Raymond Cottrell
Encyclopedia
Raymond Forrest Cottrell (April 21, 1911, Los Angeles
, California
– January 12, 2003, Calimesa
, California) was a respected Adventist
theologian
, missionary, teacher, writer and editor. He was an associate editor of both the Adventist Review (the church's official news magazine) and the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary. Raymond Cottrell
, is seen by some as a "progressive Adventist", as he disagreed with certain traditional positions of the church, including the investigative judgment
, and served in an editorial role for the independently owned and operated magazine Adventist Today
. He was a consulting editor to Spectrum
magazine, another independent Adventist paper, both which leaned to progressive Adventist viewpoints.
He was the first Adventist to become a member of a scholarly theological society, and was instrumental in the founding of the Biblical Research Institute
.
was a Seventh Day Baptist
who first listened to William Miller
before 1844 and the Great Disappointment
, yet did not become a follower
. He became a Seventh-day Adventist in 1851.
Cottrell was married to Elizabeth (who was born May 20, 1912 in Phoenix
, Arizona
).
with Japan
during World War II
, returning to America.
Cottrell taught biblical exegesis at Pacific Union College
for 10 or 11 years, while Elizabeth worked in the business office for several years.
Following this appointment, Francis D. Nichol
called him to the Review and Herald Publishing Association
to commence work on the new Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary. The pair arrived in Takoma Park
, Maryland
in late September 1952, and Cottrell began work on the Commentary on October 1. (Elizabeth worked in the Review Book Billing Department until her retirement in 1977.) During the next five years, Cottrell reported he spent over 15,000 hours studying the Bible, covering every verse. As well as holding the position of associate editor, Cottrell also contributed 2,000 pages to the series, the third largest number of manuscript pages of any author. Yet including his editorial work he probably had more input than any other writer into the Commentary.
Articles written by Cottrell for the commentary included "The Role of Israel in Old Testament Prophecy" and others. In this article he wrote that the original subject of the Old Testament predictive prophecies was the nation of Israel, their fulfillment being conditional on the response of the Jewish people to the covenant and on accepting the Messiah. However due to the "overriding pastoral concern" of Nichol, the editor-in-chief overruled the consensus of the other editors – one of only two or three occasions when he did so. He also wrote numerous articles for the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Dictionary and Encyclopedia on topics in Bible and theology.
Cottrell's critiques of the manuscript of Questions on Doctrine
(published in 1957), were "mostly unheeded" by its authors and "might have prevented much of the upheaval that followed the publication of the book", according to Julius Nam
.
In 1957 Nichol invited him to be an associate editor of the Adventist Review, a position he held for 7 years. He worked for another 7 years as a book editor. Cottrell also served as a member of the Biblical Research Committee (now the Biblical Research Institute
).
He retired in 1977, to Calimesa, California. There he served at Loma Linda University
as an adjunct faculty member of the religion department. He also worked for the General Conference
and for the Southeastern California Conference on various commissions and projects.
Cottrell was a founder of Adventist Today
, a contemporary Adventist magazine first published in 1993. He and others at Loma Linda had conceived of the idea for a new magazine in the Autumn of the previous year. As well as contributing articles, he was editor and had the title of editor emeritus
for the remainder of his life.
On February 6, 2002, Cottrell's paper "The 'Sanctuary Doctrine' – Asset or Liability?" was presented by Larry Christoffel at the San Diego
, California Adventist Forum in the Tierrasanta
Adventist church. His paper deals with the history of the Adventist sanctuary doctrine and argues against William Miller
's Biblical interpretation of the "2,300 evenings and mornings" of Daniel 8:14. Miller believed these were literal years, ending in 1844. The Adventist church adopted Miller's view and today forms part of its official beliefs
. Cottrell's exegesis of Daniel contends that the historical Adventist sanctuary doctrine can not be sustained using any part of the book of Daniel; specifically Daniel 8:14. As such, this paper is as significant as the one presented by Dr. Desmond Ford at Glacier View; a paper which cost Dr. Ford his ministerial credentials. Christoffel responded in his own paper.
