ANN Bulletin
Adventist News Network
Seventh-day Adventist Church World Headquarters
August 16, 2005
In This Issue:
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* United Kingdom: Ghanaian Adventists Break Ground for £3 Million
Church
* Europe: German, Austrian Churches Apologize for Holocaust Actions
* Also in the News
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United Kingdom: Ghanaian Adventists Break Ground for £3 Million Church
London, United Kingdom .... [Isaac Amo-Kyereme/ANN Staff]
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What began as a small group of worshippers in the 1970s has grown to
include more than 1,000 Ghanaian Seventh-day Adventists in Britain.
There are now four congregations in London alone. And when families
grow, new homes are often needed: the London Ghana congregation has
just broken ground on a £3 million (U.S. $5.4 million) church complex,
reportedly the largest in the history of the South England Adventist
church area.
"This church you are putting up should be a house of prayer, not only
for the members of the church but for the whole community," said Pastor
Don McFarlane, outgoing president of the South England church area. "It
must serve as a real place of refuge for the afflicted in society."
He spoke on July 31 at a gathering at the London Ghana Seventh-day
Adventist Church celebrating the 30-year-milestone.
McFarlane charged the members of the church with a responsibility to
maintain a good reputation in the community, so the church would
attract neighbors who want to learn more about Adventists and their
faith.
"[Our] members must prove that there are men and women, young boys and
girls who are honest at the workplace, honest with their taxes, honest
with society, so that the presence of God will be felt in the
community," he said.
McFarlane praised the Ghanaian church members for their zeal and
enthusiasm for the initiation of the project, adding, "As you honor the
Lord, He will also honor you and bless your land."
In response, Dr. Emmanuel Osei, senior pastor of the London Ghana
Seventh-day Adventist Church, thanked regional officials for their
support in guaranteeing the loan and placing such confidence in the
local church. He also paid tribute to the pioneering members who began
the congregation 30 years ago.
The building site, formerly known as St. Cedds Church, is in the East
End of London, and covers nearly two-thirds of an acre. When completed
the church will seat 650 worshippers, and include media, music and
youth halls to enhance church activities.
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Europe: German, Austrian Churches Apologize for Holocaust Actions
Hannover, Germany .... [Mark A. Kellner/ANN Staff]
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Noting the 60th anniversary of the end of World War II, Seventh-day
Adventist church leaders in Germany and Austria have released a
declaration saying they "deeply regret" any participation in or support
of Nazi activities during the war. The church bodies "honestly confess"
a failure "in following our Lord" by not protecting Jews, and others,
from that era's genocide, widely known as the Holocaust. Millions of
people perished from war atrocities, including more than 6 million Jews
who were exterminated in Nazi persecutions during the 12-year period of
1933 to 1945.
The declaration was initially published in the May 2005 issue of
"AdventEcho," a monthly German-language church magazine, and also will
appear in other German publications, said Pastor Günther Machel,
president of the South German Adventist church area and one of three
signatories to the statement.
A copy of the statement has been provided to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust
Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Authority in Israel, added Dr. Rolf
Pöhler, a former North German church area president who is now that
region's theological advisor, and was involved with the drafting of the
declaration.
"We deeply regret that the character of National Socialist dictatorship
had not been realized in time and distinctly enough, and the ungodly
nature of [Nazi] ideology had not clearly been identified," the
statement, as translated from German, reads. The church says it also
regrets "that in some of our publications ... there were found articles
glorifying Adolf Hitler and agreeing with the ideology of anti-Semitism
in a way that is unbelievable from today's [perspective]."
Church leaders also expressed regret that "our peoples became
associated with racial fanaticism destroying the lives and freedom of 6
million Jews and representatives of minorities in all of Europe," and
"that many Seventh-day Adventists did not share the need and suffering
of their Jewish fellow-citizens."
A paramount regret, the statement indicated, was that German and
Austrian Adventist congregations "excluded, separated and left [church
members who were] ... of Jewish origin to themselves so that they were
delivered to imprisonment, exile or death."
