Yesterday, I was nearly knocked out of my chair, to the ground, when I read a particular article that appeared in the North County Times, a news publication here in the San Diego area.

Apparently, on November 24th, a lawsuit was filed against a local Jewish religious group called The Federation of Jewish Adventist Society, for their use of the word "Adventist" in their name. Who is the plaintiff? Why, none other than the Seventh Day Adventist Church. What? Really? Come on, are you serious?

The article can be found here:
North County Times

This has got to be one of the most blatant abuses of religious authority I've ever seen. This is a prime example of why people mistrust Christians. Honestly, I feel that the behavior of these few is unconscionable. Seriously, being a Christian and being litigious are at odds from the very outset. I realize that the Bible doesn't specifically prohibit taking unbelievers to court. However, I don't think that the spirit of the negative inference is to cause smaller religious organizations to disconnect from their own identities or religious liberties.

In fact, there is an overwhelmingly and disproportionately abundant amount of Biblical advice to support the idea of actually not pursuing this course of action. Just open anywhere in the New Testament and it will not take long to find a passage that promotes grace in our daily dealings. Certainly, the Bible admonishes us to willingly do so in the face of much more grievous offenses than the usage of a word. No, in my opinion, this is petty, wrong and an affront to what Jesus was trying to teach people.

Luckily, there are organizations out there that advocate for the religious rights of others. One such organization is the International Religious Liberty Association. Oh wait a minute; This organization was founded by the Seventh Day Adventist Church in 1893 in order to protect the religious freedoms of all...including non-Christians. No kidding.

Here is their mission statement, taken from their website:

"The International Religious Liberty Association will disseminate the principles of religious liberty throughout the world; defend and safeguard the civil right of all people to worship or not to worship, to adopt a religion or belief of their choice, to manifest their religious convictions in observance, promulgation, and teaching, subject only to the respect for the equivalent rights of others; support the right of religious organizations to operate freely in every country by their establishing and owning charitable or educational institutions; and organize local, regional, and national chapters as well as seminars, and congresses."

I realize that, although this is a separate organization, it still was founded by, and embodies principles that have been put forth by the Seventh Day Adventist church for years. This denomination has been widely known for these tenets of inclusion and liberty. It just doesn't seem like this recent action is in keeping with such principles. Come on guys, don't you have bigger fish to fry? And, do you honestly think that a small religious group of people using a word is the most pressing religious emergency in the San Diego area? Even by your own standards?

I'm sorry, but I must say that I am openly opposed to what you are doing. It is not Christ-like in the least. Please reconsider what you are doing. Judging by the quotes in the above article, it seems as though you are worried that you want to protect your name and avoid confusion with the smaller group. Well, what about the rest of us? How are we, as a collective group of Christians, going to be affected by what you are about to do? What about our name? What about the name of our King? Please...don't do it. Remember, our cause is Christ...not pride. How many will choose not to come to the Cross because of your pending action?

Incidentally, I have the word "ministry" in my blog name. You have that word in your list of trademarked words on your offical website. Are you going to sue me too? (and thousands of others)How can you trademark a word like ministry, anyway...or am I missing something?