His wife Elizabeth died on August 2, 2002 in Calimesa. Raymond died the following year on January 12, 2003, also in Calimesa. He was survived by three children – Richard E. Cottrell, Ric W. Cottrell and Peggy J. Cottrell Tomat, his brother Leland Horton Cottrell, three grandsons. Six great-grandchildren - Shane Cottrell, Cory Cottrell, Chase Cottrell, Morgan Cottrell, Brandon Cottrell and Chloe Cottrell.
Tributes:
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles , with a population at the 2010 United States Census of 3,792,621, is the most populous city in California, USA and the second most populous in the United States, after New York City. It has an area of , and is located in Southern California...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
– January 12, 2003, Calimesa
Calimesa, California
Calimesa is a city in Riverside County, California, United States in the Greater Los Angeles area. The population was 7,879 at the 2010 census, up from 7,139 at the 2000 census. It is situated on the San Gorgonio Pass.-Incorporation:...
, California) was a respected Adventist
Seventh-day Adventist Church
The Seventh-day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the original seventh day of the Judeo-Christian week, as the Sabbath, and by its emphasis on the imminent second coming of Jesus Christ...
theologian
Christian theology
- Divisions of Christian theology :There are many methods of categorizing different approaches to Christian theology. For a historical analysis, see the main article on the History of Christian theology.- Sub-disciplines :...
, missionary, teacher, writer and editor. He was an associate editor of both the Adventist Review (the church's official news magazine) and the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary. Raymond Cottrell
Raymond Cottrell
Raymond Forrest Cottrell was a respected Adventist theologian, missionary, teacher, writer and editor. He was an associate editor of both the Adventist Review and the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary...
, is seen by some as a "progressive Adventist", as he disagreed with certain traditional positions of the church, including the investigative judgment
Investigative judgment
The investigative judgment is a unique Seventh-day Adventist doctrine, which asserts that a divine judgment of professed Christians has been in progress since 1844. It is intimately related to the history of the Seventh-day Adventist Church and was described by the church's prophet and pioneer...
, and served in an editorial role for the independently owned and operated magazine Adventist Today
Adventist Today
Adventist Today is a bimonthly Christian magazine representing a progressive Seventh-day Adventist perspective. First published in 1993, it is currently edited by J. David Newman, the former editor of Ministry...
. He was a consulting editor to Spectrum
Spectrum (magazine)
Spectrum is the official publication of Adventist Forums, published four times a year. It was established "to encourage Seventh-day Adventist participation in the discussion of contemporary issues from a Christian viewpoint, to look without prejudice at all sides of a subject, to evaluate the...
magazine, another independent Adventist paper, both which leaned to progressive Adventist viewpoints.
He was the first Adventist to become a member of a scholarly theological society, and was instrumental in the founding of the Biblical Research Institute
Biblical Research Institute
The Biblical Research Institute is a service department of the Seventh-day Adventist Church with the three stated functions of research, apologetics , and service to the church. It serves as a theological consultant to the General Conference...
.
Personal Life
Raymond Cottrell was born on April 21, 1911 in Los Angeles, into a family which already had a long history within the Adventist church. His great-grandfather Roswell F. CottrellRoswell F. Cottrell
Roswell Fenner Cottrell came from a family of Seventh Day Baptists. He was the son of John Cottrell and Mary Polly Stillman After joining the sabbatarian Adventists who eventually organized the Seventh-day Adventist Church, he became one of their leading advocates...
was a Seventh Day Baptist
Seventh Day Baptist
Seventh Day Baptists are Christian Baptists who observe Sabbath on the seventh-day of the week in accord with their understanding of the Biblical Sabbath for the Judeo-Christian tradition...
who first listened to William Miller
William Miller (preacher)
William Miller was an American Baptist preacher who is credited with beginning the mid-nineteenth century North American religious movement now known as Adventism. Among his direct spiritual heirs are several major religious denominations, including Seventh-day Adventists and Advent Christians...
before 1844 and the Great Disappointment
Great Disappointment
The Great Disappointment was a major event in the history of the Millerite movement, a 19th-century American Christian sect that formed out of the Second Great Awakening. Based on his interpretations of the prophecies in the book of Daniel The Great Disappointment was a major event in the history...
, yet did not become a follower
Millerites
The Millerites were the followers of the teachings of William Miller who, in 1833, first shared publicly his belief in the coming Second Advent of Jesus Christ in roughly the year 1843.-Origins:...
. He became a Seventh-day Adventist in 1851.
