age | 1

PlsLorlcal undersLandlng of Lhe 8ackground Leadlng up Lo

1he ulscusslons of Lhe 2011 nAu ?earLnd MeeLlngs


uurlng Lhe lasL several weeks slnce Lhe concluslon of Lhe norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon 2011 ?ear
Lnd MeeLlngs quesLlons have arlsen regardlng Lhe dlscusslon and acLlons LhaL were underLaken
aL LhaL meeLlng 1he purpose of Lhls paper ls Lo provlde an accuraLe hlsLorlcal conLexL for Lhose
dlscusslons and subsequenL acLlons

A 1he NAD kequest to 1he 2011 Annua| Counc||

AL Lhe 2011 Annual Councll of Lhe Ceneral Conference Lhe norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon presenLed a
requesL regardlng a varlance Lo Lhe wordlng of Lhe Model ConsLlLuLlon of Lhe Ceneral
Conference 1he purpose of Lhe requesL was Lo harmonlze Lhe wordlng of Lhe Ceneral
Conference Model ConsLlLuLlon wlLh Lhe pollcy of Lhe norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon (L 60) (voLed ln
2009 and 2010) whlch allows for a conference/mlsslon presldenL" Lo be an
ordalned/commlssloned mlnlsLer" 1he moLlon presenLed Lo Lhe 2011 Annual Councll by Lhe
by Llder C Alexander 8ryanL read as follows

Mr Cha|rman I wou|d ||ke to present a MC1ICN as fo||ows from the North
Amer|can D|v|s|on to request the 6enero/ conference xecutive
committee to qront o vorionce to the mode/ constitution to accommodate
the un|que needs of the North Amer|can D|v|s|on w|th the |nsert|on of "
conference]m|ss|on pres|dent shou|d be an orda|ned]comm|ss|oned
m|n|ster"

AfLer a greaL deal of dlscusslon Lhe requesL for a varlance was denled 1wo polnLs musL be
made aL Lhls [uncLure ln order Lo clarlfy whaL happened ln Lhe afLermaLh of Annual Councll

O 1he North Amer|can D|v|s|on hos undertoken no oction to a|ter the
word|ng of the Mode| Const|tut|on of the Genera| Conference ond wi//
not do so ot ony point in the future un|ess perm|tted to do so by the
Genera| Conference
O 1he d|scuss|ons of the 2011 NAD ear Lnd Meet|ng d|d not |nc|ude the
re[ect|on of the author|ty of the Genera| Conference the underm|n|ng
of the [ur|sd|ct|on of the wor|d body nor an open rebe|||on of the North
Amer|can D|v|s|on aga|nst Genera| Conference po||cy

Powever lL musL be clearly undersLood LhaL Lhe voLe of Lhe 2011 Annual Councll JlJ oot Jltect
tbe Nottb Ametlcoo ulvlsloo to temove tbe oolpoe wotJloq of tbe NAu 60 lollcy tbooqb tbe
Aooool cooocll coolJ bove Jooe tbot 1he voLe of Lhe Annual Councll denled Lhe requesL of Lhe
nAu Lo modlfy Lhe wordlng of Lhe CC Model ConsLlLuLlon

age | 2

1he 2011 NAD Adm|n|strat|ve Comm|ttee Act|ons and kesponse

1o Lake Lhe nexL sLep ln undersLandlng Lhe currenL slLuaLlon and Lhe acLlons of Lhe 2011 nAu
AdmlnlsLraLlve CommlLLee lL ls lmporLanL LhaL we now Lake a look lnLo Lhe hlsLory and acLlons
leadlng up Lo Lhls meeLlng and Lhe bases upon whlch Lhe nAuCCM acLed as lL dld

2 1he n|story Lead|ng up to 2011

a) 1he 2009 NAD ear Lnd Meet|ng

ln 2009 Lhe Ceneral Conference enLerLalned a dlscusslon aL Annual Councll whlch cenLered on
harmonlzlng Lhe wordlng of Lhe Ceneral Conference Model ConsLlLuLlon wlLh Lhe L60 ollcy
(Lhe sLaLemenL on who ls quallfled Lo serve as a conference presldenL) and Lhe Church Manual
1he dlscusslon focused on Lwo words 'should' or 'shall' 1he baslc sLaLemenL of Lhe pollcy
reads LhaL Lhe conference/mlsslon presldenL should be an ordalned mlnlsLer" (1he Model
ConsLlLuLlon uses Lhe word 'shall' whlle aL LhaL polnL Lhe L60 ollcy sLaLemenL and Lhe Church
Manual used Lhe word 'should)

