Historic Adventism

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"Historic Adventist" is a self-designation used by some within the Seventh-day Adventist Church who regard themselves as upholding the traditional theological positions of the church. They are also known as "traditional Adventists".

As a general rule, historic Adventists feel that the church leadership has departed from key doctrinal "pillars" ever since the second half of the 20th century. Specifically, they point to the publication in 1957 of a book entitled Seventh-day Adventists Answer Questions on Doctrine; this book is considered to undermine historic Adventist theology in favor of theology more compatible with evangelicalism.^[1]

Prominent figures in historic Adventism include M. L. Andreasen, Herbert Douglass, and Colin and Russell Standish. Hope International and the Hartland Institute are expressions of historic Adventism. "Last Generation Theology" shares some elements with Historic Adventism, yet considers itself to have "expanded" the beliefs of Historic Adventism to their logical conclusion.^[2]

While historic Adventists have generally not broken away from the Adventist denomination to form their own church, believing that the Adventist church is still God’s chosen instrument, many historic Adventists feel that the wider church has apostatized and some even argue that the denominational leadership is presently in apostasy. There is thus a tendency for historic Adventists to promote their message through independent ministries, which may have a strained relationship with the official church.

Historic Adventists lie at the opposite end of the Adventist theological spectrum from progressive Adventists.

Definitions of "historic Adventism" vary somewhat, depending on the author.