Under various racial decrees, some Adventist congregations expelled
members of Jewish heritage. One, Max-Israel Munk, was placed in two
concentration camps by the Nazis and survived and returned to his
church after the war. He said he did not wish to act toward his
congregation in the way in which he had been treated, according to Dr.
Daniel Heinz, a church archivist at Friedensau University who has
studied Adventist activities during the National Socialist era.
Along with Pastor Machel, the other leaders who signed the statement
were Pastors Klaus-Jurgen van Treeck, North German church president,
and Herbert Brugger, president of the Adventist Church in Austria.
Pöhler and Johannes Hartlapp, church historian at Friedensau, drafted
the statement on which the declaration is based. All three church
geographic areas voted to approve the text, Pöhler said.
In the statement, the three assert that "The obedience we owe to the
state authorities does not lead to giving up biblical convictions and
values." They said that while only God can judge the actions of prior
generations, "in our day, however, we want to take a decided stand for
right and justice -- towards all people."
Brugger, in a telephone interview, said "Our church members really
appreciated the publishing of this document."
He indicated that it was something younger members of the church
"appreciated very much." No indication of a reaction from Austria's
Jewish community has been received, but Brugger said the Adventist
Church is not as well known in Austria as some other movements are.
Asked how a church that considers keeping the Sabbath as one of its
core beliefs could forsake Jewish Sabbath-keepers during a time of
persecution, Brugger suggested that it was political, not theological,
considerations that may have led to the strategy.
During World War I, a portion of the German Adventist Church had split
off, opposing any military service. This led the National Socialists in
1936 to ban the so-called "Reform Movement" during their time in power.
Brugger said concern over a Nazi closure of the main Seventh-day
Adventist churches may have weighed on leaders in that era.
"I think during these times the official leaders of our church were
afraid of losing the control over the church and losing the church
because the political authorities had already ...
our church
with the Reform movement," he explained. "I think our leaders were
afraid to lose the official recognition of our church, so therefore
maybe they were not [as faithful] to our beliefs as would have been
necessary."
He added, "It was more political than theological, I'm quite sure."
The main Seventh-day Adventist Church in Germany was also briefly
banned under the Nazis, notes Pöhler. A quick reversal by the regime
led to relief among Adventists, but also a level of cooperation with
the government that was unhealthy.
"We not only kept silent, but we also published things we never should
have published. We published anti-Semitic ideas that, from our
perspective, weren't really needed," Pöhler said in a telephone
interview. "We went several steps further and published things that
really were anti-Semitic. ... We went out of our way to show our
loyalty to the German [National Socialist-era] government."
"We had to realize that one wrong statement, one wrong move by a person
meant he could end up in a concentration camp," Pöhler said of that
era. "[That was the] reason why we excluded and disfellowshipped
Jewish-born Adventists from our midst: If a local church had not done
this, [the Nazis] would have closed the church, taken the elder to
prison and it would have meant the whole church would be forbidden."
While some European Adventists took courageous stands to protect Jews,
others went along in part because of concern for their families and
churches. It would be difficult enough for an individual to reach out
to a Jewish person, Pöhler explained, but to risk the lives of those in
a congregation was an added burden. Such caution was even reflected in
the nomenclature used by German Adventists, he said.
"We renamed Sabbath School to 'Bible School' -- [we] didn't use the
[original] term because it meant taking a risk," Pöhler said. "We were
in danger of being confused with the Jews. By refusing to call it
Sabbath School, you make a statement; you make a little distance
between yourself and the Jews."
Dr. Daniel Heinz, director of church archives at the Adventist
university in Friedensau, Germany, said his research into the stories
of Adventists who helped Jews during the war led to his discovery of
those who acted less honorably.
"The church leaders adapted and even took over some anti-Semitic
ideology from the Nazis; in some instances, they did more than was
necessary to please the [Nazi] authorities. This is something which is
really strange for us," Heinz said.
At the same time, he said, "I know that many Adventist members,
[ordinary] people, helped Jews, but never talked about it."
Resistance to Nazi policies, as well as the compassionate, yet brave
response of many Christians, among them Seventh-day Adventists, to
protect lives of those under Nazi persecution, have been documented
throughout Europe, including Poland, Hungary, Holland and Denmark,
among other countries.
