This study presents the first comprehensive analysis of Seventhday Adventist interchurch
relations - a 20-million member body whose ecumenical stance has so far been underresearched.
For the sake of interpreting denominational involvement and reservations in Adventism as well
as beyond the study develops a new academic approach to ecumenism based on Relational Models
Theory a comprehensive social science paradigm of interpreting human relationships. The
resulting typology of ecumenical interactions and the historical case study of Adventism
suggest that such a relational interpretation of ecumenical interaction sheds light on many of
the unresolved issues in ecumenics - such as divergent concepts of unity difficulties in
recognition processes and the permanence of denominationalism.
