Church Growth Experiments in Secular Australia

Pastor E. Bruce Price
Retired Church Pastor, Evangelist, and Departmental Director of the South Pacific Division

Australia, with its secular, postmodern culture, poses a real challenge to Seventh-day Adventists in their commission to preach the everlasting Gospel of Revelation 14:6.

The golden years of public evangelism after World War II, when hundreds were being baptized, are now only a memory. Church administrators, pastors, and evangelists find it a real challenge to win souls, grow churches, and increase memberships.

Over the past two decades in Australia, two philosophies of Church Growth have emerged as the answer to postmodernism. Some refer to these philosophies as "contemporary" and "traditional" approaches. But because these terms mean different things to different people1, I prefer to call the two approaches the Pragmatist and the Commissionist methods of church growth.

A. Pragmatists are those who are willing to try any methodology or approach if they believe it will make the Adventist church grow. It means being willing to learn from other denominations that are still experiencing church growth. It can mean new forms of worship, music, standards, and even the presentation of new doctrines or the neglect of old doctrines, in favor of entertainment. Pragmatists tend to adopt the celebration-type contemporary approach to worship.

B. Commissionists are those who will only apply new methods and techniques that are in harmony with the counsels and soulwinning principles found in the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy. They will not compromise in any way the unique Biblical doctrines or standards of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. They accept the entire Gospel commission of Matthew 28:18-20, which includes "teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you."

They follow the prophetic commission in Revelation 10:10, 11 to "prophesy again before many peoples" and in the time of the end powerfully preach the everlasting Gospel with the messages of the three angels of Revelation 14:6-12. Commissionists may be described as those who still uphold the distinctive Adventist messages, the mainstream style of worship, and the methods of evangelism that are consistent with counsels in the Spirit of Prophecy.

This article briefly looks at these two approaches to church growth, showing how they have fared during the past 15 or so years in some notable churches of the South Pacific Division. With hundreds of thousands of dollars being pumped into the celebration-type contemporary methods of church growth, it is only fair to ask if their experiments have been successful. I will begin, however, with a brief summary of my encounter with the new approach to church growth.

My Pilgrimage to U.S.A. Celebration Churches

By the late 1980s, Australian Adventist administrators, evangelists, and pastors were looking for an answer to the challenge of this post-Christian era. They wanted to know how to successfully grow their churches.

It was at this time that the "celebration movement" was introduced to the world church of Seventh-day Adventists. The church’s leading papers heralded the first celebration churches in Milwaukie, a suburb of Portland, Oregon; and Colton, California, U.S.A. This new type of church was believed to be the answer to our church growth problems, as hundreds were flocking to these celebration churches. I was one of the pastors who embarked upon this pilgrimage.

My first opportunity to observe the celebration church movement in detail was in June 1990. I was part of a group of 30 Australian pastors who were taken on a Church Growth Tour through the U.S.A. to learn how to grow churches. Two of the "growing" Adventist churches we visited were Milwaukee and Colton. With glowing enthusiasm their pastors told of the crowds of worshippers who were attending. Their excitement was contagious. We took notes, filed materials, and then attended some of their services.

I was in my 38th year of ministry, having been a departmental director and pastor/evangelist. Observing these celebration churches caused me concern as I saw their sacred worship services accompanied with lights and loud disco-type music of secular, worldly entertainment. The distinctive truths of the three angels’ messages and the Spirit of Prophecy had given way to a message of "love and acceptance." Church standards had suffered a similar fate, as members were encouraged to be "loving" and not "judgmental." However, many of those attracted to these services could not see the dangers. They expressed their joy that this new presentation of the Gospel had brought to them love, understanding, and a liberation from Adventist legalism.

With almost evangelistic zeal the members were urging other Adventists from surrounding churches to join them in this newfound experience. These churches were certainly growing, and rapidly. But it was largely "transfer growth" from other Adventist churches. While they were supposed to attract and convert "unchurched Harrys and Marys," few such "kingdom-growth" baptisms were taking place.

