Besides giving their members liberty to serve as noncombatants, the Adventist Church also gives them liberty to serve as combatants. A combatant is a soldier who will fight with weapons. Now then, what position does the Seventh-day Adventist Church take regarding the combatant status? Will the Church discipline or disfellowship a member who serves his country as a combatant? Here is the Church’s official position.
“For those who conscientiously choose the I-A classification (military service as a combatant) pastoral guidance and counsel should be provided in ministering to their needs since the church refrains from passing judgment on them.”68
On June 4, 1974, a letter was written by C. D. Martin of the General Conference which addressed the issue of military service. Here is a portion of that letter.
“Question: Is a member of the Adventist church to be disfellowshiped if he knowingly requests or accepts a I-A status, rejecting both the conscientious objector status and the noncombative status?
Answer: No. For a complete answer to this question, I would like to refer to an action taken at the 1972 Autumn Council….”69
In 1989 Calvin B. Rock, the general vice president of the General Conference, wrote an article that confirmed the 1972 Autumn Council decision of the church.
“We have a number of members who serve on the police force, others who work as private agency security guards, and a few who work with the FBI and other such federal agencies. Most of these individuals bear arms but are not subject to discipline for bearing arms under the terms of our Church Manual. Neither are persons in the armed forces who choose to carry weapons.” “ADVENTISTS WHO CHOOSE TO BEAR ARMS ARE NOT DISCIPLINED BY THE CHURCH.”70
In other words, an Adventist can continue to be a member of the church if he chooses to be a combatant. He will not be disfellowshiped for participating in the destruction of human life! How tragic.
In 1991, during the Persian Gulf crisis, Spectrum published an article stating how many Adventists were involved in the war. Here is what the article reported:
“The Defense Department estimates that one-half of one percent of all U.S. military personnel are Seventh-day Adventists. Based on this figure, the General Conference Adventist Chaplaincy Ministry assumes between 2,000 and 2,500 of the 500,000 U.S troops in the Gulf War were Adventists….
“One Adventist military chaplain estimates that 90 percent of the Adventists in the U.S. military–including, presumably, those in the Gulf–are combatants bearing arms.”71
According to the Spirit of Prophecy and the Bible, can an Adventist who joins the army continue his membership in the church?
“Christ has plainly taught that those who persist in open sin must be separated from the church, but He has not committed to us the work of judging character and motive.”72
“Sin and sinners in the church must be promptly dealt with, that others may not be contaminated. Truth and purity require that we make more thorough work to cleanse the camp from Achans. Let those in responsible positions not suffer sin in a brother. Show him that he must either put away his sins or be separated from the church.”73
Being a combatant is an open violation of the sixth commandment, “Thou shalt not kill.” Unfortunately, the Seventh-day Adventist Church permits individuals who choose the combatant status to continue as members in good standing of the denomination.