Bloggin’ the 28: In Medias Res, the Preamble

Leaving no doctrinal gem unturned in our summer Bloggin’ the 28 project, Loma Linda University professor and blogger, Julius Nam, glosses the famous preamble to the Fundamental Beliefs.
He presents truth:
This preamble—in what it says and does not say—is pregnant with the
potential to lead Adventism further into becoming an incredibly open,
dynamic, diverse yet mutually engaged community. The genius of this
statement is that it makes the bold claim that there is no creed but
the Bible, yet it does not tell you how you should read it—and then it
prevents the 28 from encroaching upon the absolute place of Scripture
by relativizing those statements and making them vulnerable to changes.
Thus, to be an Adventist, you only need to accord Scripture a creedal
place in your belief system—and then commit to engaging with the rest
of the community in seeking a fuller meaning and application of
Scripture. Your Adventism is not to be judged by the 28 (which are
descriptive statements of the dominant, consensus views, but not
normative), by any statement made by a traditional authority (such as
Ellen White, Joseph Bates, or Uriah Smith), or by positions propounded
by representatives of any administrative structures or major church
institutions (such as Andrews Seminary, Biblical Research Institute, or
Loma Linda University).
This may seem like an unrealistic expectation, but it’s the very
vision that is implicit in the preamble. It is a statement of hope for
a community that is patient and kind with each other because no one has
the final word on the truth.

Read the whole essay and join the already active commentators here.