AfLer much dlscusslon resldenL !an aulsen appealed Lo Lhe delegaLes Lo conLlnue Lhe usage
of Lhe word should" Pls sLaLemenL was supporLed by Llder uon Schnelder resldenL of Lhe
norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon 1he delegaLes accepLed Lhe counsel and Lhe word 'should' was
reLalned

lollowlng Lhe dlrecLlon seL by Lhe 2009 Annual Councll Lhe norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon
AdmlnlsLraLlve CommlLLee aL Lhe 2009 ?ear Lnd MeeLlng voLed ln harmony wlLh Lhe Ceneral
Conference acLlon Lo lncorporaLe Lhe word 'should' lnLo Lhelr pollcles ln Lhe dlscusslon
surroundlng Lhls change Lhe nAu AdmlnlsLraLlon also added Lhe word 'commlssloned' Lo Lhe
L60 ollcy 1he raLlonale for dolng Lhls was Lwofold

1 1o allow access Lo leadershlp by all of Lhose boLh men and women who were noL
currenLly on an 'ordlnaLlon Lrack'
2 1o avold Lhe dlscusslon of Lhe ordlnaLlon of women

1he moLlon LhaL came Lo Lhe floor of Lhe 2009 nAu ?ear Lnd MeeLlng was Lo change Lhe
wordlng of Lhe L60 ollcy Lo read Lhe 'conference/mlsslon presldenL should be an
ordalned/commlssloned mlnlsLer" 1he moLlon was approved by an overwhelmlng ma[orlLy of
Lhe members

WlLhln hours of Lhe declslon Llder aulsen who was ln Lurope aL Lhe Llme conLacLed Llder
Schnelder wlLh Lhe requesL LhaL Lhe moLlon be resclnded 1he raLlonale behlnd hls requesL was
LhaL a dlscusslon of Lhe 'role of women' was poLenLlal for Lhe 2010 Ceneral Conference Pe felL
LhaL Lhe nAu acLlon would be seen as 'preclplLous' by Lhe world church and would greaLly
damage Lhe posslblllLy of an ob[ecLlve dlscusslon of Lhe maLLer aL ALlanLa

age | 3

Llder aulsen also lnformed Llder Schnelder LhaL Lhe World ulvlslons were golng Lo be polled
on Lhe poLenLlal of such a dlscusslon 1he polllng of Lhe World ulvlslons would be Lhe decldlng
facLor ln Lhe declslon on wheLher or noL Lo have Lhe dlalogue on women's roles Pavlng sald
Lhls he also made a commlLmenL LhaL lf Lhere was no dlscusslon of Lhe Loplc aL ALlanLa Lhe nAu
could brlng Lhe dlscusslon of Lhe L60 ollcy back Lo Lhe floor of Lhe 2010 ?ear Lnd MeeLlng

lollowlng Llder aulsen's appeal Llder Schnelder broughL Lhe requesL Lo Lhe nAu unlon
resldenLs and Lhey subsequenLly recommended Lo Lhe nAuCCM members LhaL Lhe moLlon
be resclnded When Lhe requesL was presenLed on Lhe floor of Lhe 2009 ?ear Lnd MeeLlng lL
generaLed a greaL deal of dlscusslon

1he moLlon was ulLlmaLely resclnded 1hree ma[or facLors led Lo Lhe declslon Lo resclnd

O ueep respecL for Lhe Ceneral Conference resldenL and Lhe World Church
O A deslre Lo malnLaln Lhe unlLy of Lhe church
O A promlse made by Lhe Ceneral Conference resldenL and afflrmed by Lhe norLh
Amerlcan ulvlslon resldenL LhaL Lhe dlscusslon could be underLaken aL Lhe 2010
?LM lf no dlscusslon Look place aL Lhe 2010 Ceneral Conference ln ALlanLa

uurlng Lhe Sprlng of 2010 Lhe Ceneral Conference AdmlnlsLraLlon declded LhaL Lhere would be
no dlscusslon of Lhe maLLer aL ALlanLa Cf Lhe LhlrLeen dlvlslons polled on Lhe maLLer only Lhree
sLaLed a deslre Lo dlscuss Lhe 'role of women' aL Ceneral Conference

