Perhaps their most obvious practice which differentiates
us from many other churches is that we observe
Saturday as our weekly Sabbath (from Friday
sunset to Saturday sunset). The earliest Christian
movement, the Jewish Christians centered in
Jerusalem, followed the Jewish Saturday Sabbath.
This was changed by the Church Council of Laodicea
circa 364 AD, which ordered that future religious
observances were to be conducted on Sunday.
The Seventh Day Baptist church in the 19th century
reverted to the practice of the early Christian
church and adopted Saturday for religious services.
The SDA followed suit.
BAPTISM
Baptism into the church is done by full immersion.
It is preceded by instruction, a personal acceptance
of the Scriptures, repentance of sins and confession
of sins.
DIET
Members abstain from alcohol, coffee, tea and
tobacco, and every "soul-defiling habit".
The church recommended avoiding red meat for
many decades before medical science caught up
with them. Many SDA member are vegetarians who
supplement their diet with eggs and milk.
DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE
The Adventist World Session in 2000 modified
the grounds under which a divorce is permissible.
They became:
- Adultery/fornication or abandonment by an
unbelieving spouse.
- Incest, child sexual abuse, or homosexual
behavior.
- Physical violence.
However, abandonment by a believing spouse would
not be grounds for divorce (a believing spouse
means a fellow SDA member.)
Remarriage is only allowed if one's spouse is
guilty of adultery/fornication.
The SDA church has been quite active in the
promotion of Creation Science in opposition
to the theory of evolution. The
Geoscience Research Institute at Loma
Linda University (a SDA institution)
publishes a semi-annual periodical Originswhich promotes Creation Science.
EDUCATION
Higher education is highly respected within
the church. The rate of college graduates in
SDA membership is about twice the US national
average.
CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTORS
Many Seventh-day Adventists refuse to enter
the army as combatants, but participate as medics,
ambulance drivers, etc. During World War II
in Germany, many SDA conscientious objectors
were sent to concentration camps or mental institutions;
some were executed.
Some Seventh-day Adventists volunteered for
the US Army's Operation Whitecoat. The Church
preferred to call them "conscientious participants",
because they were willing to risk their lives
as test subjects in potentially life-threatening
research.
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The Sabbath question has been
