Expert: Kendra Perry - 10/20/2004

Question
What is allow for an Adventist to :

-   Do on Saturday
-   Participate in competition sports
-   To practice martial arts
-   Holidays that may be celebrated and which are not allowed
-   School dances and other activities
-   Getting married with no Adventists
-   What is like to grow up as an Adventist?

Thank you


Answer
Hector,

The Adventist church does not have a "official" position on any of these issues, so the answers vary from situation to situation.  I can give you some very general answers, but you will almost certainly find Adventists who have different practices than the ones I mention.

On Saturday: In general, Adventists set aside secular activities on Saturday (Sabbath is from sundown on Friday to sundown on Saturday) and spend time focusing on God through worshiping together, experiencing his nature, spending time with friends and family, or performing acts of service for other.

Competitive sports: Historically, the Adventist church has not encouraged participation in competitive sports; however, many Adventist schools do now participate in Christian leagues.  Generally, the biggest problem with competitive sports is that they require Sabbath participation.

Martial arts: I am not aware of any position on this.  I know a number of Adventists who practice tae kwon do, judo, or other martial arts.  There may be some concern about the "religious" aspects associated with them, but I have not heard a lot about this issue in Adventist circles.

Holidays: This varies, depending on the country.  In North America, most Adventists celebrate all the standard Christian holidays.  There are a few Adventists who feel that Christmas & Easter are "pagan" and should be avoided, but this is not the majority opinion.  In other countries, more people feel that these holidays are inappropriate.

Schools dances & other activities: Historically, Adventists typically discourage dancing as a form of entertainment.  This attitude does seem to be changing somewhat, depending on the style of dancing.  Another problem is that many school activities such as dances take place on Friday night, which causes a Sabbath conflict.  

Getting married to non-Adventists: The Adventist church, like most denominations, discourages its members from marrying those with different religious beliefs, since this can cause conflict within a marriage.  Adventist ministers are not allowed to marry an Adventist and a non-Adventist.  However, many members do marry non-members.

Growing up Adventist: This is a *very* big question!  I would recommend the book "Growing Up Adventist" by Andy Nash.  It is a humorous and quite accurate view of growing up in a small-town Adventist church over the past 30 years or so.  You may be able to get this from a library by inter-library loan.  I believe it is also available at http://www.adventistbookcenter.com

I hope this helps answer your questions.  Please feel free to contact me again if you have more questions or need more explanation.

Blessings,

Kendra