My servant, which I commanded unto him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord: and he shall turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse. - (Malachi 4:4-6) Jesus answered them, and said, My doctrine is not Mine, but His that sent Me. If any man will do His will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of Myself. My doctrine shall drop as the rain, My speech shall distil as the dew, as the small rain upon the tender herb, and as the showers upon the grass: [S]peak thou the things which become sound doctrine: For I give you good doctrine, forsake ye not My law. - (John 7:16-17; Deuteronomy 32:2; Titus 2:1; Proverbs 4:2) I am the good shepherd, and know My sheep, and am known of Mine. As the Father knoweth Me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd. (John 10:14-16) Therefore thus saith the Lord God, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste. Unto you therefore which believe He is precious: but unto them which be disobedient, the stone which the builders disallowed, the same is made the head of the corner, and a stone of stumbling, and a rock of offence, even to them which stumble at the word, being disobedient: whereunto also they were appointed. But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of Him who hath called you out of darkness into His marvellous light: which in time past were not a people, but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now have obtained mercy. (Isaiah 28:16; 1 Peter 2:7-10) But now in Christ Jesus ye who sometimes were far off are made nigh by the blood of Christ. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Jesus saith, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me. And whatsoever ye shall ask in My name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. - (Ephesians 2:13, 18; John 14:6, 13) Now therefore ye are no more strangers and foreigners, but fellowcitizens with the saints, and of the household of God; and are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone; in whom all the building fitly framed together groweth unto an holy temple in the Lord: in whom ye also are builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:19-22)

I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at His appearing and His kingdom; preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; and they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry. - (2 Timothy 4:1-5)

41

Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness. - (2 Timothy 2:15-16) Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed: (2 John 1:9-10) Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord; and He shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: - (Acts 3:19-20) And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers. - (Acts 2:42)

One Final Picture

We have been on an interesting odyssey and one picture remains. It is included in a rotating collage of photographs on the Athanasios Paul Seven Holystones website. We dont know if the former Robert Thompson personally knew Brother and Sister Vandeman, the founders of It Is Written, but there they are smiling. The association is understandable as Brother Athans is now a speaker for the Life Discovery Series a ministry of It Is Written. Our concern is that the use of this picture gives validity to the conflicting testimony of Robert Athanasios Paul Thompson. As his websites and commentaries show he still has one foot firmly planted in Egypt with the Desert Fathers and the other planted in the camp of American Evangelicals and Trinitarian Seventh-Day Adventism. Is there a difference between the two camps? Where are Gods peculiar people?

Can you or I say that as members of the Seventh-Day Adventist church we uphold the Scripture and beliefs handed down from the apostolic church to the Church in the Wilderness? Are we a remnant of that wilderness church, or are we wandering confused in the spiritual desert wastelands of Egypt after the Fathers of ancient thought in modern dress? Do we blend our faith with theirs in creeds and schools of Trinitarian philosophy, mystical contemplation and formation promoted through a metaphoric and allegorical interpretation of the Scriptures? Please think seriously about the answer to these questions. This is not a call to come out of the church our Saviour established. It is a call to earnestly contend with and return to the faith once delivered to the saints as found in the assembly of those who keep the commandments of God and have the faith and testimony of Jesus. If we are out of harmony with our Heavenly Father and His eternal son Jesus then prayer and genuine repentance for ourselves and the church collectively are the key. A friend shared something profound, Israel was only released from Babylon when Daniel began to pray the prayer of repentance for His people as one of them. If My people, which are called by My name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land (2 Chronicles 7:14). This is true revival and reformation for only then will Jesus bless us with a greater outpouring of His indwelling Spirit. Our prayer is that those leading the corporate Seventh-Day Adventist church are listening to the voice of the True Shepherd.

42

Please put Brother Robert Thompson on your prayer list as he is a precious child of our Heavenly Father. We want to take his admonition at face value, I challenge you to achieve great happiness through holiness ... Come on up to the higher calling in Christ Jesus. God has provided the Bible, practical help from an American prophet and a biblically sound Christian move-ment to remind us all just how blessed we are. No tradition, ritualistic practice or ecclesiastical leader may stand above the clear teaching of the Word of God! (APT) In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of His belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.) Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. It is the Spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are Spirit, and they are life. - (John 7:37-39; 2 Corinthians 3:17; John 6:63) Can you hear the voice of our Shepherd calling, Come home, come home. Ye who are weary come home. And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely. (Revelation 22:17) And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And He said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. And He said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. - (Revelation 21:1-6) Revised and expanded from Shall We Desert the Fathers of Ancient Thought in Modern Dress?

43