Readers will recall that Andrews University chaplain Michael Polite has called for a revolution. Now the revolution is calling for a convention: they plan to meet in Indianapolis—in a sort of counter-General Conference—on March 22 and 23, 2019. Polite dislikes the “institutionalism” of today’s SDA Church, but isn’t convening a convention the first step toward institutionalizing the revolution? (I always thought the “Institutional Revolutionary Party”—Mexico’s sole political party for many decades—was an hilarious name.)
Polite argues that Jesus died to defeat centralization in the church, whereasTed Wilson is trying to centralize all power. (Or something like that; honestly I have limited patience for teasing narrative logic out of a revolutionary screed, but then Michael Polite would counter that my logic is just a tool of the counter-revolutionary oppressor class.) Watch the video for yourself, and see what you make of it:
A second video, explaining the reasons for the revolution, describes Jesus as a proto-Marxist, “a revolutionary figure whose advocacy for justice agitated the consciences of those in power.” “We feel called to boldly stand for the organic Christianity that our denomination exchanged for institutional hierarchy.”
No, we don’t want any hierarchy. Except that Christ himself began the organization of the church by ordaining 12 disciples, and within a few months of His death, the church had three levels of organization, (1) apostles, (2) elders/bishops, and (3) deacons. Turns out that “organic” Christianity was highly organized.
The revolution also has a rather anodyne website, #AdventistRevolution.com, a white website that looks like it was inspired by the Beatles’ White Album, or perhaps Tom Wolfe’s tailor. The kids have the wrong color scheme; aren’t they taught that the revolutionaries wore red, and the counterrevolutionaries wore white? Maybe Andrews should fire Michael Polite and acquire another history teacher.