Atlantic Union Seeks to Ban Conrad Vine, Oversteps Authority

Back in November, the Atlantic Union executive committee voted to ban Conrad Vine from every pulpit in their union.

The Northern New England Conference believes that the AU acted outside their authority as outlined in the Church Manual. This ban would give higher entities in our organization the authority to circumvent local church business meetings and to impact the standing of members even outside of their Union. They chose to not be a party to this decision, as it undermines the sound, Bible-based practices and procedures outlined in the Church Manual and erodes proper church order.

The Northern New England Conference (NNEC) Executive Committee (EXCOM) voted on 5 January 2025 to make the following “Statements of Affirmation” regarding the Atlantic Union Executive Committee’s decision to ban Dr. Conrad Vine, a Seventh-day Adventist (SDA) member in good standing, from the pulpits of the Atlantic Union. They also wrote a short cover letter explaining the issues.

Cover Letter
PDF Version

NNEC Statement of Affirmation
PDF Version

Observations

We are told that the General Conference was made aware of the Atlantic Union’s effort to ban Conrad Vine in their territory.

We are told that the Atlantic Union does not have the authority to prevent a member in good standing from speaking in their territory.

We appreciate the NNEC for standing up for due process, and refusing to have a part in undermining the Adventist Church’s historic commitment to bottom-up structure.

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“Why should you be stricken again? You will revolt more and more. The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faints” (Isaiah 1:5).