
Bruno William Steinweg and his wife in Virginia.
Photo courtesy of Brazilian White Center - UNASP.
Steinweg, Bruno William (1910–1998)
By The Brazilian White Center – UNASP
The Brazilian White Center – UNASP is a team of teachers and students at the Brazilian Ellen G. White Research Center – UNASP at the Brazilian Adventist University, Campus Engenheiro, Coelho, SP. The team was supervised by Drs. Adolfo Semo Suárez, Renato Stencel, and Carlos Flávio Teixeira. Bruno Sales Gomes Ferreira provided technical support. The following names are of team members: Adriane Ferrari Silva, Álan Gracioto Alexandre, Allen Jair Urcia Santa Cruz, Camila Chede Amaral Lucena, Camilla Rodrigues Seixas, Daniel Fernandes Teodoro, Danillo Alfredo Rios Junior, Danilo Fauster de Souza, Débora Arana Mayer, Elvis Eli Martins Filho, Felipe Cardoso do Nascimento, Fernanda Nascimento Oliveira, Gabriel Pilon Galvani, Giovana de Castro Vaz, Guilherme Cardoso Ricardo Martins, Gustavo Costa Vieira Novaes, Ingrid Sthéfane Santos Andrade, Isabela Pimenta Gravina, Ivo Ribeiro de Carvalho, Jhoseyr Davison Voos dos Santos, João Lucas Moraes Pereira, Kalline Meira Rocha Santos, Larissa Menegazzo Nunes, Letícia Miola Figueiredo, Luan Alves Cota Mól, Lucas Almeida dos Santos, Lucas Arteaga Aquino, Lucas Dias de Melo, Matheus Brabo Peres, Mayla Magaieski Graepp, Milena Guimarães Silva, Natália Padilha Corrêa, Rafaela Lima Gouvêa, Rogel Maio Nogueira Tavares Filho, Ryan Matheus do Ouro Medeiros, Samara Souza Santos, Sergio Henrique Micael Santos, Suelen Alves de Almeida, Talita Paim Veloso de Castro, Thais Cristina Benedetti, Thaís Caroline de Almeida Lima, Vanessa Stehling Belgd, Victor Alves Pereira, Vinicios Fernandes Alencar, Vinícius Pereira Nascimento, Vitória Regina Boita da Silva, William Edward Timm, Julio Cesar Ribeiro, Ellen Deó Bortolotte, Maria Júlia dos Santos Galvani, Giovana Souto Pereira, Victor Hugo Vaz Storch, and Dinely Luana Pereira.
First Published: January 29, 2020
Bruno William Steinweg was an evangelist, pastor, administrator, and professor.
Family and Marriage
Bruno William Steinweg was born on January 23, 1910, in Reedsburg, Wisconsin, U.S.A.1 He was the son of Albert Adolf Steinweg and Lydia Madalena Meyer Steinweg, and his siblings were Henry, Alma Rolfsmeyer, Conrad, Carl, Ruth Kreuger/Droes, Lydia Bernhart, Dorothy Peper, and Louise Lange.2
Bruno married Virginia Duffie (1913-2003), who was recognized by Andrews University as one of the 100 women of the century that had worked at the university. She served by her husband’s side as a missionary in South America from 1936-1953 and then from 1958-1984. She obtained a master’s degree in Foreign Languages at Michigan University and gained proficiency to teach French, German, Spanish, Portuguese, and Greek. In 1979, she published a biography of M. L. Andreasen titled “Without Fear.” Bruno and Virginia had three children, Phillip, Donald, and Ann Decicco.3
Denominational Missionary Work and Ordination
Steinweg served the Seventh-day Adventist Church in North America in 1933 as a licensed minister in the Wisconsin Conference in the United States of America (USA).4 In 1935, he was invited by the denomination to work in South America.5 Steinweg arrived in Brazil on January 30, 1936, with his family and established residence in Belém, Pará.6
His denominational work began on January 1936 as a licensed minister in the Baixo-Amazonas Mission7 and Bible instructor in Belém, Pará.8 He was ordained as a local elder in 19379 and was called to be the director of evangelism10 and a district pastor.11 In 1939, he was ordained to the pastoral ministry by the Baixo-Amazonas Mission.12
Steinweg was appointed secretary and treasurer of the North Brazil Union, where he worked until 1947.13 That same year, he represented the North Brazil Union in the 44th Session of the General Conference in San Francisco, California, USA.14 From 1948-1952, he was the president of Perú’s Lake Titicaca Mission.15 In this period, he also served in several Adventist institutions in South America as a member of the administrative committee of the Juliaca Clinic,16 an administrator of the Titicaca Adventist School and Union College,17 a member of the executive committee of the South America Division,18 and a member of the South American Spanish Publishing House in Argentina.19
