January 12, 2010
Seventh-day Adventist Church
Official, historical, and contemporary statements on animals
General Information
Seventh-day Adventist Church
The Seventh-day Adventist Church was officially established in 1863, although it traces its date of birth to 1844 when it affirmed the beliefs that came to form its name. These beliefs include: the Bible as the infallible Word of God; the creation of the world in six days, with the seventh day (Saturday) set aside as the Sabbath; and the imminent return (Advent) of Christ.
Other distinctive beliefs include: the indivisibility of the human body, mind, and spirit; death as an unconscious sleep from which only the elect will awake; humanity as embroiled in a great struggle between God and the Devil; the laws of the Old Testament as still binding upon Christians; and a final investigative judgment of the dead, which began in heaven in 1844 and will culminate when Christ returns to earth.
Because Adventists believe that body, mind, and soul are inseparable, spiritual import is given to physical health and mental education. This emphasis has inspired Adventists to establish schools, hospitals, clinics, and health food factories. It also has inspired the Church to encourage its members to refrain from alcohol, tobacco, and caffeine, and to adopt a vegetarian diet. Today, an estimated 35% of Adventists practice vegetarianism.
Number of members worldwide: 15.6 million
Number of members in the US and Canada: 1.06 million
Governing Body:
The Seventh-day Adventist Church has four levels of government: the local church; the local conference or mission; the union conference or mission; and the General Conference. The General Conference headquarters is in Silver Spring, Maryland.
Official Statements on Animals
The Seventh-day Adventist Church has issued several official statements on animals. Quotes from these, as well as historical and contemporary statements, can be found by clicking on the link at the bottom of the page.
Because the Seventh-day Adventist Church accepts the Bible as the infallible and historically trustworthy Word of God, it looks to the Bible for Wisdom about animals and humanity's proper treatment of them. According to the Adventist Church, the biblical story of creation reveals that humanity has been created in the divine image and given dominion over all other creatures. This story, say Adventists, presents human beings as unique within creation--both different from and superior to all other forms of earthly life.
Yet while human beings are the pinnacle of creation, all creatures are the handiwork of God and thus are deserving of our esteem and protection. Because we are sinful we sometimes forget our obligations to other creatures. Ecosystem and species destruction, says the Church, are visible evidence of our sinfulness.
In order to turn us from our sinful path, God desires us to commemorate His creative work and the close relationship that exists between Creator and creation. To help us do this, God has set aside the Sabbath and commanded us to observe it. Through the Sabbath, God reminds us that the world is His handiwork and that our destruction of species and disruption of ecological systems "should be prohibited."
Safeguarding God's creation, however, requires more than weekly observance of the Sabbath. It also requires a wholesome lifestyle. Ways in which we can achieve this lifestyle include consuming and polluting less, avoiding tobacco, alcohol and irresponsible drug use, and promoting a vegetarian diet.
Historical References on Animals
One of the founders of the Seventh-day Adventist Church was Ellen G. White, whose visions, spiritual leadership, and extensive writings convinced her fellow Adventists that she possessed the gift of prophecy. White's visions inspired her to warn against the negative health effects of eating meat. These warnings eventually came to predict a time when "it will not be safe to use anything that comes from the animal creation."
Although White focused primarily on the positive health effects of vegetarianism, she also revealed that a vegetarian diet has positive effects on the mind and soul because mental, physical, and spiritual strength are interdependent. White also counseled Adventists to take the suffering of animals into consideration when making dietary choices. Although she never made vegetarianism a requirement of the faith, she did warn that, "A record goes up to heaven and a day is coming when judgment will be pronounced against those who abuse God's creatures."
Contemporary References on Animals
Because the Bible is affirmed as the authentic and trustworthy word of God, it forms the basis of contemporary Adventists' views on animals. Passages from Genesis to Revelation reveal that God cares for and about animals and desires us to do the same.
The attached PDF contains contemporary Adventist opinions concerning the biblical call for compassion and the ways in which practices such as industrialized animal-farms (known as factory farms) and scientific experiments on animals often violate the biblical directive to be compassionate caretakers of God's creation.
The section also contains statements concerning Christ's imminent return to Earth. These statements warn that while Christ's return will inagurate a new heaven and a new earth, we must not treat our current world carelessly or its inhabitants callously. We should care for all God's creatures, say Adventists, because we align ourselves with Christ whenever we work to end "suffering and protect the helpless," because our "attitudes toward creation now will color attitudes we take toward the new creation," and because those who destroy the earth with themselves be destroyed.
Read the detailed Seventh-day Adventist Official Statements, Historical and Contemporary References, including links to full articles, through our PDF