Moderators Gregory Matthews Posted February 15 Moderators Posted February 15 In the February (2026) issue of The Pacific Union Recorder, the official paper of the Pacific Union Conference of SDAs, editor Alberto Valenzuela, wrote a provocative article suggesting that thel Bible and Science are two lenses that truthfully help us to understand the origin of the Earth and all that it contains. The link below will take you to that article. https://www.adventistfaith.com/media/recorder/honoring-god-through-science-and-scripture The above article has generated strong feedback. As could be expected some understand it to differ from the Biblical teachings and from historic SDA doctrinal understandings of how God has worked in the creation of this planet and us. While I will leave it to you to characterize the intent of the following article, it is a clear statement of concern related to the referenced article. https://religiouslibertytv.substack.com/p/a-critique-of-the-pacific-union-recorders The author of the above article, Michael Peabody, is an attorney, who regularly writes on issues of religious liberty, and has his own website: religiouslibertytv@substack.com phkrause 1 Quote Gregory
Moderators Gregory Matthews Posted March 7 Author Moderators Posted March 7 The above article has been removed from the Internet. However, it has also been posted on the following website; https://www.educatetruth.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/0226Recorder.pdf phkrause 1 Quote Gregory
Joe Knapp Posted March 14 Posted March 14 Thank you, Gregory, for posting this. Quote There is a common misunderstanding that science says, “We came from nothing,” while religion says, “We came from God.” But that is not the case. A misunderstanding. I have heard this before. Just a misunderstanding. Quote Many devout Christians, including Pope John Paul II, have affirmed that the theory of evolution does not conflict with belief in God. In his message to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in 1996, he said: “New findings lead us toward the recognition of evolution as more than a hypothesis.” He reminded believers that acknowledging biological processes doesn’t negate God’s creative hand. 2 So we should take a lesson from the Pope? No Adventist editor has a problem with this? Quote When scientists speak of “theories,” they mean robust frameworks supported by data—not mere guesses. Theories like gravity, germ theory, atomic theory, and evolution are foundational, not speculative. What about origin of life? Is that foundational or speculative. What about the big bang taught in almost every school? Is there a robust framework for that? Quote Science must be taught based on empirical evidence. Where is the empirical evidence of origins of life? Big Bang? Where is the empirical evidence that complex structures like the eye, evolved ? Quote Now more than ever, our children need to be equipped with both scientific literacy and spiritual discernment. Teaching science accurately is not a betrayal of faith—it is an act of worship. When we teach evolution correctly in schools, we are not teaching students to abandon their faith but to understand how God’s world operates. I can see how some people might have a problem with that. According to GPTZero: We are highly confident this text was AI generated. Although other tests say no. There is a very large number of EM dash's in this article. Typical of AI generated articles. Quote Alberto Valenzuela is the associate director of communication and community engagement for the Pacific Union Conference and editor of the Recorder. This explains how it got past the editor. Quote
Gustave Posted March 15 Posted March 15 That was a solidly good article Pastor Matthews! Thanks for posting it! phkrause 1 Quote
Moderators Gregory Matthews Posted April 10 Author Moderators Posted April 10 The following is an official statement from the Pacific Union Conference, and the author of the article: https://www.adventistfaith.com/news/a-message-to-our-community-regarding-honoring-god-through-science-and-scripture/ phkrause 1 Quote Gregory
Joe Knapp Posted April 10 Posted April 10 Quote Dr. Leonard Brand, Emeritus Professor of Biology and Paleontology, Loma Linda University, Earth and Biological Sciences, has accepted our invitation to provide an article for the May 2026 issue of the Pacific Union Recorder that will present his perspective on science and religion. Other organizations have expressed their viewpoints in various ways on their own media platforms, and we are grateful for their engagement on this topic. Please post that when it is available. Quote
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