While some of us left those celebration churches with questions in our minds, none of us had any idea that both of these churches would later collapse, with the loss of hundreds of souls. The pastor of the Milwaukee church also would become so antagonistic to the Seventh-day Adventist Church and its teachings that his soul-destroying influence would even extend to Australia. In fact, little did we realize then that one of our fellow ministers on this tour would on his return "plant" a celebration/contemporary church like those he was observing, and he too would suffer a similar fate, with the loss of the church and himself to the Adventist Church.

"Kingdom" Church Growth

On that Church Growth Tour, however, there was one smaller Adventist church that impressed me: Norwalk, California. The pastor had taken this church from a membership of 250 to 750 in just a few years. He explained that he had done this as a result of following closely the methods of evangelism and outreach outlined by Ellen White. After the meeting some asked his opinion of the celebration movement and why he was not impressed by it. He confirmed that the church growth being experienced by the celebration churches was largely "transfer growth" from other Adventist churches. His church’s growth was mainly kingdom growth, of souls being won to Christ as a result of evangelistic outreaches and Bible study.

Thus, when I returned to Australia I had a choice between the celebration-type church growth methods, and the time-honored Adventist approach. The choice was between the pragmatic approach and the commissionist approach. Faced with this choice, I chose the latter.

I determined to continue to pattern and grow my church in Sydney, on the counsels of Ellen White, in books such as Gospel Workers and Evangelism, and not make it a celebration church. The Lord blessed our humble efforts and in the 16 years I was the pastor of the Waitara church in Sydney, we witnessed the baptism of 235 souls. Many of them were "unchurched Harrys" who have become pastors, evangelists, and soulwinners for the Lord. In the past four years since I retired, this church has continued to win souls and to grow. It is difficult to find an empty seat at any of its services.

When I did not make my church a celebration-type contemporary church, some church administrators questioned why I was not being "progressive." I told them that when this celebration movement should be successful and prove that this was the way the Lord wanted His church to go, then I would follow. Until then I would wait. But as I waited and watched, I witnessed only disasters in both Australia and the U.S.A.

The Celebration Movement in the South Pacific Division

When the celebration movement was launched in the Seventh-day Adventist Church by the Milwaukie and Colton Adventist churches in America, some pragmatists in Australia and New Zealand were quick to follow them. Five church plants of this nature were attempted in the South Pacific Division, each of which adopted a celebration-type contemporary style of worship. They were: (1) Cherrybrook, Sydney, Greater Sydney Conference; (2) Cornerstone, North New Zealand Conference; (3) Fox Valley, Sydney, Greater Sydney Conference; (4) Riverside, Perth, West Australian Conference; and (5) Southside, Brisbane, South Queensland Conference.2

These five contemporary churches that were "planted" in the South Pacific Division initially experienced transfer growth from other Adventist churches, but had very little success in their style of evangelism in terms of kingdom growth. Tragically, four of these five churches are no longer in the sisterhood of Adventist churches. Like most of their American counterparts, they experienced a tragic loss of members as well as pastors.3

Besides the church "plants," some established Adventist churches also adopted aspects of the celebration church growth methods. The Church Growth leaders of the South Pacific Division specially promoted one such Sydney church (the Mt. Colah church), hoping to demonstrate the success of these pragmatic methods. However, official conference records reveal that this church only had 19 baptisms in its first nine years, and in the next five years only one baptism!4

This "model" pragmatic church now has such a small attendance that it is struggling to exist. In contrast to this celebration-type church, the neighboring "commissionist" (or traditional) church, Waitara, has so experienced real kingdom church growth that it has been asked to care for the "model" church.5 In fact, more of these celebration-type contemporary churches are in trouble, and conference leaders are becoming very embarrassed about them, having in the past enthusiastically promoted them.

The Ford Apostasy

A mistaken assumption of the contemporary church growth movement is that distinctive Seventh-day Adventist doctrines are a hindrance to church growth and must, therefore, be abandoned. And yet, the churches that have jumped on this bandwagon are not growing!

