“All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when we are able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must appear inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near.” ― Sun tzu, The Art of War
The Tricky Double Diversion
2025 Mandate for Leadership – Are Conservative Christians The Enemy?
There has been a lot of buzz lately about the Heritage Foundation’s 2025 Mandate for Leadership.
In case you have not heard, the Heritage Foundation is a conservative think tank and policy lab that has been around for 50 years and always has a platform of ideals for every Republican administration. (There is a liberal think tank for Democrat administrations, which we’ll look at later.)
Their mission statement is, “To formulate and promote public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense.” I’m okay with that.
A few months ago, they released their ideals for the next administration, should a conservative be elected. It came with the optimistic title, 2025 Mandate For Leadership. Keep in mind, while they use the word “mandate”, the Heritage Foundation has no voting power in Congress and cannot mandate that any president adopt any of their recommendations. The part that caused significant stir among some Adventists was a comparatively small paragraph within the 900-page wish-list titled “Sabbath Rest”.
Here’s the provocative sentence in the paragraph,
Congress should encourage communal rest by amending the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) to require that workers be paid time and a half for hours worked on the Sabbath. That day would default to Sunday, except for employers with a sincere religious observance of a Sabbath at a different time (e.g., Friday sundown to Saturday sundown); the obligation would transfer to that period instead.
Well, the fact that the words “Congress”, “Sabbath” and “Sunday” are mentioned in one paragraph has sent some Adventist ministries into a predictable Sunday-law meltdown. They're convinced that all conservative Christians, whom they automatically associate with Christian nationalism, are now on the verge of foisting Sunday laws on all Americans should a Republican or conservative candidate get elected.
Really?
Read carefully, the recommended legislation is designed to help preserve time for workers to keep their Sabbath. While it is true, they specifically mention that Sunday is the most popular day of rest, they also recognize the protections should also be offered for those that keep Sabbath from sundown Friday to sundown Saturday. The wording says absolutely nothing about compelling anyone to keep any day, but rather recommends legal protections for employees who choose to keep a day of rest. This essentially represents religious liberty protections which Adventists always strive for.
CAP
Whatever your view on this, what I find really concerning is the deafening silence among Adventists regarding the counterpart to the Heritage Foundation. Another “think tank” with more than 275 employees that develops policy for the Democratic Party called The Center For American Progress, or CAP.
At their site they brag about providing government policy for the current administration.
What is their “mandate for leadership”? Stronger unions, abortion rights, LGBTQ rights, Climate Change, Diversity, Inclusion, and Equity, Open Borders, Bigger IRS, Sanctuary Cities, Free (socialist) health care and ‘free’ education (indoctrination).
The Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy has plenty to say about some of these issues.
So, while some Adventist ministries are attacking conservatives and the Heritage Foundation, are they by default nudging people to the only other big player?
CAP, this Democrat party policy pool states,
“Climate change is the greatest challenge facing the United States—and the world—over the next decade and beyond.”
This is a quote right from Pope Francis’ Laudato Si encyclical playbook. Are we not even a little suspicious about a mandate that echoes the agenda of the papacy?
Abortion
The CAP Mandate for America paints anyone opposed to abortion as “Political extremists”.
“Abortion rights are under attack. Political extremists and far-right activists are aiming to dismantle abortion rights across the country and deny equitable, safe access to abortion.”
The Bible is very clear that human life begins at conception. Early Adventists were unequivocally opposed to abortion. In a Review article titled 'A Few Words Concerning a Great Sin,' it called abortion 'the murder of unborn infants,' and said it was 'one of the most shocking, and yet one of the most prevalent sins of this generation,' and warned that 'God will not pass unnoticed the murder of such children.' - "A Few Words Concerning a Great Sin," Adventist Review and Sabbath Herald, Nov. 30, 1869.
Trade Unions
Another pillar in the CAP mandate for America is to strengthen trade unions. Here’s an article title that sums that up: “How Unions Are Crucial for Building Working-Class Economic Power.” Notice that Pope Francis loves labor unions, too.
We have a clear warning from the Spirit of Prophecy that these trade unions will be used by the enemy to bring about the final events.
“And the trades unions will be one of the agencies that will bring upon this earth a time of trouble such as has not been since the world began.” - Selected Messages, Book 2, 142.
“In all our great cities there will be a binding up in bundles by the confederacies and unions formed. Men will rule other men and demand much of them. The lives of those who refuse to unite with these unions, will be in peril.... These words I have been instructed to write out plainly. The condition of things before the flood has been presented to me. The same binding up in unions that exists today existed in Noah’s day....” (CSPLUC 5.2-3).
Along with the unions, CAP supports putting more control of a child’s education into the hands of teacher’s unions. These teacher’s unions support curriculums promoting same-sex marriages and gender surgery on minors.
“Union-management partnerships across the country are finding solutions to gaps in student achievement and pushing innovative reforms in our nation’s schools.”
LGBTQ
Other planks in the (CAP) democratic platform are things like,
“Improving the Lives and Rights of LGBTQ People in America.” In case you missed, it that's code for pushing all Americans to embrace transgender and homosexual behavior as normal. In spite of what the Bible says,
“A woman shall not wear anything that pertains to a man, nor shall a man put on a woman’s garment, for all who do so are an abomination to the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 22:5).
“You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination” (Leviticus 18:22).
Should Adventists support LGBTQ rights? The devil is attacking the institution of the family by endorsing homosexuality as marriage and affirming a kaleidoscope of imaginary genders.
Conclusion
I've heard this for years, “whatever you do, don't elect a conservative Christian president because they will bring in the Sunday laws.” So, by default many Adventists vote for the most immoral candidate. I call that Dreadventism.
In Dreadventism, you exchange the patience of the saints (Revelation 14:12) for the panic of the saints, and perhaps worse, demonstrate the verse “Let us do evil that good may come” (Romans 3:8).
And this is tragic because it is usually these liberal administrations that limit the freedom of churches and proclamation of the gospel while at the same time coercing (there’s that word, again) unbiblical and immoral values on society.
Beware of Messchatology.
Messchatology is weaving Adventist eschatology and liberal politics together into a Frankenstein monster made out of bits and pieces of selective headlines and history stuck together with crazy glue. And calling it religious liberty.
Standing against religious tyranny means resisting it wherever it comes from. Right now, all the attacks are coming from the political left and we should oppose them. If attacks begin coming from the right, we should oppose that as well. There is no safety in politics
Let’s be consistent. We must not abandon our prophetic expectations; we must resist invoking fight-or-flight syndrome whenever someone says "‘Amen’ in Washington DC. Such excesses ultimately weaken the faith of the saints (Matthew 24:13).
It's a bit reckless to assume that all conservative Christians are enemies of Adventists and anxious to have them all thrown in jail for Sabbath keeping. Dreadventism forgets that Ellen White tells us that the majority—that's the bulk, yes most of Christ’s true followers—are in their fellowship and not in our church.
“Notwithstanding the spiritual darkness and alienation from God that exists in the churches which constitute Babylon, the great body of Christ's true followers are still to be found in their communion.” - The Great Controversy pg. 390.
So perhaps we should be a little more careful about demonizing all Bible loving Christians from other denominations. Before the end there will be a great shaking and many of our people will go out and many of them will come in (John 10:16).
****
At Fulcrum7, we are not advocating for politics, rather we are seeking to understand trends in the SDA church, and how we might become more faithful to Scripture, less interested in the sleight-of-hand we call politics, and more like our Lord, Whose Kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36).
A thoughtful biblical presentation on nationalism and Adventism here.