Oh the founding fathers of Adventism would react if they were to be alive for a moment and reflect upon the many changes the Church has gone through.
This Easter, the people of Latin America were probably reminded the Ecumenical message that Pope Francis has been preaching. That as Christians, whereas we worship ‘God in different’ ways, we still ‘worship the same god’.
The Catholic Church, Anglican Church, Church of latter-day saints, a Jewish Rabbi and alas, an Adventist Pastor, joined hands in a multi-national, multi-religious Easter message for millions in Latin America and around the world.
Catholic Archbishop Milton Tróccoli of Uruguay; Anglican Bishop Alfred Cooper from Chile; Pastor Gabriel Cevasco, executive secretary of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Argentina; Gustavo Katzuni, a Jewish rabbi from Asunción, Paraguay; and Sergio Gómez, a member of the Quorum of the Seventy of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, all contributed to the content of the video in reminding Christians about Christ’s Easter sacrifice.
Jesus did not actually die around this time. Its been historically proven.
The interfaith Easter video was produced to call for unity, love and solidarity. They call for a family of brothers to support each other. They call for ending divisions. They call for praising Jesus at the rising of the sun. Here is a brief summary of some of the highlights of each speaker, courtesy Adventist Messenger.
Roman Catholic: Easter means peace, hope and solidarity. Peace because Jesus is our peace. Hope because it tells us that pain and death will not have the last word. Life will have the last word. Solidarity: Jesus came to create a family of brothers. He has taught us that we are all brothers. That is why we have to support and unite with each other. We must all help and support each other. May these three ideas live in each of our hearts: Peace, hope and solidarity.
Anglican: We are preparing to celebrate “Holy Week” which will culminate on Sunday, the morning of the resurrection. The rising of the sun, when the sun begins to show, someone will cry, “Jesus has resurrected!” All the congregation will shout, “Truly, He has resurrected.”
Seventh-day Adventist: Easter is an important time for every believer because it reminds us of God’s love to His people. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believeth in him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” John 3:16. God raised a deliverer in the Old Testament to save Israel and today we have a deliverer, Jesus, who has conquered death. We have nothing to fear even though we are going through a difficult time. But the message of Easter teaches us that in Christ we find love, forgiveness and freedom. May “Holy Week” renew our hope that one day pain, suffering, sickness and death will come to an end.
Jewish Rabbi: On behalf of the Jewish community we want to extend to each of you a hug and a happy Easter. For both Jewish and Christian communities this time represents a new beginning and a rebirth. The Jewish people were able to overcome their slavery in Egypt, and they were able to escape the final plague of death … let us unite our voices in peace and may harmony exists between each of us. May this Easter find us united more than ever with a message of peace and love and may we overcome our differences in order to create a better world.
Latter Day Saint: In this important time of the year we call “Holy Week” we remember Jesus. He paid the price to save us. We are grateful for all the religions as they unite with us in this initiative that begins today. As of today we can al seek to become more like Jesus. As of today we can forgive. We can be reconciled. We can return to Him. We can help the poor and needy. We can help those who are lonely and those who have lost hope. We can begin to express words of love to our families, our neighbors, our friends and coworkers. We invite everyone, regardless of your religious belief, and even those who don’t have a religion but who still have faith, let us seek to become more like Jesus.
This is such a huge departure from tradition. The Church has chosen to not be the odd one out and Ecumenism, a topic we have discussed at length has truly deeply embedded herself inside the church.
Many would have asked how the Catholic Church, reading the history of the Dark Ages, would still come out on top and manipulate, and lead the religious world, and yet the Bible comes true about the healing of the deadly wound.
Adventists are not called to union with other religious beliefs but called to warn the world about the times we live in and the imminent coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- The First Angel proclaims the imminence of Christ’s return and Christ’s final mediatory work in the heavenly sanctuary. It demands loyalty to the Creator and His law.
- The Second Angel declares that religious apostasy is increasing, and calls upon people everywhere to choose Christ, His righteousness, and His law, and reject everything that originates in Satan. Babylon has been fostering poisonous doctrines, such as the natural immortality of the soul, the eternal torment of the wicked and other serious theological errors.
- The Third Angel warns against the worship of the beast and his image. The beast power has been advocating and exalting the first day of the week above God’s holy sanctified day, the seventh-day or Saturday. This is exactly what the churches are guilty of today!
The final warning message also brings to view the angel of Revelation 18 who joins his voice with the first three angels when he declares: “For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication” (Revelation 18:3). And then there is this call: “Come out of her, my people,” why? “That ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues.” (Revelation 18:4)
An interfaith alliance, especially when we understand the doctrines of the Bible, the prophecies and teachings thereof, would be the last thing for any Adventist to be a part of. Its like being a Catholic inside an Adventist Church, while we reject some ‘form of their faith like idolatry’ we join them when it comes to the very dangerous lies of ecumenism, trinity and of course false sabbath.
And worse, such alliances now put the Adventist faith and literature quite literally at the mercy of trolls. Recently, a huge storm has risen with a Catholic Priest demanding that the popular National Sunday Law book is banned. Well, it would make sense, why would adventists join in such Easter calls for unity in one hand and yet promote a book that is teaching against the false Sunday worship? Hypocritical right?
But these are just the signs of the times we live in.
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