SILVER SPRING, Md. — As 2015 dawns, General Conference officials have unveiled some of the boldest plans for the world church to date: space exploration.
“For decades, we as church leaders have struggled with how to equip Adventists to live in the world but not be of it,” said GC Education Director, Ian Dunkin. “We believe that the answer lies in an Adventist colony somewhere in space.”
Dunkin said that church leaders are not yet sure if investing tithes and offerings in space craft development is completely justified as NASA has “already done a pretty good job on the technology side of things.” Dunkin said that for now, church funds would only be set aside to prepare Adventists for the “basic day-to-day realities” of space travel and colonization.
“We still have some work to do on the details but the underlying logic is solid as a rock,” said Dunkin. “If we are spending all these resources churning out pastors, teachers and nurses but haven’t spent a dollar on readying our young people for living beyond the corrupting influences of planet earth, we are missing the mark.”
Dunkin added that part of the inspiration for an Adventist space colony came from the many Adventists educational campuses around the world: “We Adventists excel at building compounds and creating self-sustaining communities away from the corrupting influence of cities, popular culture and decent dining. What’s stopping us from creating the next Adventist bubble in space?”
