The overall conclusions seem to indicate:

1. Becoming more educated is the answer to stave off divorce.
2. Marrying at a young age allows for a higher opportunity for divorce.

That is a sad commentary, considering that today's educational systems do not express biblical values. I noticed that according to the article the divorce rate peaked in 1980. I am curious what the divorce rate was in the early '30s and '40s.

In addition, the suggestion that the government and clergy should work together to help minimize divorce has far reaching implications, especially for Adventists. I'm not paranoid, but should this not be something we should already be doing?

I realize this is just a general report but the moment you put it in the Review, it makes it a view point held by Seventh-day Adventists. I am almost positive you will get more comments in regards to this because not all people will see this as a general report.

This article was more like a primer; it left one asking more questions than it answered. Will you do a follow up article? It is a good topic and it requires more exploration.

Randolph Moeller


THE RETURN OF THE PRODIGAL
Thanks for printing Dennis Sellers' story, "Return of the Prodigal Pastor" (April, 2005). I'm among the many former members who returned to the church after my faith had been destroyed. It was a hard road, but I suspect the Lord leads many of us that way in order to rebuild our faith on solid ground--particularly those of us who, at one point, really had no faith of our own whatsoever (very common among those of us who grow up in the "system").

Even though I've been there, dealing with people who've left the church is a hard issue. In recent years I've had many friends call to say (with pride) that they've left the church. The implication is that those of us who remain are unthinking, unsophisticated, unquestioning, misguided sheep, who have yet to be enlightened. (I'm particularly disdained because I left and came back.) Many of them are angry, resentful of treatment they've received by church members or the "system," or hung up on pet issues or biblical passages (anger and resentment are generally the common threads). Some are downright caustic.

Having been in their shoes, I still struggle to know how to respond in any meaningful way. My failure to do so has never been for lack of caring, but usually because I'm completely perplexed (which doesn't excuse the failure). I'm sure they're equally perplexed. There we are, staring at each other from opposite sides of a fence, wondering why "we're here" and "they're there." We remember well what it was like to be on the other side, so we pray for each other.

My own turning point came while I was attending a secular college and suddenly had a burning desire to read the Bible from cover to cover over a three-month period. As I read, all those concepts and doctrines I'd been raised with jumped out at me, and the big picture suddenly made sense. After that my faith became rooted in personal Bible study rather than in the church. That paved the way for me to be in the church without being mad at everyone I didn't like in the church.

Since then, I've looked into the history of Adventism and have come to regard our early pioneers as kindred spirits. They simply searched and studied their Bibles, prayed extensively for the Lord to guide them, and acted on whatever discoveries they made. They didn't even have Clifford Goldstein to steer them! (I've appreciated his books, too, by the way.) How simple is that? A guy in our valley, who knows almost nothing of Adventists and has never read Ellen White, has been doing the same things lately (prayer, personal Bible study, and responsive action), and he's becoming the most "Adventist" person I know (though he'd probably cringe at the title).

It's really not any more complicated now than that. The Bible is not that obscure or hard to read. And there's plenty of evidence supporting its authority and inspiration. The things the Lord requires of us are still pretty simple: trust (believe), obey, and be kind to one another. How do we make such a mess of things from both sides of the fence? It really is a quandary, and probably a sign we're in the last battle.

Conna Bond
Swan Valley, Montana

I was appalled by the poor treatment given to Dennis Sellers the few times he tried to reconnect to the church. Has no one ever read 1 Corinthians 13? How can we expect to keep converts in the church or help those who have left if we treat people like this? The parable of the sheep and the goats is all about how we treat people. Doctrinal purity is not even mentioned!

It's hard enough for people who have been away to summon up the courage to come back for a visit without negative experiences like those mentioned. Is the church a club for the acceptable, or an outreach for everyone who is seeking?

Carol Morse
College Place, Washington

Dennis Sellers tells a story that happens more often than we really want to know. The reaction to "backsliders," especially those who join one of the "fringe" groups, seems to be the same everywhere. The prevailing wisdom is that we should not talk to them or have any contact with them for fear of contamination. There is the stigma that places the contact in jeopardy of being branded as being of like mind with them.

