Recently a secular fashion magazine decided to do an article on the health benefits of being a Seventh-day Adventist. They invited me to weigh in as an “expert witness”. I share below the question the reporter asked and my answer. I thought you might find it worth your time to read:
(Reporter’s Question)
What are ten rules, habits, or guiding principles that Adventists live by that you believe may contribute to their longer life spans? These do not need to be scientific explanations. Rather, we’re interested in spiritual rules and/or your perspective on the cultural and community values that shape Adventist life for readers who may be unfamiliar with the faith.
(My Answer– Actually twelve)
The Character of God—Fear of God is endemic among believers in the West, fueled by the concept of everlasting burning hell. Adventists believe in a God who is infinitely powerful and equally gracious. Instead of seeing God as arbitrary, exacting, and even cruel (eternal torture as a consequence of a lifetime’s bad choices), Adventists understand the Bible to portray a God who is merciful, fair and desires our best good. I believe that Internalizing the mercy and kindness of God has huge health benefits, both physically and mentally.
Cosmic Conflict—Related to the above, Adventists believe that there is a cosmic conflict, a battle between good and evil, God and Satan, that encompasses the entire universe. That has implications for politics, religion, and self-care. If every political party is a battleground between God and Satan, then full and final allegiance to any political party is a fool’s errand. We can understand the fray and not stress over who gets elected. If every religion is a battleground between God and Satan, then God has left fingerprints in every religion. That means that God can use people whose beliefs are very different to teach us something. This ideally makes us open to learn from others and share what we know in mutual relationship. As far as self-care goes, it is a rule of life that we become like what we worship. Trusting in the gracious character of God helps us to deal with the evil in the world.
Human Wholeness—The idea that all components of a human being are integrated into a single person. There is no dichotomy between body and soul. The whole person is born, dies, and is resurrected (at the Second coming of Jesus—see All’s Well that Ends Well below) together. Thus, what we eat and drink, how we think and feel, our activity or lack of it, all contribute to the overall health of a person.
The Image of God—All human beings are created in the image of God (Genesis 1:27) and are thus infinitely valuable. This encourages us to both value our body and care for it, and to care deeply about the needs and health of others. Among other things, It helps Adventist health care workers to overcome compassion fatigue.
The Body as God’s Temple—When we think of our bodies as God’s temple, it is a strong motivation to avoid alcohol, tobacco, drugs, and other things that damage health. Avoiding these dramatically lowers disease risk. In addition, this conviction encourages moderation in the things which are good for us. The body as a temple changes the way that we look at others as well.
The Sabbath—At the same time that God created the original human beings, He created the Sabbath (the seventh day of every week) as a time of rest, reflection, and relationship (Genesis 2:1-3; Exodus 20:8-11). The Sabbath teaches us that living for consumption, wealth and fame is not the most important thing. Relationship with God and others is. That kind of mentality seems to relieve stress and help people avoid burnout. At least it did for me.
Marriage—Adventists believe that marriage is for life, for better or for worse. When difficulties arise in a marriage, and they always will, this encourages us to stay the course, get counseling, seek to understand how both parties contribute to the difficulties, and forgive when forgiveness is needed. We believe strong, authentic families are the healthiest way to live.
The Original Diet—According to the Bible, the original diet of human beings was entirely plant based (Gen 1:29-30). Thus, fully committed Adventists usually avoid flesh-based foods as much as possible. Eating a plant-based diet helps to avoid obesity and the diseases that come with eating the flesh of animals.
Community—Among other things, the Sabbath encourages a strong sense of community, meeting as a group every week and continuing many of those relationships during the week as well. A strong sense of community is good for mental health, which is related to physical health as well.
The Remnant—Seventh-day Adventists have sought to model their beliefs and behavior on the “remnant”—God’s last-day people in the Bible’s book of Revelation. The sense of a unique end-time mission provides meaning and purpose for life, with implications for health.
Prophetic Guidance—Adventists have long learned to trust in the prophetic role of Ellen G. White (1827-1915), who is on the list of the Smithsonian’s hundred most prominent female Americans. Her guidance has included not only the health message that undergirds the above, but much detail in other areas of life, such as child raising and education. This package of ideas provides calm and structure for life.
All’s Well that Ends Well—The word Adventist implies that a central focus of the good life is the belief that as messed up as this world is, God will bring about a positive end for those who are willing to work with Him. At the second coming of Christ dead believers are raised to life and living believers attain glorified, immortal bodies. Thus, Adventists are not terrified at every disastrous turn of today’s world, we can have hope and confidence that things will turn out OK at the end. This provides peace, security and a positive goal for life.