Cottrell was married to Elizabeth (who was born May 20, 1912 in Phoenix
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix is the capital, and largest city, of the U.S. state of Arizona, as well as the sixth most populated city in the United States. Phoenix is home to 1,445,632 people according to the official 2010 U.S. Census Bureau data...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
).
Career
From 1930 to 1934 Cottrell worked as a church pastor in the Pacific Union. From 1934 to 1941 he served in the China Division (which dissolved in 1952, now the Chinese Union Missionhttp://www.chumsda.org/chi/index.php) of the church as an administrator and educator, assisted in missionary work by his wife. They left early because of the hostilitiesSecond Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
with Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, returning to America.
Cottrell taught biblical exegesis at Pacific Union College
Pacific Union College
Pacific Union College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Angwin, California, United States. It is the only four-year college in Napa County, California....
for 10 or 11 years, while Elizabeth worked in the business office for several years.
Following this appointment, Francis D. Nichol
Francis D. Nichol
Francis David Nichol was a Seventh-day Adventist editor, of the church's main newsmagazine, and supervising editor of the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary, author, and also chairman of the Ellen G. White Estate board of trustees, and considered the leading twentieth-century apologist for the...
called him to the Review and Herald Publishing Association
Review and Herald Publishing Association
The Review and Herald Publishing Association is one of two major Seventh-day Adventist publishing houses in North America and is the oldest institution of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. The organization publishes books, magazines, study guides, CDs, videos and games for Adventist churches,...
to commence work on the new Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary. The pair arrived in Takoma Park
Takoma Park, Maryland
Takoma Park is a city in Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. It is a suburb of Washington, D.C., and part of the Washington Metropolitan Area. Founded in 1883 and incorporated in 1890, Takoma Park, informally called "Azalea City," is a Tree City USA and a nuclear-free zone...
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
in late September 1952, and Cottrell began work on the Commentary on October 1. (Elizabeth worked in the Review Book Billing Department until her retirement in 1977.) During the next five years, Cottrell reported he spent over 15,000 hours studying the Bible, covering every verse. As well as holding the position of associate editor, Cottrell also contributed 2,000 pages to the series, the third largest number of manuscript pages of any author. Yet including his editorial work he probably had more input than any other writer into the Commentary.
Articles written by Cottrell for the commentary included "The Role of Israel in Old Testament Prophecy" and others. In this article he wrote that the original subject of the Old Testament predictive prophecies was the nation of Israel, their fulfillment being conditional on the response of the Jewish people to the covenant and on accepting the Messiah. However due to the "overriding pastoral concern" of Nichol, the editor-in-chief overruled the consensus of the other editors – one of only two or three occasions when he did so. He also wrote numerous articles for the Seventh-day Adventist Bible Dictionary and Encyclopedia on topics in Bible and theology.
Cottrell's critiques of the manuscript of Questions on Doctrine
Questions on Doctrine
Seventh-day Adventists Answer Questions on Doctrine is a book published by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in 1957 to help explain Adventism to conservative Protestants and Evangelicals...
(published in 1957), were "mostly unheeded" by its authors and "might have prevented much of the upheaval that followed the publication of the book", according to Julius Nam
Julius Nam
Julius Juhyeok Nam is an associate professor of religion at Loma Linda University School of Religion in California, and a commissioned minister of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. He teaches Adventist history and theology. He is active in the American Academy of Religion, Adventist Society for...
.
In 1957 Nichol invited him to be an associate editor of the Adventist Review, a position he held for 7 years. He worked for another 7 years as a book editor. Cottrell also served as a member of the Biblical Research Committee (now the Biblical Research Institute
Biblical Research Institute
The Biblical Research Institute is a service department of the Seventh-day Adventist Church with the three stated functions of research, apologetics , and service to the church. It serves as a theological consultant to the General Conference...
).
He retired in 1977, to Calimesa, California. There he served at Loma Linda University
Loma Linda University
Loma Linda University is a Seventh-day Adventist coeducational health sciences university located in Loma Linda, California, United States. The University comprises eight schools and the Faculty of Graduate Studies...
as an adjunct faculty member of the religion department. He also worked for the General Conference
General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
The General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists is the governing organization of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. It is located in Silver Spring, Maryland, United States, where it moved in 1989...
and for the Southeastern California Conference on various commissions and projects.