For example, one of the greatest hindrances to church growth in Australia has been the apostasy of one of its most talented "sons," Dr. Desmond Ford. The apostasy has been like a great tsunami that has wrought enormous devastation throughout the South Pacific Division. For decades Dr. Ford taught at Avondale College, influencing more than a generation of professors, students, and future ministers. At the same time he was a popular and brilliant speaker at camp meetings and ministerial gatherings.

Among the Adventist doctrines that Dr. Ford opposes are the sanctuary, 1844, the investigative Judgment, the remnant church, and the role of the Spirit of Prophecy. In 1979 he publicly announced that he had not believed some of these doctrines for the past 35 years because he could not reconcile the writings of Ellen White with the book of Hebrews.6 In 2002, Ford at last publicly admitted he did not believe in "the creation of the world in six literal days a few thousand years ago."7

However, for decades Dr. Ford taught differently and wrote articles for Adventist publications purporting to uphold some of these doctrines. His book Daniel is a further example of this duplicity.

Voices were raised through these years in Australia concerning Dr. Ford’s teachings. In 1976 he was even taken before the Biblical Research Committee by those concerned about what he was teaching at Avondale College on "the Sanctuary, the Age of the Earth and Inspiration."10 Ford defended himself. The two leaders of these concerned brethren were two of Australia’s most successful evangelists. To silence their voices of opposition to Ford’s teachings, they were banned from church pulpits.11

After Dr. Ford was dismissed from denominational employment in 1980, a staggering 180 ministers left the ministry within the next decade.12 However most of his followers and sympathizers remained in the church. He urged them to do this, so they could use their influence more effectively to change the church. Many have since enjoyed positions of trust and responsibility.

Thus, with this overwhelming influence of Dr. Ford in Australia, there has been a greater challenge to soulwinning and church growth than all the forces of secularism and postmodernism combined.

What minister or layman is going to labor to bring souls into a church that he believes has defective doctrines? What right does the Adventist Church have to exist, and what mission does it have if it is not God’s remnant church commissioned to call people out of Babylon to do His will and keep all the commandments of God?

This also explains why the celebration type of church growth in Australia was accepted so readily. The pragmatic-type celebration churches do not teach the unique doctrines of the Adventist Church, and Ellen White is rarely mentioned among them.

The association of Dr. Ford and those who promote his teachings with this type of church growth is well known in Australia. Some have even defied their conference administrations and invited him into their pulpits to address their congregations,13 where people have flocked to hear him.

Influential men, who would later raise serious doubts about the trustworthiness of the Spirit of Prophecy, even led a delegation to have Dr. Ford reinstated to preach again in Adventist churches.14 With this army of ministers and laymen who have been influenced by Dr. Ford in Australia, church growth has been seriously impeded.

Ellen White Challenged

Besides jettisoning distinctive doctrines of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, another mistaken assumption behind some of the church growth attempts is the view that the messages contained in the Spirit of Prophecy are not always relevant to the contemporary situation. However, this diminution of Ellen White’s counsels has not helped those churches to grow!

In the South Pacific Division, since the doctrines of Dr. Ford are incompatible with the teachings of Ellen White, the Australian church has witnessed a continual denigration of her role and authority in doctrinal matters.15 Dr. Ford’s followers appear foremost in upholding her in a pastoral role, while subtly destroying confidence in her writings in most other areas such as theology, health, history, etc., by outlining her "errors."

The year 2004 will no doubt be remembered in Australia for some of the most serious attacks on Ellen White from within the church. It began with a Summit on Ellen White at Avondale College. Prominent Australian presenters were some of Dr. Ford’s most outspoken supporters, including those who tried to have him reinstated in the church in recent years. By contrast, some who are known to faithfully support Ellen White were not even asked to present a paper.16

Then in 2004 a lecturer in theology at Avondale College, the premier Seventh-day Adventist institution in Australia, published his provocative book,17 Prophets Are Human—a work that has been widely promoted by some prominent thought leaders of the church. This controversial book was initially promoted by a most distasteful cartoon of an alarmed Ellen White at last caught out in her errors! This appeared in the Division paper, the Record, and in large posters sent to every church.