From 1953-1957, Steinweg returned to the USA to work as a pastor at the Michigan Conference and as a Bible and history teacher at Cedar Lake Academy.20 In 1958, he went back to South America to work in Ecuador, where he served from 1958-1961 as secretary and treasurer in the Ecuador Mission21 and, in 1960, director of its radio, health, and youth departments.22 From 1962-1968, Steinweg presided over the administrative committee of Union College (now Peruvian Union University), where he also worked as a Bible teacher.23
Teaching and Retirement
From 1969-1971, Steinweg moved to Chile to work as a professor at the Chile College Seminary.24 He went back to the USA from 1972-1974.25 He and his wife were professors at the Theology Seminary of Northeast Brazil Academy from 1974-1975.26 In 1977, Steinweg went to work at Central American Adventist University.27 From 1978-1983, he was a Bible, English, and pastoral practice teacher at the Adventist Center for Higher Education.28 The Adventist Center for Higher Education published three of Steinweg’s books: Justificación por la Fe in 1968,29 El Gran Plan de la Redención em su relación al largo conflito entre la verdade y el error in 1977,30 and El santuario y sus grandes lecciones: Un estudio en los escritos de Elena G. de White in 1979.31
After his retirement in 1982 in Costa Rica, Steinweg kept teaching at the Adventist Center for Higher Education as an Adventist seminary professor until 1984.32 He dedicated his life to a very active ministry, having a huge impact on the growth of the Adventist message in seven countries of North and South America. After 49 years of ministry, the Steinwegs returned to their homeland, where they spent their last years. Pastor Bruno William Steinweg died on November 20, 1998, at Central Lake, Michigan, USA.33
Sources
Andrade, Isaias. “Uni-Norte 40 anos.” Revista Adventista. November 1976. Accessed December 12, 2017. http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.
“Bruno W. Steinweg.” Lake Union Herald. April 1, 1999. Accessed December 13, 2017. http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.
Dassow, Arthur. “Resumo. ” Revista Adventista. January 1977. Accessed December 13, 2017. http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.
“Ecos da Assembleia Geral da Associação dos Adventistas do Sétimo Dia.” Revista Adventista. August 1941. Accessed December 12, 2017. http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.
Edwards, Ralph. “Elder Bruno William Steinweg.” Find a Grave. November 12, 2010. Accessed March 22, 2018. https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/61510636/bruno-william-steinweg.
Lobo, Jorge Pereira. “Ecos da missão baixo Amazonas. ” Revista Adventista. July 1936. Accessed December 13, 2017. http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.
Lobo, Jorge Pereira. “Missão baixo amazonas – Belém. ” Revista Adventista. December 1937. Accessed December 13, 2017. http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.
Lobo, Jorge Pereira. “Noticias Gerais - Missão baixo-amazonas.” Revista Adventista. July 1937. Accessed December 13, 2017. http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.
Lobo, Jorge Pereira. “O Norte Em Foco.” Revista Adventista. January 1939. Accessed December 18, 2017. http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.
Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook. Accessed December 13, 2017. https://www.adventistyearbook.org/old-yearbooks.
Steinweg, Bruno. El Gran Plan De La Redencion. Medelín, Colômbia: Biblioteca Rafael Escandón Hernández – Corporación Universitaria Adventista, 1977. Available at: http://library.unac.edu.co/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=45539&query_desc=kw%2Cwrdl%3A%20steinweg.
Steinweg, Bruno, El santuário y sus grandes lecciones: Um estúdio em los escritos de Elena G. de White, Biblioteca Rafael Escandón Hernández – Corporación Universitaria Adventista, 1968. Available at: http://library.unac.edu.co/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=41314&query_desc=kw%2Cwrdl%3A%20steinweg.
Steinweg, Bruno. Justificación Por La Fe. Medelín, Colômbia: Biblioteca Rafael Escandón Hernández – Corporación Universitaria Adventista, 1968. Available at: http://library.unac.edu.co/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=50509&query_desc=kw%2Cwrdl%3A%20steinweg.
“Virginia Steinweg Duffie.” The Andrews University Magazine Focus. 2003. Accessed December 13, 2017. http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.
