South American Adventism Continues Mission Efforts :Adventist News Online

In 2023, the report of the Executive Secretariat of the South American Division of Seventh-day Adventists presented a significant difference in relation to previous years. During the Plenary Board of Directors, the executive secretary, Pastor Edward Heidinger, promoted a historical overview with current reflections. He showed how Adventism in the South American subcontinent was reached by foreign missions and today repays such investment, promoting the mission in several other countries.

The vision for Adventist missionary expansion dates back to the beginnings of the organization. Shortly after the organization of the General Conference in 1863, in the United States, the first foreign mission arose. In 1874, John Nevis Andrews had been appointed an official Adventist missionary in Europe (specifically, Switzerland).

Neglected Field

Notwithstanding, South America did not seem to receive as much attention. An Adventist world congress bulletin in November 1889 was the starting point for a closer look at Adventist evangelism in South America. The document recommended that the world Sabbath School donations of the last six months of 1890 be directed to initiating Adventist work in South America. The value raised at that time was US$4,235.95 (equivalent to US$146,668 today).

In a November 1890 publication, The Home Missionary,^[i] William White, son of pioneer and prophetess Ellen White, wrote, “We received news of several noble young men in different parts of the United States who were ready to consecrate their lives to the work of carrying the message to South America.” A year later, the new world bulletin of the Adventist world congress called the South American subcontinent a “neglected field,” highlighting the missionary potential of the region through colportering and the presence of men and women with “good professional trades” in order to establish centers of evangelism.

Colportering and Sabbath Observance

Pastor Heidinger also recalled that on May 29, 1891, the foreign missions committee took a vote. It was recorded that the Adventist Church would send Elwin Snyder to distribute literature in the region explored. Finally, in the same year, he, Albert Stauffer, and Clair Nowlin were chosen to go to Argentina.

The arrival of the missionaries to the South American territory came to meet the needs of the people who already knew the Adventist message. This was the case of people of German origin and Sabbath keepers who contacted the Adventist leaders by letter. They increased the financial support of the missionaries to visit and instruct them.

In 1894, it was decided that Pastor Frank Westphal would go to Argentina to engage directly in the missionary activity. There, he met Jorge Riffel, a Swiss Adventist convert. Riffel’s story is a curious one. The missionary was already preaching the Gospel while supported by his own resources. He passed through Argentina at the end of 1876, then moved to the United States and later returned to Argentina.^[ii] He was an important figure in South American evangelization. On September 9, 1894, Westphal organized the first South American Adventist congregation in Crespo, Argentina.

South American Participation

After several years since the first evangelistic movements, the church in the region has a leading role in the Adventist world scene. Data from the Executive Secretariat report establishes an interesting comparison: in 1915, South American Adventists represented 3.58 percent of the total world membership, compared to 11.79 percent in 2022.

Now, the tithe share of South American Adventists was a meager 2.19 percent in 1915. In 2021, the South American portion was 16.73 percent. Regarding offerings, in 1915, the portion donated by Adventists from the subcontinent amounted to 0.81 percent; in 2021, it reached 15.24 percent of the total donated by Adventists worldwide. When speaking of inhabitants per member, the Seventh-day Adventist Church in South America has an encouraging ratio: 137 inhabitants per member, according to 2021 data. For comparison, the church’s office serving the Middle East and North Africa registers 103,862 inhabitants per member.

Volunteering and Missionaries

The evaluation of the sending of missionaries through the official Adventist system (Adventist Volunteer Service) shows constant growth. According to AVS data, in 2021, 166 volunteers were sent within the territory of the South American Division (82 to other divisions).

This includes specific training, the designation of activities to be carried out, and a structure of accompaniment of the missionary. Between 1999 and 2021, 910 volunteers were sent by the South American Division to countries outside its territory. In the same period, the number of people sent to evangelize as volunteers, within the same territory (but in countries different from their own), reached 782. In other words, the highest percentage of prepared volunteers (53.8 percent) depicts those preaching the Gospel outside the South American territory, while 46.2 percent were within South America.

At the same time, there are currently two foreign families serving in the South American Division territory and 70 families serving in various parts of the world. They are paid missionaries for the Adventist Church worldwide. Globally, 351 families are serving in some capacity. The South American Division sends the second most missionaries.

Future Challenges

At the end of the presentation, Pastor Heidinger stressed that there are enormous evangelistic challenges from the Adventist point of view. He mentioned at least three major groups to be reached. The first of these is the so-called 10/40 Window, a well-known region of the world (60 percent of the world’s population). This specific region inhabits 2.6 million Adventists (out of a total of 23 million Adventists worldwide).

Another area that is proving challenging for the Gospel preached by Adventists is the post-Christian window. There is, according to the report, a growing trend in regions such as Europe, the United States, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand of declining membership in Christian churches in general, an increase in immigrant membership, and high dropout rates, especially among young people.

Additionally, there is the urban window: 543 cities with 1 million or more inhabitants. In these cities, there is only 1 Adventist for every 89,000 inhabitants. And, in 100 of these cities, there is 1 Adventist for every 200,000 inhabitants. These are metropolises such as Tokyo, Japan (37 million inhabitants), Delhi, India (31 million), Shanghai, China (27 million), and Dhaka, Bangladesh (21 million), among others.

^[i] White, William. The Home Missionary, volume 2, number 11, Extra, November 1890.

^[ii] Jorge Riffel fled Europe after being persecuted for his faith. https://noticias.adventistas.org/es/jorge-riffel-escapo-europa-al-perseguido-fe/

The original version of this story was posted on the South America Division Spanish-language news site.