In February 2004 a series of four articles appeared in the Record of an interview between an influential church historian and theology lecturer and the journal’s editor, casting further doubt on the work of Ellen White. Serious charges were made by this church scholar, such as stating her writings were in error, being "partly wrong and partly right."18

Many faithful Australian ministers and laymen have been working to rectify the situation. Some have challenged the allegations. Others have been searching to give our people answers. This explains why the 400-page book Greatest of All the Prophets is receiving a wide circulation even among those who do not normally read its authors’ publications. This book not only documents the above situation but also answers each charge made against Ellen White. It would have been better if these answers could have been forthcoming for our confused people through the official church paper, the Record.

Fortunately, early in 2005, the Division evangelist was able to organize scholars from Andrews University, U.S.A., to give a series of presentations answering the most serious problems raised by Prophets Are Human and the Record articles.21 Copies of these presentations will be made available throughout the Division.

The Australian Adventist church was blessed by the living presence and counsels of Ellen White for nearly a decade. As a result, the South Pacific Division experienced great church growth, and its institutions likewise. However, as it has lost confidence in its doctrines and the Spirit of Prophecy, it has lost dedication and sacrifice, and as a result many of its institutions,22 as well as having its church growth crippled.

Those who have lost confidence in this God-given instruction no longer follow its counsels on church growth. They pragmatically turn to the methods of other churches, charismatic and celebration alike. These methods entertain but they do not produce Seventh-day Adventist Christians, nor do they convert the secular-minded. Awareness in Australia is increasing that there has been a lot of time and millions of dollars wasted on such experiments that have failed.23

The Charismatic Movement in Australia

Australians have been flocking to high-energy Charismatic churches, which between 1996 and 2001 have enjoyed attendance increases ranging from 20 to 42 per cent. This is despite the fact that at the same time Australian overall weekly church attendance declined by seven percent and Catholic mass attendance declined by 13 percent.25

The charismatic Hillsong Church in Sydney attracts 18,000 worshippers a week26 to its theatrical type of worship, complete with a big band, stage lighting, and dry ice.27 It has averaged a yearly church growth of 1,000 worshippers for the past 17 years.28

Churches such as Hillsong continually fascinate some Australian Adventists who wonder which aspects of the Hillsong phenomenon could be adopted to enjoy such church growth. Avondale College theology students are taken to Hillsong to learn how to grow a church. It is believed to have greatly influenced the first Australian Adventist celebration church at the nearby suburb of Cherrybrook.

Regrettably, Cherrybrook collapsed when 80% of the congregation moved into an independent tongues-speaking Sundaykeeping church.29 However, the success of charismatic churches such as Hillsong is still having an influence on the worship style of many Australian Adventist churches.

When a pastor has been crippled by the influence of the Ford apostasy and can no longer preach the Adventist message with power, then he and like-minded church members often turn to the methods of the charismatic churches and entertainment to try and grow their congregations. The results have often been disastrous, with resources squandered.

Church Growth in "Traditional" Adventist Churches

Most Adventist churches in Australia that are experiencing real church growth are the "traditional" churches30 —i.e., those mainstream churches which follow the counsels of the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy in carrying out the Gospel commission.

Although claiming to be a "traditional" church does not necessarily guarantee church growth, what is incontrovertible is that upholding the traditional Adventist messages and time-honored methods of evangelism still work. I can testify to this because I, among many others, have put them to the test!

As indicated earlier, I had been a departmental director for 14 years. But in 1984, foreseeing the ongoing devastation of evangelism and church growth in Australia because of the Ford apostasy, I asked for the privilege of having a church to pastor. I wanted to test whether the counsels that God had specifically given to this people concerning church growth would still work successfully.

I was given a church in a difficult area for evangelism, on Sydney’s affluent upper North Shore, in the suburb of Waitara. The church was struggling against the effects of the Ford apostasy. It was half empty and the congregation divided.

