A scholastic society. Its purpose is “to provide intellectual and social fellowship among its members and encourage scholarly pursuits in all religious studies disciplines, particularly with reference to the Seventh-day Adventist tradition.” It was formerly organized in New York City in 1979.
In 1972 Adventist religion scholars agreed to meet in conjunction with the annual meetings of the American Academy of Religion (AAR) and Society of Biblical Literature (SBL). Biblical Research Institute (BRI) agreed to sponsor and plan these meetings. After BRI ceased their sponsorship in 1978, Adventist scholars met informally at New Orleans. AAR/SBL informed the Adventist group that it could not provide meeting rooms nor announce the meetings in its printed program unless the group officially organized and adopted a distinctive name that did not have a denominational identifier. At the New York meeting the group officially organized, selected the name Andrews Society for Religious Studies (ASRS), and elected officers. The name Andrews referred to J. N. Andrews, who is considered to have been the first Adventist religion scholar. In 1993 the society unanimously voted to change its name to Adventist Society for Religious Studies. This became possible when AAR/SBL lifted the restrictions on denominational identifiers.
Presidents: William Johnsson, 1979; Fritz Guy, 1980; Robert M. Johnston, 1981; George Reid, 1982; Walter Douglas, 1983; Richard Coffen, 1984; Doug Clark, 1985; Sakae Kubo, 1986; Alden Thompson, 1987; James Londis, 1988; Richard Rice, 1989; Russell Staples, 1990; Pedrito U. Maynard-Reid, 1991; Gerald R. Winslow, 1992; Warren Trenchard, 1993; Madelynn Haldeman, 1994; Roy Branson, 1995; Jon Dybdahl, 1996.