Then again, the attack of these "apostate groupies" against the established church has been particularly strident and vitriolic. It is not easy to take even a brotherly stand and readily embrace those who have taken this route. It is often confrontational and accusatory and one must listen to the denunciation of doctrines we hold sacred.

After reading Sellers' story, I believe it is time that the church rethink its methods and instruct its members in a more loving and user-friendly approach to separated believers. More are surely waiting to return, and are seeking favorable circumstances to do so.

Pastor S. Peter Campbell Sr.
West Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

While I am very sorry that Dennis Sellers' experience trying to reconnect with the church was so unChristlike, and am happy that he and his family are once again Seventh-day Adventists, it need never have happened. That Pastor Sellers is easily swayed by what he reads is evident. He mentions a book by Brimsmead, and now a book by Clifford Goldstein that greatly impacted his life. I would suggest that he stick with the Bible and the writings of Ellen G. White in the future, and he should have a long, happy, and prosperous calling.

Jesus is the only model we are to pattern ourselves after; no one else on earth even comes close.

Silvia David


QUESTIONS ON SUFFERING
The recent editorial concerning the difficult subject of human suffering ("Tsunami," Mar. 10, 2005), left me with some questions.

Did William Johnsson's earlier statement, "suffering cannot be alleviated by philosophy or theology," harmonize with his later statement, "from the life, death, resurrection, and teachings of Jesus I get the anchors that hold me in place through winds and the water"?

My question is whether the life, death, resurrection, and teachings of Jesus are theological truth that makes all suffering more bearable? I wonder too about Johnsson's statement, "God simply comes to Job." Doesn't God also draw attention to the problem of evil by addressing some "if you have understanding" questions to Job (Job 38, 39, 40)? Additional sections of Scripture reveal a God Who not only comes to us in suffering, listening empathetically to our grief, but One who reasons with us about our faith to help alleviate our suffering (John 11:23-27). Is it not theology, then, in the finest sense of the word that will keep us from blaming God for evil?

This last thought may just be picking at nits, but the more I ponder the book of Job the more I wonder whether God let Job in on the big picture after all. Is it probable that in the end Job knew his own story?

James Rafferty


HEALTH AND THE GOSPEL
Regarding "The Little Clinics That Could," by Gary Tetz and DeLona Lang Bell (Feb. 24, 2005):

I have been involved in stop smoking seminars, cooking schools and weight control classes. We had a health screening van 52 days in our district in one conference. We had a five-and-a-half pack a day smoker and her husband quit smoking as a result of the stop smoking seminar. This was followed by a Revelation Seminar in which we were able to baptize three in that family.

Ellen G. White wrote about pastors needing "to obtain an education in Medical Missionary lines," (Medical Ministry, p. 239). She also wrote that the medical missionary work and the gospel ministry must be blended. "As physicians unite with ministers in proclaiming the gospel in the great cities of the land, their combined labors will result in influencing many minds in favor of the truth for this time" (Ibid., p. 248).

Drs. Spady and Torquato are right on target in teaming up with the conference in doing church-clinic partnership. I would like to see this go nationwide.

Ernest Clark
Collegedale, Tennessee


CELEBRATING WHOLENESS
I was very pleased with the special issue of the Adventist Review celebrating 100 years of healing ministries at Loma Linda University ("Transforming Lives" undated special issue).

I graduated from Loma Linda University Medical School, in the same class as Joan Coggin and Jack Provonsha, more than 50 years ago. Although I can't approach their claim to fame, I greatly appreciate the education I received there.

While serving the church in Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Taiwan, and the United States, I must admit to being proud of our family heritage in Loma Linda and other Adventist endeavors. Our great uncle, John Burden, was instrumental in the founding of Loma Linda, Paradise Valley, and Glendale hospitals. Our great-grandfather, W. C. Grainger, was one of the founders of Healdsburg College (later Pacific Union College) and our first missionary to Japan.

I find it a great challenge to live up to that kind of heritage. We pray daily for the rapid growth of all phases of our church ministry that Christ may come soon; and that we all may be prepared for that glorious event that will put all medical workers out of business.

Kenneth Burden, M. D.
Chehalis, Washington