Notes
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“Bruno W. Steinweg,” Lake Union Herald, April 1, 1999, accessed December 13, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.; Jorge Pereira Lobo, “O Norte em foco,” Revista Adventista, January 1939, accessed December 18, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.; Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Northeast Brazil College,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1975__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Northeast Brazil College,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1976__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Ralph Edwards, “Elder Bruno William Steinweg,” Find a Grave, November 12, 2010, accessed March 22, 2018, https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/61510636/bruno-william-steinweg.; “Bruno W. Steinweg,” Lake Union Herald, April 1, 1999, accessed December 13, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.; Jorge Pereira Lobo, “O Norte em foco,” Revista Adventista, January 1939, accessed December 18, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb; and Marlene Steinweg, email message to Vinicios Fernandes Alencar, January 11, 2018.↩
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“Bruno W. Steinweg,” Lake Union Herald, April 1, 1999, accessed December 13, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.; Jorge Pereira Lobo, “O Norte em foco,” Revista Adventista, January 1939, accessed December 18, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb; and “Virginia Steinweg Duffie,” The Andrews University Magazine Focus, 2003, accessed December 13, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Wisconsin Conference,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1934__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “South American Division,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1936__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Isaias Andrade, “Uni-Norte 40 anos,” Revista Adventista, November 1976, accessed December 12, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.; and Phillip Steinweg, email message to Vinicios Fernandes Alencar, January 20, 2018.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Lower Amazonas Mission,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1936__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Jorge Pereira Lobo, “Ecos da missão baixo Amazonas,” Revista Adventista, July 1936, accessed December 13, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.↩
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Jorge Pereira Lobo, “Noticias Gerais - Missão baixo-amazonas,” Revista Adventista, July 1937, accessed December 13, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.↩
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Jorge Pereira Lobo, “Missão baixo amazonas – Belém,” Revista Adventista, December 1937, accessed December 13, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.↩
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Jorge Pereira Lobo, “O Norte em foco,” Revista Adventista, January 1939, accessed December 18, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.↩
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“North Brazil Union Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1940), 189.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “North Brazil Union Mission,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1942__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “North Brazil Union Mission,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1948__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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“Ecos da Assembleia Geral da Associação dos Adventistas do Sétimo Dia,” Revista Adventista, accessed December 12, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Lake Titicaca Mission,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1949__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Inca Union Mission,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1953__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Juliaca Clinic,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1949__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Juliaca Clinic,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1952__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Lake Titicaca Training School,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1949__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Lake Titicaca Training School,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1951__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “South American Division,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1951__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Buenos Aires Publishing House,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1951__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Buenos Aires Publishing House,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1952__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Michigan Conference,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1954__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Michigan Conference,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1958__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Ecuador Mission,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1959__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Ecuador Mission,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1962__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Ecuador Mission,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1961__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Inca Union College,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1963__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Inca Union College,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1969__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Chile College,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1970__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Chile College,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1972__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Phillip Steinweg, email message to Vinicios Fernandes Alencar, January 20, 2018.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Northeast Brazil College,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1975__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Northeast Brazil College,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1976__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Arthur Dassow, “Resumo,” Revista Adventista, January, accessed December 13, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Central American Union College,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1979__B.Pdf#View=Fit.; and Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Adventist Center for Higher Education,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1984__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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Bruno Steinweg, Justificación por la Fe, Biblioteca Rafael Escandón Hernández – Corporación Universitaria Adventista, 1968, available at: http://library.unac.edu.co/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=50509&query_desc=kw%2Cwrdl%3A%20steinweg.↩
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Bruno Steinweg, El gran Plan de la Redencion, Biblioteca Rafael Escandón Hernández – Corporación Universitaria Adventista, 1977, available at: http://library.unac.edu.co/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=45539&query_desc=kw%2Cwrdl%3A%20steinweg.↩
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Bruno Steinweg, El santuário y sus grandes lecciones: Um estúdio em los escritos de Elena G. de White, Biblioteca Rafael Escandón Hernández – Corporación Universitaria Adventista, 1968, available at: http://library.unac.edu.co/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?biblionumber=41314&query_desc=kw%2Cwrdl%3A%20steinweg.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, “Central American Union Mission,” accessed December 13, 2017, http://Docs.Adventistarchives.Org/Docs/YB/YB1983__B.Pdf#View=Fit.↩
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“Bruno W. Steinweg,” Lake Union Herald, April 1, 1999, accessed December 13, 2017, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb.; and Marlene Steinweg, email message to Vinicios Fernandes Alencar, January 11, 2018.↩