A few quotes by Ellen White

SDA is often accused of being a cult. Generally I've found them to be pretty reasonable on most issues. Here are a few quotes regarding discipline from Ellen White herself. We've recently been discussing what good leadership would do in trying to take a church which has become overly harsh and judgmental in a more reasonable direction. Those churches which many of my regular readers come from might do well to learn something from what she had to say to her lower leadership:

Perverted Discipline

In dealing with the erring, harsh measures should not be resorted to; milder means will effect far more. Make use of the milder means most perseveringly, and even if they do not succeed, wait patiently; never hurry the matter of cutting off a member from the church. Pray for him, and see if God will not move upon the heart of the erring. Discipline has been largely perverted. Those who have had very defective characters themselves have been very forward in disciplining others, and thus all discipline has been brought into contempt. Passion, prejudice, and partiality, I am sorry to say, have had abundant room for exhibition, and proper discipline has been strangely neglected. If those who deal with the erring had hearts full of the milk of human kindness, what a different spirit would prevail in our churches. May the Lord open the eyes and soften the hearts of those who have a harsh, unforgiving, unrelenting spirit toward those whom they think in error. Such men dishonor their office and dishonor God. They grieve the hearts of his children, and compel them to cry unto God in their distress. The Lord will surely hear their cry, and will judge for these things.--Review and Herald, May 14, 1895

Control Self First

Those who control others should first learn to control themselves. Unless they learn this lesson, they can not be Christlike in their work. They are to abide in Christ, speaking as He would speak, acting as He would act,--with unfailing tenderness and compassion.--Review and Herald, April 28, 1903. {ChL 65.2}

Pastoral Ministry 36.1:

Those with incorrigible, unbending, stubborn traits of character, when transformed, make the most valuable ministers.--Ministers have been presented to me, with their course of action and their character before they were converted--the hardest and most incorrigible, the most unbending, the most stubborn--and yet, every one of these traits of character was what they needed in the work of God. We don't want to kill that. It is needed in order to fill important positions of trust in the cause of God. There must be a transformation of character. The leaven must work in the human heart, until every action is in conformity to the will of God, and they are sanctified; then they become the most valuable. It is this very kind of individuals that God can use in the different branches of His work.--9MR 61.PaM36.1

SDAKinship

SDAKinship is a an international group to help homosexual members of the Seventh Day Adventist Church stay in the church. It has no official relationship with the church Kinship believes that LGBT people are created as God intended and should not be subjected to mistreatment or discrimination. The affirm that the 6 verses frequently cited to claim homosexuality is a sin are incorrectly translated. Further they note that Ellen White refused to tie the destruction of Sodom to homosexual acts further weakening the claims that homosexuality is sinful.

From a more broad based persepctive SDAKinship won a california lawsuit affirming the rights of groups that claim to be within a religion to use the name. That is the Seventh Day Adventist church had sued SDAKinship and lost on first amendment grounds which sets a precedent for other groups which are outside the mainstream of their denomination.

Their outreach is quite beautiful:

We understand what it is like to be a Seventh-day Adventist struggling with issues of sexual orientation, because we each had similar experiences. And we also know that this struggle is often painful, frightening and discouraging. Kinship is here to help and to provide support.

If you are feeling lonely, depressed or suicidal, or if you need a professional counselor who is supportive of gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender concerns, chances are we know someone in your area who may help. Be assured that we are sensitive to your need for confidentiality. If you wish, we can also refer you to an understanding SDA pastor, teacher or other professional we know who is sensitive and informed about sexual orientation issues.

Above all, please know we care. We understand that you need to think through what your sexuality means, what to do about it, what it may mean to your loved ones, and whether it is possible to be gay and a Seventh-day Adventist. We will not try to determine your conclusions if you reach out to us. We will endeavor to understand and help you while you make those important decisions about who you are and God's plan for your life.

We want to respond in the most helpful way. We are people of diverse ages and backgrounds, so please let us know the type of person to whom you feel most comfortable talking. For example, a woman rather than a man, someone who came out while being married, or someone with a similar background or profession. You may also be more comfortable talking to someone who speaks your native language.

If you are a pastor, teacher, counselor or parent, please know that we welcome all inquiries and that we also respect and honor your need for confidentiality.

The group maintains a myspace page. GLAadventist endorses SDAKinship. I'll close with something from GLAadventist:

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 5:3

What does it mean to be “poor in spirit”? Poor in spirit does not refer to nice, church-going people who realize they need “more of Jesus.” It describes people who are morally, spiritually, emotionally empty, people with zero spiritual assets, people who are spiritually bankrupt. Jesus announces the amazing news that these people are blessed. ...
Many homosexuals who’ve shared their stories with me have carried a profound sense of unworthiness. They are profoundly dissatisfied with themselves. They feel condemned and unwanted by God. Sometimes they are isolated from their parents and siblings. Frequently they are unwanted at church. They feel desperately poor in spirit. And Jesus’ first word to them is: You are blessed; the kingdom of heaven belongs to you.

David Noel and 16 Excommunications

Two references to start this off:
Herald Tribune (the south Florida one, not the international one)
Sun-Herald

David Noel is a pastor of a small Seventh-Day Adventist church in Port Charlotte, Florida. There were some serious questions about how money was being spent. However, the church is not locally governed and the pastor is not appointed by the congregation. The higher office didn't get involved, tensions escalated, there was a mild protest, and Noel excommunicated everyone involved.

This seems like a clear-cut violation of adventist guidelines. The next level up is getting involved once it hit the papers but no sign of how it was eventually resolved. So does anyone know what really happened? Why didn't the protections in place work?