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April 12. 2024 I hope to be able later today to post additional material in response to issues that Gustave has raised. Until I am able to do that, I am locking this thread. I will remove any comments that are placed in this thread by the few people who can post in a locked thread. After I have placed additional material in this thread, I will allow for posts to be made in this thread. In further study of the responses made to me, I believe that I have permission to post them in this forum. So, I will do so, with some explanatory remarks. I am still uncertain as to whether or not I have permission to publish either his name, or position in the SDA denomination. At this time I will simply call him Dr. Paul, (not his real name) and state that he is an SDA Scholar.

This topic is now open. I am reserving my right to respond at a later time, in this space. Others may now post comments related to the above posts.

[The following is a response that Dr. Paul has made to me in regard to some issues made by Gustave--Gregory Matthews.] Well, this is quite a lengthy post and I am not sure whether I should really address all points. For time’s sake, I will touch on some aspects. I would disagree with his estimation that there aren’t any SDAs that inadvertently hold modalistic views. A couple years ago, I interacted with a couple non-Trinitarian Adventists that argued that the Holy Spirit would be Jesus in another form, a third manifestation/personification of deity, a spiritual manifestation of Christ. Therefore, it was fine to call the Spirit a person, but that did not mean that he was an individual being apart from Christ, but the Spirit was Christ himself in a different form. I asked them whether this wouldn’t be a form of modalism, upon which they replied that modalism has to do with three persons that are actually one being (note: those non-Trinitarians equate “person" and “being”). Then I responded that it doesn’t have to be. They claim that Jesus and the Holy Spirit are two persons but actually they are the same being. So, I asked if that isn’t a form of modalism too. They had to give in and replied that upon further thinking about it, I may be right. When one compares Christian views of the doctrine of the Trinity, one realizes that there is a whole spectrum of views. Neither Catholicism nor Protestantism are as unified as their respective creeds seem to suggest. Creeds are official declarations of faith, yet there are different levels of belief—the works of academically trained theologians (dogmatics, commentaries, systematic theologies, etc.), the beliefs held by lay members, the faith reflected in hymnology, liturgy, and worship, etc. I have seen statements about the Trinity Catholic catechisms that go far beyond the early Christian creeds that are foundational to Catholicism. It appears to me that if one argues that there is only one doctrine of the Trinity and the remainder of the spectrum doesn’t present that doctrine exalts that person that makes that judgment call to a norm. Or it exalts a certain creed as a norm. In my view, throughout Christian history various people have studied Scripture and endeavored to capture the rudimentary biblical witness to the triune God. There have been different expressions of the belief of three persons that are one God. Seventh-day Adventists did not start out as a creedal church. While they eventually issued a list of Fundamental Principles (later called Fundamental Beliefs), they referred to them as having a descriptive rather than prescriptive character (this is what Adventists generally hold in common vs. this is what everybody should believe). Initially, it was simply the editor of the main church periodical capturing what the members generally believed. Eventually, that list was printed in more official church publications, such as the yearbook, yet the statement (esp. in 1931) was still not voted because it was not intended to be a creed. Therefore, they intended to denied that statement an official vote. This changed somewhat in 1946 and 1980, when it was decided that the Fundamental Beliefs could be changed only by all delegates of the world field at a General Conference in session and when a revised statement was actually voted by those delegates. Yet, the preamble, at least in theory, still stresses the tentative nature of the document, thus trying to stay away from a creed. In practice, some people would like to employ it as a creed. However, since it is not a creed and since its statements are fairly rudimentary, there is still quite a bit of room for differing views on technicalities and details. Therefore, one has to be careful when one pastor, church member, or even administrator, makes statements. It isn’t always representative for the entire church. In fact, this is most likely the case for most churches. For example, one cannot simply assume that Hans Küng’s writings on papal infallibility are fully representative for the entire Catholic Church and yet his writings are a witness to the views of some in that church He [Gustave--GM] argues that Ellen White endorsed D. M. Canright’s Review and Herald articles in 1878. On what basis does he claim that Ellen White endorsed his articles? I have never seen an endorsement from her for those articles. Further, during those early decades, while Ellen White had no problem to confirm the insights of her fellow Adventist ministers on all kinds of other topics, yet in regards to their aggressive statements on the doctrine of God she remained silent. She neither affirmed the Trinity nor did she oppose it. Why? Or why not? Had she made any positive remarks she would have either become a theological trailblazer or, more likely, she would have been rejected as a false prophet because she would have promoted a belief that her fellow Adventists would have considered unbiblical. It was only after others began advocating aspects of the divinity of Christ, personality of the Holy Spirit, and doctrine of the Trinity that she confirmed those insights too. Yet, it may also well be that, in her early years, she herself had no clear position on the topic because it had not been clearly revealed to her, and that she therefore simply did not know

Biodiversity: Most of us would like to have hour home located among flowering plants, colorful birds and insects--think butterflies. That is best achieved when you plant species that is native to the area where you live. Milkweed attracts Monarch butterflies, but there are 70 species of milkweed. The following URL takes you to a website that identifies the plants, insects (Butterflies) and other life native to your area. Just plug in your Zip Code. https://nativeplantfinder.nwf.org/

The Carter Center: Have you ever wondered as to what U.S. Presidents do after they retire. Well, in my opinion, former President Carter set the standard, when he established The Carter Center. The URL below links you to one article that will inform you as to what he has done. https://www.cartercenter.org/countries/sudan.html

Our Solar End: The following article reflects current thinking on the end, which does not seem much different to me than what has been said for some time. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technology/scientists-reveal-how-the-solar-system-may-end/ar-BB1lpik8?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=DCTS&cvid=39bbf24a435c434ebd8c77a5b998e7ed&ei=11

A 16,000 foot fall: It was an I Phone. Thanks to "Did You know that. . .', "Bottomlinepersonal," April 15, 2024, page 13.

He was an amazing person, a type of politician that we need more of. The world is better because of him. He was a godly man, and a thinker who really loved God and God's world. Once when in Washington DC for Air Force Training, on a day off I got to sit in the senate gallery and he was one of the Senators that I recognized. I did not know this until hearing about his death on the news, but not only was he Al Gore's running mate on the democratic ticked, but despite him being a Democrat, John McCain seriously considered him for his running mate. When I heard of his death, I could not help but tell people "I hope that his death does not confuse people, to hear a good godly man and a politician", that they don't scratch their heads and say "Imagine that, two men in the same grave." Another smile I heard on the news was, since he was a Sabbath keeper, that his staff used to say "Joe Lieberman, working for you 24/6" Death is an enemy, but we can add smiles to our tears when someone has left such a legacy and resting in the blessed hope.