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Siegfried Hoffmann

Photo courtesy of Brazilian White Center - UNASP. 

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Hoffman, Siegfried (1903–1998)

By The Brazilian White Center – UNASP

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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: June 18, 2021

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Siegfried Hoffmann was a pastor, physician, and administrator.

Early Years

Siegfried Hoffmann was born on April 30, 1903, in the Rhineland Province of Germany. Son of a small farmer and industrialist, he first studied in a public school in Cologne (Köln), where his parents heard the Adventist message.1 In 1911, when Siegfried was 8 years old, the family emigrated to Brazil, taking up residence in Nova Europa, São Paulo State.2 At the time, the immigration of Germans and other European and African groups was encouraged by the government since the development of capitalism and urbanization made free labor necessary to move money.3

As there were no schools in the Nova Europa colony, his father founded a school society, making it possible for Siegfried to continue his studies.4 In 1918, at the age of 15, he went to the Adventist seminary (now Central Adventist University of Sao Paulo) as an industrial student. He interrupted his studies for a while when he worked as an office assistant at the São Paulo Conference. Upon resuming his studies, he took the commercial course (what today is called accounting) and theology, according to the study program of the time. He graduated in December 1925,5 in the fourth theology class of the seminary.6

Life and Ministry

In 1926, he accepted an invitation to work as a Bible worker in Rio Grande do Sul where, in many churches, German was still spoken. At the invitation of Pastor José Amador dos Reis, his first workplace was at São Borja where he held a series of meetings that resulted in the establishment of the first Adventist group in the city. In 1927, he worked in Bagé, Rio Grande do Sul, where two Adventist families already lived. Assisted by Pastor Frederico Kümpel, his evangelistic efforts resulted in the foundation of the SDA church of Bagé.78

In 1928, he conducted evangelistic meetings in Taquara, Rio Grande do Sul accompanied by Otto Keppke and Huldreich F. Graf.9 Then, he served as leader of the Youth Department of the Sul-Rio-Grandense Association from 1928 to 1930.10 From 1931 to 1932, he studied medicine in Porto Alegre, encouraged by Pastor A. Harder, president of the area. However, he had to interrupt his studies for health reasons.11

In 1933, he married Lúcia (Hahnfeld) Hoffmann in Porto Alegre and they had three children.12 Lúcia was the granddaughter of the missionary teacher Paul Kraemer, who arrived in Brazil in 1898, and Ernesto Hahnfeld, who moved from Germany to Brazil as a missionary. Lúcia’s mother, Amélia Scheffel, was an Adventist pioneer in Rio Grande do Sul, being baptized in 1902 by pastor Huldreich F. Graf at Rio Santa Maria, near Cruzeiro do Sul Adventist Academy (IACS). Lúcia served in children's ministry for her entire life and was her husband's secretary at the O Bom Samaritano Clinic, where she was also a nurse.13

In 1933, Siegfried accepted a call to be an evangelist in the São Paulo Conference.14 He worked in Rio Claro where he contributed to founding the first church in the city.15 In Sao Paulo City, he was pastor of the Central Church and evangelist throughout greater São Paulo. During this period, he had the help of a group of young assistants: Osvaldo Azevedo, Emmanuel Zorub, Tassaku Kanada, Renato Oberg, Iracema Zorub, and Ilca Reis. Some of the districts where they worked were Pinheiros and Vila Maria.16 In 1936, he was ordained to the ministry.17 Then in August 1937, he decided to dedicate himself to being a medical missionary.18

Returning to Rio Grande do Sul, he completed his studies in medicine. In October 1944, the Bom Samaritano Adventist Clinic was opened in Porto Alegre and Hoffman was called to be the first doctor.19 There, he served as the medical director from 1944 to 1951,20 treating thousands of patients.21 In the meantime, Hoffmann wrote some health counsels in the conference's newspaper called Pingos d’Água.22

In 1952, he was director of the Taquara Adventist Gymnasium.23 The following years, he was pastor of the districts of Santa Maria, Ijuí, and Porto Alegre (Central and Floresta Churches).24 With the organization of the Catarinense Mission in 1957, Siegfried was elected its president, where he served until 1962. At the same time, he led the public relations, radio, Sabbath School, temperance, and education departments.25 He was a Bible teacher at Paraná Adventist Academy (IAP) from 1963 to 1968.26 In 1969, he was director of the temperance department in the Paraná Conference.27 In 1970, he started a new journey as a pastor in the church in the Bela Vista District of Curitiba, being his last appointment before retirement.28

Last Years

Hoffmann retired in late 1973, at the age of seventy. During his ministry, we should highlight many special weeks of prayer, revivals, much marriage counseling, family and health seminars, and seminars such us How to Quit Smoking in 5 Days. At Brazil College he held six weeks of prayer and, during his entire ministry, more than sixty.29 In 1981, the Nereu Ramos School in the city of Florianópolis was renamed to Siegfried Hoffmann School in honor of the pioneer of the Adventist medical missionary work in the southern region of Brazil.30 Siegfried Hoffmann passed away on April 2, 1998, at the age of 95 in Gramado, Rio Grande do Sul, and was buried in the Evangelical Cemetery of Porto Alegre.31

Contribution

Siegfried Hoffman made important contributions to the South American Division of the Church in Brazil during more than 40 years of ministry. As a pastor and evangelist, he took the gospel to thousands of people in the states of São Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul. He was the first doctor and director of the Bom Samaritano Clinic in Porto Alegre. In his words, his ideal was “to use medicine as the right hand to assist in the preaching of the gospel.”

Sources

“Está Surgindo um Novo Internato.” Revista Adventista, October 1981.

“Ginásio Adventista de Taquara.” Revista Adventista, October 1951.