Undeterred, the congregation was given strong Adventist sermons. They were left in no doubt of the teachings and mission of the remnant church to which they belonged. Then, using the counsels of the Bible and Ellen White, the members were trained in soulwinning.31 They were soon bringing their interests to church, studying with them and preparing them for baptism. Public evangelists32 were brought in to help reap the work being done.

Soon the church, which seated 300, was full each Sabbath. A second service had to be started to accommodate all the worshippers. In the 16 years I was the pastor of that church, 235 souls were baptized,33 and a further 18 were reclaimed and rebaptized. In the past four years since I retired, this strong church growth has continued. Today it is hard to find an empty seat at any of its services.

Many examples could be given where these methods of evangelism worked successfully in secular Australia. The Woollahra church is a prime example: This church is situated in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, which are both the most affluent and secular in all of Australia.34 The large Woollahra church building had so few attending it seemed it would soon have to close. Then the local pastors used public evangelism, prophecy seminars, and proven Adventist evangelistic outreaches, based on the Spirit of Prophecy.35 Baptisms resulted, and within a few years the church was full each Sabbath.

My point is this: Regardless of how a church refers to itself—pragmatist or commissionist—it will not grow unless it upholds and preaches the distinctive Adventist messages, and follows the counsels of the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy in carrying out the Gospel commission. Celebration-type contemporary churches, by their very nature, tend to preach a different message and adopt a different method of church growth. This is why, despite the hype, they are failing.

The Challenge of Secular Australians

From the results shared in this article, it does not take a space scientist to realize the futility of the attempts to grow the Adventist Church by adopting celebration-type contemporary styles of worship, down-playing our distinctive doctrines, undermining the trustworthiness of the Spirit of Prophecy, and embracing the Pentecostal/charismatic movement. Not only have these types of churches not grown, but also 80% of them (four out of the five churches) have ceased to be Seventh-day Adventist congregations! In contrast, the records indicate that churches that take the Seventh-day Adventist message seriously and that still uphold the proven Adventist approaches to evangelism, are the ones that are growing even in secular Australia.

The above conclusion has some far-reaching implications for the Seventh-day Adventist church. It compels us to ask: What Biblical examples do we have of winning the secular-minded?

"There is no God, not even one with the message ‘God helps those who help themselves,’" wrote M. Langley in the Sydney Morning Herald, Letters to the Editor, January 3, 2005, p. 12. What can be done to convert this typical secular-minded Australian? What new methods need to be introduced, and what pragmatic changes would need to be made to our present methods of evangelism to win this person?

The interesting discovery we make in the Bible is that we have very few attempts by Jesus or the apostles to specially work for the secular-minded—at least using pragmatic or contemporary methods of His day.36

Jesus told His disciples to "go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matt 10:6). He told the Syrophoenician woman, "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel" (Matt 15:24). However, Jesus ministered to her as He did to others, such as the Roman centurion and the woman of Samaria, when they exhibited faith sometimes greater than those of Israel. We could hardly class these people of faith as secular.

Let us also remember that Jesus in His soulwinning methods did not appear to the Samaritan woman chanting Roman tunes or disguised as a would-be Samaritan. He did not need to. He had a message to bring to her, and He did not mince words. In this way He won her, and she in turn won others. These were Jesus’ methods of church growth.

As the apostles, including Paul, moved to take the Gospel into all the world, their evangelistic endeavors were still mainly with the "God-fearers". He sought them out in the synagogues or worshipping by riversides, if there were no synagogues. In this way he won his greatest number of souls.

However, on Mars’ hill in Athens, Paul encountered the secular-minded. Ellen White tells37 how he pragmatically "sought to adapt his style to the character of the audience; he met logic with logic, science with science, philosophy with philosophy." It produced "but little fruit." Then he decided to move on to Corinth and preach a powerful message, ignoring the secular Greek culture of "excellency of speech and wisdom" and to preach nothing "save Jesus Christ, and Him crucified" (1 Corinthians 2:2). Here Paul experienced real church growth, and a church was planted! It did not happen in Athens!

