Marisol Quintanilla, Ph.D. is a nematologist at Michigan State University.

She took part in a Sabbath morning discussion panel during the Berrien Springs Village Church Religious Liberty Sabbath on January 14. Her testimony how the Michigan State University tried to force her to be Covid19-vaccinated even after she had natural immunity was one of many bright spots during this religious liberty weekend.

Marisol is interviewed by Gerry Wagoner here.

Gerry: Hi Marisol. How did you become a Seventh-day Adventist ?

I was born into an SDA family, my grandparents become Adventists through a German immigrant that escaped Nazi Germany to Chile because of being a conscientious objector. He did not want to join the Nazi army. My maternal grandfather became Adventist first and converted several members of his family, including his wife, some of his siblings, and also my paternal grandparents.

Gerry: What do you like about the SDA church?

The truth, it is because it’s the truth. It is undeniable that the Bible teaches that we should keep the Sabbath holy on the 7th day of the week. Also, very few other churches have a correct biblical understanding of the state of the dead. The SDA church has a very systematic method of bible study that is not based on emotion, but on logic. It is rational truth and it has been led by God.

Gerry: Tell us about your family

My husband and I have three kids. Originally, I am from Chile and my husband is from Bosnia. We met at Andrews when I was studying for a Bachelors of Agriculture. He was there studying English because a group of SDA ex-Yugoslavians had invited him to America to get a prosthetic leg since he lost his right leg with a landmine in the Bosnian war.

Gerry: Do you have a job?

Yes, I am a Assistant Professor of Nematology at Michigan State University, my role is research and extension

Gerry: How long have you worked there?

Seven years

Gerry: How did your employer respond to Covid?

They mandated vaccines, masks, and weekly spit test (Spartan Spit) I declined to get the vaccine.

Gerry: Were you pressured or threatened to get vaccinated?

Very much so!

Gerry: How did that make you feel?

It made me feel scared, the world seemed like it was changing, and our civil freedoms were disappearing

Gerry: How did your coworkers treat you?

There was a mix of pro and con. The administrators especially gave me a hard time.

Gerry: How did your church help you in this trial? How did that make you feel?

The Village Church at Berrien Springs was wonderful, they had a program to help us through the process of getting religious exemptions. I used their letter and added more information to it.
Her LETTER here
My local church, conference, and the North American Division failed me and many others. They put out a statement that was used to try to deny me and others our religious exemptions. I electronically attended a training meeting at MSU by the university physician where he was telling health professionals and administrators that most churches had compromised on the government mandates. He said that the vaccine did not go against their teachings, therefore the religious exceptions were not valid. I communicated back with them that religious liberty laws in the US protect the individual regardless of the stand their official church takes. Also, my local church pastor in Lansing was not willing to provide a letter on church stationary. He said that the church [structure] decided to not allow this and also he said that in church meetings they were told that they did not want to waste bullets on religious liberty defense for this since they were saving them for the Sunday law.

Gerry: How could your local church have helped you more?

See above, they could have provided a letter. The Lansing church and my pastor took an absolute pro-vaccine stand and did not support freedom. They supported mandates and this was disappointing. Our SDA church should support liberty of conscience (religious freedom), medical freedom, and freedom of speech.

Gerry: How could the General Conference have helped you more?

Same as above. They didn’t. [In her Sabbath morning panel testimony, Marisol shared how she could not inform her employer that she was a Seventh-day Adventist because the University would use that against her to deny her religious exemption.]

Gerry: Has your stance on the vaccine provided any witnessing opportunities?

Very much so, my letter was shared with my university administrators, and they had to read it. Because of this I was asked to speak in the Village church and now you asked me for this interview. God bless!

In her testimony, Marisol shared how the next battlefield on college campuses is gender ideology.

How we (as a church or individuals) respond to these covid vaccine mandates will largely determine our level of courage on this next battlefield.

Thoughts

What would the Seventh-day Adventist church look like if our medical system would have taken a balanced approach urging healthy living and at least a degree of caution concerning a new vaccine - especially for low risk populations? Instead they fired dedicated professionals and then complained about being overworked.

What would our church look like if our religious liberty leaders had taken a firm stand for liberty of conscience and provided legal aid for those who suffered job losses regardless of religious affiliation? Instead they echoed the most oppressive voices in government and ridiculed those who resisted.

What would our Church look like if our GC and NAD had remained silent rather than crafting narrow minded policies designed to appease the beast powers?

A closing quote from Marisol:

“In the end of time we will not have a lot of church organization behind us. It will be people who are faithful to God and God against the world systems. Our church failed us in this trial run.”