On August 3, the Village SDA Church in Berrien Springs held a business meeting to see if Conrad Vine had done anything to warrant the Michigan Conference’s banning of him last September. Conrad was given an opportunity at this meeting to present his case, and the church voted 119 to 18 to keep him as an elder in good standing, thus restoring his ability to speak in the Village Church pulpit.
Upon learning of this business meeting outcome, Jim Micheff sent a letter to the General Conference, asking the Church Manual Committee to weigh in on the decision by Michigan Conference to ban Conrad Vine from speaking in any pulpit in Michigan. By extension, they are asking for the GC to give them permission to override a duly called church business meeting who voted to support a duly elected church elder (and a member in good standing).
What We Know
According to credible individuals, the General Conference has not weighed in on Micheff’s request.
I wouldn’t, if I were them. It’s a lose-lose situation, and the entire world church is watching. If the GC grants permission for conferences to misuse page 126 to invalidate a church business meeting, and their right to elect local leaders—this is a fatal blow against local church autonomy, fostering deeper distrust throughout the worldwide brotherhood.
The Michigan Conference has lost $3,671,000 in tithe in 2024 and 2025 to-date. Evidently, tithe-payers in Michigan are unimpressed with the Michigan/Micheff heavy-handedness.
The interim pastor at Village Church refuses to allow Vine to speak in his Church, under the guise that he is doing the will of the Conference. What about the will of the people? A church business meeting is the highest decision-making body in a local church, and they have spoken.
Michigan has lost five of their best best pastors in the last twelve months, and several of their administrators, including their conference secretary who was arguably destined to become the next conference president. And now they are down 3.6 million dollars in tithe and dropping... That’s not leadership, that’s administrative shipwreck.
Micheff should be replaced or resign, in order to stop the bleeding.
And Conrad Vine should resume his duties as local elder of the Village church at once, vindicated by a 119-18 vote to restore his speaking privileges.
****
“But Rehoboam rejected the advice which the [wise] elders had given him, and consulted the young men who had grown up with him, who stood before him…Whereas my father burdened you with a heavy yoke, I will add to your yoke. Whereas my father scourged you with whips, I will scourge you with scorpions” (1 Kings 12:8,11).