Adventist Baptismal Vow - Alternative Vow

Alternative Vow

An alternative baptismal vow was introduced in 2005. It originated with the South Pacific Division branch of the Biblical Research Committee. It consists of the following three affirmations:

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1. Do you accept Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord, and do you desire to live your life in a saving relationship with Him?
2. Do you accept the teachings of the Bible as expressed in the Statement of Fundamental Beliefs of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and do you pledge by God’s grace to live your life in harmony with these teachings?
3. Do you desire to be baptized as a public expression of your belief in Jesus Christ, to be accepted into the fellowship of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, and to support the church and its mission as a faithful steward by your personal influence, tithes and offerings, and a life of service?"

A caution was expressed by Dr. Brian Bull on theological grounds, "who worried that placing the wording 'as expressed in the Statement of Fundamental Beliefs' led to the danger of the church turning the fundamentals into a creed." Other delegates expressed concerns that the alternative vow is not detailed enough, but it was passed because of its optional nature - the choice of which vow to use is at the discretion of the pastor preparing the baptismal candidate.

Read more about this topic:  Adventist Baptismal Vow

Famous quotes containing the words alternative and/or vow:

    “Our mother gives us our earliest lessons in love—and its partner, hate. Our father—our “second other”Melaborates on them. Offering us an alternative to the mother-baby relationship . . . presenting a masculine model which can supplement and contrast with the feminine. And providing us with further and perhaps quite different meanings of lovable and loving and being loved.”
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    “Love is free; to promise for ever to love the same woman is not less absurd than to promise to believe the same creed; such a vow in both cases excludes us from all inquiry.”
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