"I found some very impressive stories of Adventists who helped Jews in
the Third Reich, risking their lives, and I found the opposite," Heinz
said. Among other church members, one Latvian Adventist family took in
a Jewish man, hid him during the war, and survived. The refugee became
an Adventist believer and church pastor after the war ended.
According to Pastor Machel, "Sixty years after World War II is late --
but we saw it as the last chance for a declaration."
There had been earlier attempts at making such statements, although
these were either largely ignored or blunted by those church leaders
who had lived through the Nazi era and wanted to avoid having the
church "judge" those who had gone before. However, in 1988, on the 50th
anniversary of the Nov. 9 "Kristallnacht," or "night of broken glass"
in which Nazi-inspired gangs shattered shop windows of Jewish merchants
and ransacked synagogues, the then East German Adventist Church
released a declaration in its small magazine. In 1989, during
centennial celebrations of the Adventist Church in Hamburg, Pastor
Erwin Kilian, president of the North German church, referred to "the
dark period" in his address and offered an apology of his own. A
further brief statement was made in 1995, the 50th anniversary of the
end of the war.
Young adult church members reacted positively to the statement's
expressions of concern and contrition. Two Berlin Adventists said they
appreciated the declaration.
"To humbly reveal our sins and failures is the most important thing God
wants us to do," said Sara Gehler, 25. "And even though 60 years have
already passed, I think it was necessary for us as [the Seventh-day
Adventist] Church to take a stand on the Second World War." She added,
"It is our duty as Christians to protect and help those who are weak,
helpless and in need."
Julian Müller, 26, added, "I think it is our responsibility as a church
to confess our errors and not hide them, especially when human lives
are at stake. ... My hope is that for the errors and failures of our
church that have happened since then, it will not take 60 years until
we mount up the courage to ask for forgiveness."
Response from church members in the South German region, which includes
cities such as Munich and Nurenberg, where the National Socialists drew
great strength, was "very positive," Pastor Machel said. "Some [had]
really waited for such an action from the church leadership."
The declaration was also well-received in many Adventist church circles
internationally. "I was waiting for a text like this one for long
time," said Pastor Richard Elofer, who heads the church's work in
Israel. "I praise the Lord for touching the hearts of our people in
Germany and Austria to produce such a declaration."
Added Dr. John Graz, Public Affairs and Religious Liberty director for
the Adventist world headquarters, "For those who believe in God's love
for every member of the human family, against any kind of
discrimination based on race, religion or gender, this declaration
written by a generation which had no responsibility in the Holocaust
and the war, but endorse the responsibility of their parents, will
stand as a positive landmark and great encouragement."
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Also in the News
Silver Spring, Maryland, United States .... [Compiled by ANN Staff]
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*Fanja Michel Rakotomanana, 40, chief technical advisor for the Food
Security project for the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA)
office in Madagascar, was killed Aug. 10 when his motorcycle collided
with an unlit parked truck. The ADRA Madagascar staff mourns
Rakotomanana's death. His father, wife, and two children, ages four and
seven, survive him.
*The Seventh-day Adventist Church, which has added 900,000 members in
each of the past five years, is one of the world's fastest growing
faiths, according to The Salt Lake Tribune newspaper in Salt Lake City,
Utah. In a report that was reprinted in several American news outlets,
the Tribune noted Adventists are growing at a rate roughly 3.5 times
that of the Mormon Church, which calls Salt Lake City home.
*Northern Caribbean University in Mandeville, Jamaica passed an
important milestone recently, The Jamaica Observer reports. The school,
which gained university status six years ago, awarded its first two
doctorate degrees, both in education. Daniel Fider, the school's vice
president for admissions, and George Dawkins, a mathematician, earned
the degrees, which were granted Aug. 14.
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ANN Staff: Ray Dabrowski, director; Mark A. Kellner, assistant director
for news; Wendi Rogers, editorial coordinator; Taashi Rowe, editorial
assistant; Lynn Friday, administrative assistant.
French translation by Claude Fivel, Portuguese translation by Azenilto
Brito, Spanish translation by Marcos Paseggi, Italian translation by
Vincenzo Annunziata and Lina Ferrara
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