Here are the online editor's picks for best of Adventist Today online for 2009. Enjoy a look back at the highlights (and even some low lights) which is complimented, of course, by your reader responses.

BEST TOP STORIES

Allan Martin - We Are the Devil and George Knight Has the Spirit of Prophecy: Nearly a decade after Elder Knight's infamous speech at the 2000 General Conference Session, are we fulfilling the prophecies he laid out as to the Devil's handiwork within our denomination? More>>>

John McLarty - Adventist Evolution: An Adventist Pastor's Reply to David Asscherick: Pastor McLarty makes an eloquent case against the intent of a letter written by evangelist David Asscherick, who calls for conference officials to "do something" about the alleged teaching of evolution at La Sierra University. More>>>

Loren Seibold - The End of Ministry as We know It: When I entered pastoral ministry about 30 years ago, the job was pretty clearly defined. I'd move a few times and maybe end up in a big church somewhere. So far, I'm right on track. But I see signs that track is crumbling, and I'm beginning to wonder if there really is going to be ministry as we know it now by the time I retire. More>>>

Wayne Blakely - Dilemmas of a Homosexual: Before my eyes ever saw this world, a very determined mother proclaimed during her entire pregnancy, that she would not have a boy.  My arrival was her bitter disappointment. More>>>

J. David Newman - Tithe—Sacrificing the Sacred Cow: Church growth is suffering in North America because local churches are not allowed to spend tithe. There, I have said it. There is no more touchy subject for church administrators than how the tithe is spent and the percentages sent up the system. More>>> 

BEST NEWS REPORTS

Adventist Health Executive Compensation: CEO Don Jernigan's salary was eye-popping. Tax records showed that at least seven other Adventist execs had annual packages worth more than $1 million. More>>> 

Report on 4th Annual Former Adventist Fellowship:  Paul Carden, executive director of the Centers for Apologetics Research, an outspoken figure railing against the "cultic" Adventist denomination, was a keynote speaker. Video of the event includes Dale Ratzlaff speaking. More>>>

President of LSU Responds to Darwinian Evolution Charges:  La Sierra University president Randal Wisbey publicly responds to a letter by evangelist David Asscherick (which went unintentionally viral on the internet) in swift defense of his university. Both letters are posted here.

Former 3ABN President Castigates  Adventist "Evolutionists" and Advocates "Wholesome Family Values": Not highlighted here for news worthiness, but for the onslaught of reader comments that ensued. This entry gets the award for most prolific diatribe ad nauseam about Danny and Linda Sheldon. Note: This was posted well before we instituted our comments moderation policy. More>>>

Marriage, Homosexuality, and the Church Conference:  An Adventist Theological Society interview with conference presenter Nicholas Miller, Esq., is aimed at promoting the event. Reader reaction is mixed about ATS's stated purpose and a pre-conference debate takes off. More>>>

Kettering Hospital Refuses to Help Unmarried Woman Get Pregnant: What not to say to a Kettering Hospital receptionist if you are pregnant and are asked if you have a husband: “I don’t have a husband.” Wrong answer. The woman was denied treatment for in vitro fertilization due to Kettering Health Network's policy against treating unmarried people. More>>>

BEST BLOGS

Clifford Goldstein - The Evolution of the Banana: Ah yes, Cliff, with tongue firmly planted in cheek, gives us this masterpiece. Excerpt: "How did the banana--which I assume that homo this and homo that and homo the other liked to eat, just as we homo sapiens do--evolve?  How did the banana survive all these millions of years of getting eaten by various human and monkey precursors?  Shouldn't the banana have evolved into something tasting like cold cream or kerosene, something less compatible to human taste buds; or, perhaps, just give them a few more millions of years and they will." More>>>

David Person - An Adventist Scorned:  I know some [former SDAs] who left the church quietly without much, if any, fanfare. They simply moved on, hopefully at peace with their decisions to set a new spiritual course for their lives. But all don't leave this way, and we who choose to remain should wonder why. Dale Ratzlaff seems to be one of those. More>>>

Herbert Douglass - What do Adventists Do When Governments Openly Forbid Religious Practices?: Most of the world today never even thinks for a moment about government degrees that forbid open religious practices such as public church services, literature distribution, or required school attendance on a group's weekly holy days. More>>>

Nathan Brown - Another Death in a Tragic Story: Execution does not work as a deterrent but neither is it an adequate or appropriate punishment. The clamor for justice is one of the strongest cries in our world—and perhaps capital punishment is an example of justice in its crudest form—but as Christians we should be working towards better: "What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8). More>>>

Monte Sahlin - The Morality of Health Reform: Historically, Adventists have always worked for health reform. And over the decades, Adventists have made significant impact on the health of America and the world. Now health reform is front and center in the U.S. agenda and where do we stand as a movement? More>>>

Shayna Bailey - Is Segregation in the Adventist Church Preventing Interracial Relationships?: In a church that still openly practices segregation between its conferences, though, one can't help but wonder how our own self-discrimination affects the dating and marriage culture of Adventists. More>>>

Ervin Taylor - Time to Defend Adventist Higher Education:  It is the time for all those of good will who value a future-oriented non-fundamentalist Adventism to become vocal in their opposition to the divisive efforts of a disaffected minority who seek to distort the facts and spread misinformation about the real achievements of Adventist higher education at such institutions as La Sierra University. More>>>

BEST REVIEWS

Tompaul Wheeler - It's OK not to Be a Seventh-day Adventist: Rarely has a book enjoyed such a straightforward title. It clearly marks out an intended audience--disaffected Adventists--and point of view. More>>>

Ervin Taylor & Clifford Goldstein - Dinosaurs: An Adventist View: Both writers review from very different perspectives (on the same page) the highly-regarded book by lawyer and frequent AToday commenter David C. Read. More>>>

BEST INTERVIEW

Daneen Akers and Stephen Eyer - Seventh-Gay Adventists: An Interview with the Filmmakers:   Husband and wife filmmaking duo travel across the country gathering stories for a feature-length documentary film they're calling "Seventh-Gay Adventists: A film about love, sex, and eternal life." More>>>