b) 1he 2010 NAD ear Lnd Act|ons

1he new nAu AdmlnlsLraLlon consldered Lhls maLLer very carefully and concluded LhaL lL was
vlLal ln order Lo keep falLh wlLh Lhe members of Lhe nAu AdmlnlsLraLlve CommlLLee
(nAuCCM) LhaL Lhe promlses of Lhe former Ceneral Conference and nAu AdmlnlsLraLlons musL
be honored Cn Lhe basls of hlndslghL lL ls valuable Lo recognlze LhaL Lhe lssue aL LhaL polnL
was noL wheLher Lhe promlses of Lhe aforemenLloned admlnlsLraLlons were valld or wheLher or
noL Lhe nAu AdmlnlsLraLlve CommlLLee had Lhe rlghL Lo underLake Lhe modlflcaLlon of Lhe L 60
pollcy 1he lssue aL LhaL [uncLure was one of admlnlsLraLlve lnLegrlLy and Lransparency An
aLLempL Lo lnlLlaLe a new AdmlnlsLraLlon by denylng a promlse of a former admlnlsLraLlon
would have been dublous Lo say Lhe leasL

SubsequenLly Lhe maLLer reLurned Lo Lhe agenda of Lhe norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon 2010 ?ear Lnd
MeeLlng Powever prlor Lo Lhe meeLlng consulLaLlon wlLh Ceneral Conference leadershlp was
soughL afLer 1he counsel of Lhe Ceneral Conference resldenL was sollclLed and noLed 1hls
counsel was falLhfully relaLed Lo Lhe members of Lhe nAuCCM ln a consclenLlous and serlous
manner

1he meeLlng underLook Lo dlscuss Lhls maLLer ln a serlous and splrlLual way lollowlng a
prolonged and careful dlscusslon of Lhe lssue and all of lLs' apparenL lmpllcaLlons Lwo moLlons
were passed

age | 4

1 1haL Lhe nAu L60 ollcy would lncorporaLe Lhe word 'should' and would also lnclude
Lhe word 'commlssloned' as voLed ln 2009
2 1haL a requesL for a varlance Lo Lhe 'Ceneral Conference Model ConsLlLuLlon' be
presenLed Lo Lhe 2011 Annual Conference ln order Lo harmonlze Lhe wordlng of Lhe
ConsLlLuLlon wlLh Lhe nAu L60 ollcy

1he nAu requesL for a varlance was puL forward ln good falLh 8y dolng so Lhe nAu
AdmlnlsLraLlon and AdmlnlsLraLlve CommlLLee submlLLed Lo Lhe auLhorlLy of Lhe Ceneral
Conference Lo elLher endorse or Lo deny Lhe requesL

c) 1he D|scuss|on and Act|ons of the 2011 NAD ear Lnd Meet|ng

lL may have been expedlenL for Lhe nAu AdmlnlsLraLlon Lo glve a reporL of Lhe Annual Councll
acLlon Lo Lhe ?ear Lnd MeeLlng and Lhen Lo drop Lhe maLLer Powever Lhe Chalr made a
declslon Lo open Lhe dlscusslon of Lhe L60 ollcy once agaln

lL was very clearly explalned Lo Lhe members LhaL Lhe dlscusslon was noL Lo be undersLood as
'pushlng back' aL Lhe Ceneral Conference 1he dlscusslon was belng underLaken as a revlew of
whaL had been voLed by Lhe nAu on Lwo prevlous occaslons wlLhln Lhe currenL conLexL of Lhe
Annual Councll voLe lL was clearly explalned LhaL Lhe dlscusslon whlle Laklng Lhe needs of Lhe
norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon lnLo accounL musL also recognlze Lhe needs of Lhe World Church

AL Lhe commencemenL of Lhe dlscusslon lL was shared LhaL Cod 'blrLhed' a church Lhrough Pls
Son !esus and LhaL Cod was placlng Lhe church lnLo Lhe arms of Lhe members ln LhaL Lhey were
now abouL Lo acL as sLewards of Lhe Church" lL was made very clear LhaL any lnsulLlng or
demeanlng words would noL be LoleraLed by Lhe Chalr buL LhaL Lhe SplrlL of ChrlsL musL
pervade Lhe words of every speaker 1hls maLLer was placed before Lhe members ln order Lo
glve Lhem Lhe opporLunlLy Lo revlew change or afflrm Lhelr earller declslons 1he moLlvaLlng
facLor here was 'whaL ls ln Lhe besL lnLeresLs of Cod's Church'

