Statement on Diversity and Unity for Mission

Diversity and unity for mission are biblical principles. From the beginning of creation, God institutes diversity (Genesis 1:27-28) and throughout the pages of Scripture, we repeatedly find diversity of age (1 Timothy 4:12), female and male (Genesis 1:27), ethnicity and nationality (Revelation 14:6), gifts (1 Corinthians 12:4), and abilities (Matthew 25:14-15), among others. As the chapters of the Bible close, we find a multitude “from every nation, tribe, people and language” standing before God and praising Him (Revelation 7:9-10, NIV).

We affirm beauty in the biblically founded diversity God has instilled in us. We also affirm that God calls us to grow in understanding and unity in Christ. “God created each person unique, and His powerful influence in our lives results in a celebration of differences that respectfully values each person’s human heritage and culture.”¹

We find such unity in diversity throughout the Bible. “Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many” (1 Corinthians 12:12-14; see also Acts 13:1-3; Ephesians 2:14-16).

The purpose of unity is to advance our God-given mission which incorporates our shared values of compassion, justice, and well-being, following the command and example of Christ (Matthew 28:19-20; Revelation 14:6-12).

As Seventh-day Adventists, we live out the truth found in the Seventh-day Adventist Fundamental Belief #14, Unity in the Body of Christ, that states: “In Christ we are a new creation. Distinctions of race, culture, learning, nationality, and differences between high and low, rich and poor, male and female, must not be divisive among us. We are all equal in Christ, who by one Spirit has bonded us into one fellowship with Him and with one another; we are to serve and be served without partiality or reservation.”²

Therefore, Andrews University affirms the inherent value of all humanity because each person has been created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27). As such, we commit to:

• Loving our neighbor as we should love ourselves (Matthew 22:39);
• Looking out for the interests of others (Philippians 2:3-5);
• Repudiating favoritism and prejudice (James 2:1, 8, 9);
• Extending care and compassion for the wounded (Luke 10:30-37);
• Doing for “the least of these” as we should do for Christ (Matthew 25:40);
• Treating foreigners with love and respect (Leviticus 19:33, 34);
• Acting justly, loving mercy, and walking humbly (Micah 6:8); and
• Exemplifying unity in our diversity as we look forward to the “Blessed Hope” (Titus 2:13; Revelation 7:9).

And as we exemplify unity in diversity, we display to others that we look forward to the “Blessed Hope—the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13).

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1 "One Humanity: A human relations statement addressing racism, casteism, tribalism, and ethnocentrism.” Statement voted by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists Administrative Committee in Silver Spring, Maryland, on Sept. 15, 2020. 

2 "Unity in the Body of Christ," What Do Adventists Believe?