Does secular Australia have sufficient "God-fearers" to work with and experience church growth? The answer is surprising. A recent poll reveals that 46 percent of Australians believe they will go to Heaven when they die38 and "28 percent of us believe the Earth was created in six days."39 While Australia is still much more secular than the United States, the approximately 10 million Australians who believe they will go to Heaven when they die, and the nearly six million who believe the earth was created in six days, offer an excellent field to continue our evangelistic endeavors.

These people are waiting to hear more about Heaven and the Creator, Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. The full message of Seventh-day Adventists has never been more relevant. It can still enjoy church growth even in secular Australia.

As the traumatic signs of Christ’s soon coming take place, such as September 11 and the Asian Tsunami, the secular are becoming more open to the working of the Holy Spirit. As they respond, they too can be won to this message. But it will not be done by entertainment, but with the solemn preaching of all the Bible truths and the methodology consistent with the truths that we have been given as a people.

To bring souls to a full and saving knowledge of Jesus Christ takes much dedication, prayer, and work. Nothing has changed in this regard since the days of Jesus, His disciples, or Paul. There are no shortcuts. We are to solidly build on the Rock, not superficially on the sand!

Those who choose other "easier" means of church growth may witness crowds proclaiming, "Lord, Lord," and even see them doing many wonderful works in His name. But Jesus warns that if they do not do His will, to them He will say those fateful words, "I never knew you: depart from Me, ye that work iniquity" (Matthew 7:21-23).

ENDNOTES

1 When the Adventist celebration churches in America and then in Australia began to collapse, efforts were made by those who were running churches along celebration lines to distance themselves from the word "celebration." "Contemporary" or "alternative" was used instead. However, a "contemporary" church may mean different things to different people. Definitions of "contemporary" range from a full-blown celebration church (one which plays down Adventist doctrinal distinctives and lifestyle practices, embraces the Pentecostal/charismatic worship style, and employs secular music, Hollywood-style dramas, and other questionable Gospel gimmicks to reach the "unchurched"), to an otherwise mainstream SDA church, which differs from "conservative" or typical SDA churches only in the fact that during its church services it plays lively or upbeat music which are is in the church’s hymnbooks. The term "traditional" is not very helpful either, because it can have the overtones "old fashioned," "still living back in the Dark Ages," or "stuck in the mud,"—i.e., a mood that refuses to explore new ways to do things. Notice, however, that a Bible-believing Adventist Church can remain true to its message and the methods of church growth approved by the Spirit of Prophecy, and be innovative at the same time, as for example, has been successfully demonstrated by H.M.S. Richards, Mark Finley, C.D. Brooks, Doug Batchelor, etc., in their evangelistic outreach using cutting-edge technology of their times. Therefore, to avoid being misunderstood, it may be best to not use the terms "contemporary" and "traditional"—unless they are carefully explained. This is why I have come up with two new expressions—pragmatist and commissionist.

2 A detailed analysis of the baptisms and membership transfer results can be found in E.B. Price, "Church Growth in Contemporary Churches in the South Pacific Division," 2002, p.1.

3 For an insightful perspective on the North American scene, see Richard O’Ffill’s article in this volume; see also Michigan Conference President Jay Gallimore’s "Can the Church Be Relevant and Survive?" Adventists Affirm 16/3 (Fall 2002): 16-27 and the March 14, 2002 report Gallimore presented to ministers of his conference.

4 E.B. Price, "Church Growth in Contemporary Churches in the SPD," p. 4.

5 Ibid., p. 5.

6 Elder J. Robert Spangler, Editor, Ministry, October 1980, p. 4.

7 Wesley Centre, Sydney, NSW, August 3, 2002.

8 Desmond Ford, "The Creator in Court–The Teaching of the Investigative Judgment Is Not a Face-saving Device but an Integral Part of the Everlasting Gospel," Review & Herald, October 18, 1962, and "The Judgment," Ministry, July 1979.

9 Pastor J.W. Kent led 16 concerned men protesting to the Biblical Research Committee, February 3, 4, 1976.

10 "Concerned Brethren" was abbreviated to "CB" as a term of derision for those opposing Dr. Ford’s new theology.