1he opLlons placed before Lhe members lncluded 1) AfflrmaLlon of Lhe nAu L60 pollcy as
voLed ln 2009 and 2010 2) 8emoval Lhe unlque wordlng currenLly ln Lhe nAu L60 ollcy
3) 1he developmenL of a new proposal Lo deal wlLh Lhe unlque needs of Lhe norLh Amerlcan
ulvlslon AfLer prayerful dlscusslon Lhe members voLed 163 61 Lo afflrm Lhe prevlous acLlons
1he observaLlon of Lhe members ln aLLendance was LhaL Cod was presenL ln our mldsL l Loo
belleve Lhls 1he mlnuLe of Lhe acLlon reads as follows

CONFERENCE/MISSION PRESIDENT

Whereas, the North American Division is an integral part oI the World Church and respects and
values the position oI the General ConIerence as it relates to the ConIerence/Mission President
being an ordained minister, and

Whereas, the North American Division desires compatibility in all policies oI the World Church
including the ones that deal with women in leadership positions,

age | 3

n the spirit oI equality and being sensitive to the unique needs oI our Iield and not acting in any
way contrary to the Bible or the Spirit oI Prophecy,

We hereby vote to aIIirm the North American Working Policy E 60 as is currently written in the
2010 2011 Working Policy book, which reads as Iollows:

E 60 Conference/Mission President
nasmuch as the conIerence/mission president stands at the head oI the ministry in the
conIerence/mission and is the chieI elder, or overseer oI all the churches, a conIerence/mission
president should be an ordained/commissioned minister.

@be 2011 NAu AJmlolsttotlve commlttee Jlscossloos JlJ oot teject ot tebel oqolost tbe
ootbotlty of tbe Ceoetol coofeteoce tbooqb lt ls beloq potttoyeJ tbls woy lo votloos ploces
tbtooqboot Nottb Ametlco ooJ tbe wotlJ

C GLNLkAL CLkVA1ICN

As Chalr l do noL know whaL oLher way l could have lead Lhe group When we lnvlLe people Lo
engage ln Lhe processes of Lhe Church whaL are Lhelr ulLlmaLe rlghLs? uo we Lhen have Lhe
rlghL Lo Lell Lhem LhaL Lhey can only voLe lf Lhey agree wlLh Lhe commonly held poslLlons?
When a 'duly consLlLuLed body' such as Lhe norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon AdmlnlsLraLlve CommlLLee
Lakes an acLlon on a glven maLLer who owns Lhe acLlon? ln oLher words who ls enLlLled Lo re
open Lhe dlscusslon change Lhe acLlon or resclnd Lhe acLlon?

1he members of Lhe SevenLhday AdvenLlsL Church ln Lhe norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon bylnlarge
are waLchlng Lo see how Lhese quesLlons are answered 1he Church ln Lhls ulvlslon ls Lruly ln
need of full engagemenL wlLh Lhe mlsslon LhaL Cod has enLrusLed Lo us lf we suggesL LhaL Lhey
have no rlghL Lo glve dlrecLlon ln pollcy maLLers lL ls doubLful LhaL we wlll engage Lhem
oLherwlse Llke any oLher ulvlslon wlLhln Lhe world church Lhe norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon musL
be handled wlLh care and klndness

LesL anyone conslder LhaL Lhe nAu ls a 'rogue' ulvlslon or some oLher such deslgnaLlon lL musL
be remembered LhaL Lhe members of Lhe church wlLhln Lhls ulvlslon have glven of Lhelr Llme
LalenL resources and llves Lo ensure Lhe work of Lhe church around Lhe world 1he falLhfulness
of Lhe norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon ls felL every day ln every dlvlslon around Lhe world

1he lssue LhaL now confronLs Church Leadershlp and Lhe Church boLh ln Lhe norLh Amerlcan
ulvlslon and around Lhe world ls 'how do we deal wlLh Lhese lssues' ln a ChrlsLllke manner?
Cur people are observlng May Cod bless us wlLh Pls abldlng presence May Pls SplrlL gulde all
of our conversaLlons and acLlons as we walk Lhrough Lhls currenL clrcumsLance


repared by Llder uanlel 8 !ackson
resldenL norLh Amerlcan ulvlslon
uecember 8 201