In early 2022, the pastor and the board of the Chewelah Seventh-day Adventist Church called a church business meeting to censure two elders who would not affirm Fundamental Belief #2.

These two elders had long been respected in the congregation. They firmly upheld all the church’s pre-1980 teachings and had never agitated the issue of the Godhead. So when the business meeting took place, the congregation voted not to censure them.

This did not satisfy those who felt that the 28 Fundamental Beliefs should be strictly enforced.

These dissatisfied members continued to make it an issue, and the conference became involved. A new pastor was assigned to the district, tasked with resolving the matter. A committee was formed and a document was drafted, stating that only those who upheld the wording of the 28 Fundamental Beliefs could occupy leadership positions in the church. A business meeting was called to ratify the statement. The pastor warned, “If the document fails, the conference will ... step in, [and] ... there will be major negative consequences to our church.”

The church business meeting was conducted as scheduled on May 21, 2023. The proposed document failed to receive the necessary 2/3 vote of approval. The conference representative at the meeting then presented a letter to the church, giving the congregation “one option.” They were to meet again two weeks later and vote to dissolve their own church.

The conference executive committee does not have the authority to close a church. But if the congregation will not voluntarily dissolve itself upon demand, the conference constituency can do it. On June 4, the majority of the church members present decided to comply with the conference and disband their church. This action was then ratified at the conference constituency session on September 24.

This true story illustrates how the 28 Fundamental Beliefs are currently being enforced as a creed.