—Rethinking the General Conference’s role. As we go to press, the GC’s Annual Council is convening in Bangalore, India. One of the most far-reaching discussions will likely focus on the role of the GC in world church operations. GC president Robert Folkenberg is raising the issue of whether the general church leadership should restrict itself to evangelizing unentered areas of the world or should continue to financially support diverse operations worldwide. No decision is expected this fall, but the debate should get well underway

The implications are far-reaching. A wholesale restructuring could result in the redistribution of denominational finances, allowing wealthy divisions of the church to have their donations focused on world evangelism. Regions of the church that are now subsidized would necessarily become more self-reliant.

—Why Utrecht for the 1995 General Conference Session? Although the great majority of the 7.7 million Adventists worldwide are people of color, the General Conference sessions are always held in “white” cities of the world. Although reconsideration is being given to Utrecht, Holland, as the 1995 site, it is not because it is a Caucasian city. When chosen, Utrecht was perceived as a sufficiently neutral location that Eastern Block church representatives could easily attend. World politics have undergone numerous democratic breakthroughs, and now Utrecht has lost its particular draw. Why not, then, an under-developed country’s convention city? According to the GC, they don’t exist. In 1988, Nairobi’s facilities were stretched to accommodate the Annual Council—a meeting dwarfed by GC sessions. Bangalore, in the relatively under-developed India, can hardly accommodate the relatively small Annual Council this year.