Cottrell was a founder of Adventist Today
Adventist Today
Adventist Today is a bimonthly Christian magazine representing a progressive Seventh-day Adventist perspective. First published in 1993, it is currently edited by J. David Newman, the former editor of Ministry...
, a contemporary Adventist magazine first published in 1993. He and others at Loma Linda had conceived of the idea for a new magazine in the Autumn of the previous year. As well as contributing articles, he was editor and had the title of editor emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
for the remainder of his life.
On February 6, 2002, Cottrell's paper "The 'Sanctuary Doctrine' – Asset or Liability?" was presented by Larry Christoffel at the San Diego
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
, California Adventist Forum in the Tierrasanta
Tierrasanta, San Diego, California
Tierrasanta, Spanish for "holy land," is a community within the city of San Diego, California. The symbol of Tierrasanta is an encircled Conquistador cross, similar to the Montserrat Cross of Barcelona, Spain, though it holds no religious meaning...
Adventist church. His paper deals with the history of the Adventist sanctuary doctrine and argues against William Miller
William Miller (preacher)
William Miller was an American Baptist preacher who is credited with beginning the mid-nineteenth century North American religious movement now known as Adventism. Among his direct spiritual heirs are several major religious denominations, including Seventh-day Adventists and Advent Christians...
's Biblical interpretation of the "2,300 evenings and mornings" of Daniel 8:14. Miller believed these were literal years, ending in 1844. The Adventist church adopted Miller's view and today forms part of its official beliefs
28 Fundamentals
The 28 Fundamentals are a core set of theological beliefs held by the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Traditionally, Adventists have been opposed to the formulation of creeds. It is claimed that the 28 Fundamentals are descriptors not prescriptors; that is, that they describe the official position of...
. Cottrell's exegesis of Daniel contends that the historical Adventist sanctuary doctrine can not be sustained using any part of the book of Daniel; specifically Daniel 8:14. As such, this paper is as significant as the one presented by Dr. Desmond Ford at Glacier View; a paper which cost Dr. Ford his ministerial credentials. Christoffel responded in his own paper.
His wife Elizabeth died on August 2, 2002 in Calimesa. Raymond died the following year on January 12, 2003, also in Calimesa. He was survived by three children – Richard E. Cottrell, Ric W. Cottrell and Peggy J. Cottrell Tomat, his brother Leland Horton Cottrell, three grandsons. Six great-grandchildren - Shane Cottrell, Cory Cottrell, Chase Cottrell, Morgan Cottrell, Brandon Cottrell and Chloe Cottrell.
Theology
Cottrell described the theological climate of the church as open, favourable and honest during the 1950s when the Seventh-day Adventist Encyclopedia was published. Nearly all of Cottrell's papers in his Manuscript Collection were unpublished. He said of his "significant work" Eschatology of Daniel which was never formally published, "the manuscript awaits a climate of openness and objectivity in the church, which is essential to a fair examination of the facts." Cottrell has been said to have taken a few progressive positions. It has been argued that Cottrell's began to take more progressive viewpoints after retirement.External links
Articles by Cottrell. He was a prolific author, although he chose not to publish many of his articles:- The "Sanctuary Doctrine" – Asset or Liability? (Adventist Today version)
- The Ethos of Adventism in Adventist Today March/April 1999 extras
- "The Untold Story of the Bible Commentary" in Spectrum 16:3 (August 1985), p. 35–51
- The Sanctuary Review Committee and its New Consensus Spectrum magazine, 11:2 (November 1980), p. 2–26
- Exegesis of Daniel (chapters 22 and 23 about Desmond Ford and Glacier View), of the unpublished manuscript by Cottrell
- Raymond F. Cottrell Collection, an index of published and unpublished papers from the Center for Adventist Research, also containing a brief biography
- Articles by Cottrell as cataloged in the Seventh-day Adventist Periodical Index (SDAPI)
Tributes:
- Raymond Cottrell, A Historical Biography by Douglas Hackleman in Adventist Today January/February 2003
- Raymond F. Cottrell: A Tribute by Jim Walters in Adventist Today January/February 2003
- The Legacy of a Rose, opening remarks at the memorial service held for Dr. Raymond Cottrell at the Yucaipa Seventh-day Adventist Church, by Dr. C. Norman Farley