Problems in the use of the Church Manual

The following problems arise.

1. Church Manual before the Bible. Ministers, especially young ones, often turn to the Church Manual as a guide to their ministry rather than directly to Inspiration. This is by no means limited to young ministers; it includes pastors at all levels of their ministerial experience. It also must be noticed that it is not only the ministers, but also many of the laity, who treat the Church Manual almost as if it were inspired, as the very Word of God itself.
2. Church Manual as basis of discipline. Often, the Church Manual is used as a "club" to bring laity and church boards into conformity. The Church Manual is also used as a basis for defining whether men and women are faithful or unfaithful to the Seventh-day Adventist faith.
3. Church Manual leads to credalism. See the section on The drift toward credalism.
4. Church Manual leads away from Inspiration. Organization and all the difficulties associated with it had all been surmounted without the need of a church manual. The pioneers had gone to the Word of God for the basis of these foundational principles. Sadly we note that as minds moved more toward formalizing the Church Manual, the church tended less and less to follow the divine counsel.
5. Church Manual as highest authority. In some non-Western countries the Church Manual is treated with a reverence which puts it virtually on the same level as the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy. It sometimes appears to be treated as having greater authority, as least in some matters.
6. Church Manual leads to erratic church governance. From time to time, we hear claims from laity that pastors are using the Church Manual when it is favorable to their wishes and desires, and ignoring it when they want to move in another direction.

The above was excerpted from Organizational Structure and Apostasy, by Colin and Russell Standish, pages 83-86.