11 Pastors J.W. Kent and G. Burnside were banned from preaching in the churches on December 18, 1978 because of their opposition to Dr. Ford. When Pastor Burnside died in 1994, some of the bans had still not been lifted.

12 Dr. Harry Ballis, PhD Thesis, Monash University, Melbourne, discusses the 180 ministers who left the church.

13 The former Cherrybrook pastor, now at Charlestown, did this. It also occurred at Castlehill and Kellyville churches.

14 One was Dr. Arthur Patrick. He is a church historian who had served in a variety of capacities within the church, including pastor-evangelist, chaplain, college lecturer, and Director of the Ellen G. White/Seventh-day Adventist Research Centre at Avondale College. He recently raised doubts about the writings of Ellen G. White in his four "conversations" with the editor of the church’s South Pacific Record (February 7, 14, 21, 28, 2004).

15 "Ellen White’s Role in Doctrinal Matters," Ministry, October 1980, pp.53-60, answered Ford’s rejection at Glacier View of the authority of Ellen White’s God-given counsels in the matter of theology.

16 Dr. Allan Lindsay, presenter of the excellent Keepers of the Flame video series and the very respected retired Director of the Ellen G. White Research Centre, was not invited to present a formal paper like the other presenters.

17 Dr. Lester Devine, Director, Ellen G. White SDA Research Centre, used this term to promote the book.

18 Arthur Patrick with Bruce Manners, "Ellen White for Today: 4," Record, February 28, 2004, p.10, col. 1, para. 4.

19 Jan Knopper, former Division PD Director, challenged the Record writers who claimed that Ellen White made historical errors, to produce evidence for their assertion. They were unable to do this, but did not retract their statements.

20 Russell R. Standish & Colin D. Standish, The Greatest of All the Prophets (Highwood Books: Narbethong, Victoria, Australia, 2004).

21 The Division evangelist is Geoff Youlden, and the scholars invited from the U.S.A. were Dr. Jiri Moskala, Dr. Larry Lichtenwalter, and Dr. Denis Fortin.

22 The SPD has lost seven of its nine hospitals, as well as its entire chain of health food shops and restaurants.

23 Huge sums of money—from both the local conferences and local churches themselves—were invested in establishing celebration churches that failed. The $1.25 million video series, Chasing Utopia, produced to win the secular-minded also had little success.

24 "Hallelujahs in the Hills," Sydney Sun Herald, November 7, 2004, p. 27.

25 "Faithful Flock to New Churches," Sydney Sun Herald, January 9, 2005. Source: National Church life Survey.

26 "Hallelujahs in the Hills," Sydney Sun Herald, November 7, 2004, p.27.

27 "How Great Thou Aren’t," Sydney Morning Herald, December 21, 2004.

28"Hillsong Prays for the Miracle," Sydney Morning Herald, December 13, 2004.

29 E.B. Price, "Church Growth in Contemporary Churches in the SPD," p. 2.

30 Notice that I define what I mean by "traditional." See, however, note 1 above for reasons why I hesitate to use the term "traditional."

31 Louis R Torres, Mission College of Evangelism, U.S.A., began conducting evangelism training programs in 1993.

32 Geoff Youlden, Division evangelist, conducted a number of public programs. In 2001, he also became the senior pastor of the church in order to use it as a training center of evangelism for Australian lay members.

33 E.B. Price, "Church Growth in Contemporary Churches in the SPD," p. 5. Source: Official Conference Records, 5.

34 It has Sydney’s most expensive harborside mansions as well as the notorious "King’s Cross" red-light district.

35 The pastors are Milton Krause and Gary Kent.

36 Louis R. Torres, "Contemporizing the Gospel," a four-page unpublished paper.

37 Ellen G. White, Acts of the Apostles, p. 244.

38 Mark Coultan, "Bible Belt Puts Squeeze on Evolution," Sydney Morning Herald, October 28, 2004, p.4.

39 John Savage, Letters to the Editor, Sydney Morning Herald, October 30, 2004, p.42.