“Lúcia Hoffmann.” In: Collection of the National center of Adventist History Brazil College, Engenheiro Coelho, SP. Stand: 02 Shelf 14. Fille: “Hoffmann, Lúcia.”

“Pastor Siegfried Hoffmann.” Revista Adventista, June 1998.

“Siegfried Hoffmann.” Collection of the National Center of Adventist History Brazil College, Engenheiro Coelho, SP. Stand 02. Shelf 12 File: “Hoffmann, Siegfried.”

Belz, Rodolpho. “Despedida.” Revista Adventista, August 1937.

Conrado, Naor G. “Jovem, Aonde Vais?” Revista Adventista, September 1955.

Costa, Milene Ribas da, “A implosão da ordem: a crise final do Império e movimento republicano paulista” Dissertação, Universidade de São Paulo Faculdade de Filosofia, Letras e Ciências Humanas, 2006.

Greenleaf, Floyd, Terra de Esperança: O Crescimento da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia. Tatuí, SP: Brazilian Publishing House, 2011.

Hoffmann Siegfried. “De Rio Claro.” Revista Adventista, July 1933.

Hoffmann, Lúcia. “Em Memória de Uma Mãe.” Revista Adventista, May 1977.

Murray, W. E. “Dia do Rádio. Revista Adventista, September 1952.

Neilsen, N. P. “Opposition and Victory.” ARH, July 19, 1928.

Preuss, Leopoldo. “O Começo da Mensagem no Brasil.” Revista Adventista, April 1963.

Ruff, G. F. “Entre nosso povo,” Revista Adventista, June, 1928.

Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook. Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, various years.

Simon, Loide. “O Dia da Pátria no Ginásio Adventista de Taquara.” Revista Adventista, January 1952.

Stencel, Renato and William Timm. “Histórico da Faculdade Adventista de Teologia no Brasil.” Seminário Adventista Latino-Americano de Teologia, March 2014.

Waltrick, Luiz Alberto. “Siegfried Hoffmann” Monography, Brazil College, 1986.

Wilcox, E. H. “Notícias.” Revista Adventista, April 1936.

Wilcox, E. H. “Notícias.” Revista Adventista, July 1934.

Zorub, E. “Capital Paulista.” Revista Adventista, June 1936.

Notes

  1. Luiz Alberto Waltrick, “Siegfried Hoffmann” (Monograph, Brazil College, 1986), 2; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” Collection of the National Center of Adventist History / Ellen G. White Research Center: Brazil College, Engenheiro Coelho, SP, 1.↩

  2. Waltrick, 2; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 1, 2.↩

  3. Milene Ribas da Costa, “A implosão da ordem: a crise final do Império e movimento republicano paulista” (Dissertação, Universidade de São Paulo Faculty of Philosophy, Human Sciences and Letters, 2006), 24, 25.↩

  4. Waltrick, 2; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 1, 2.↩

  5. Waltrick, 2; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 1, 2.↩

  6. Renato Stencel and William Timm, Histórico da Faculdade Adventista de Teologia no Brasil,” Seminário Adventista Latino-Americano de Teologia, March 2014, 137.↩

  7. Waltrick, 5; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 2, 3.↩

  8. Waltrick, 5; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 2, 3.↩

  9. N. P. Neilsen, “Opposition and Victory,” ARH, July 19, 1928, 11.↩

  10. G. F. Ruff, “Among our People,” Revista Adventista, June 1928, 12; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 6; "Rio Grande do Sul Conference," Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1930), 237; "Rio Grande do Sul Conference," Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, DC: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1931), 244.↩

  11. Waltrick, 5, 6; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 3, 4.↩

  12. “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 8.↩

  13. “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 7, 8; “Lúcia Hoffmann” (Collection of the National Adventist Memory Center / Ellen G. White Research Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP), 2; Leopoldo Preuss, “The Beginning of the Message in Brazil,” Revista Adventista, April 4, 1963, 26; Lúcia Hoffmann, “In Memory of a Mother,” Revista Adventista, May 5, 1977, 35.↩

  14. “São Paulo Conference,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1934), 173.↩

  15. Siegfried Hoffmann, “De Rio Claro,” Revista Adventista, July 7, 1933, 16; E. H. Wilcox, “News,” Revista Adventista, July 7, 1934, 13.↩

  16. Waltrick, 6; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 4; E. H. Wilcox, “Noticias,” Revista Adventista, April 4, 1936, 11; E. Zorub, “Capital Paulista,” Revista Adventista, June 6, 1936, 12.↩

  17. “São Paulo Conference,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1937), 183.↩

  18. Rodolpho Belz, “Farewell,” Revista Adventista , August 8, 1937, 10.↩

  19. Waltrick, 7; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 5.↩

  20. “Good Samaritan Clinic,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1947), 277; “Good Samaritan Clinic,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1952), 282.↩

  21. Floyd Greenleaf, Terra de Esperança: O Crescimento da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia (Tatuí, SP: Brazilian Publishing House, 2011), 461.↩

  22. “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 5, 6.↩

  23. Loide Simon, “Fatherland Day at the Taquara Adventist Gymnasium,” Revista Adventista, January 1, 1952, 9; “Ginásio Adventista de Taquara,” Revista Adventista, October 1951, 31.↩

  24. Collection of the National Center of Adventist History / Ellen G. White Research Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP, 4; “Rio Grande do Sul Conference,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1957), 152; W. E. Murray, “Dia do Rádio,” Revista Adventista, September 7, 1952, 1; Naor G. Conrado, “Jovem , Aonde vais?” Revista Adventista, September 1955, 34.↩

  25. “Santa Catarina Union Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1958), 158; “Santa Catarina Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1963), 190.↩

  26. “Parana Academy,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1964), 316; “Parana Academy,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1969), 344.↩

  27. “Parana Conference,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1970), 225.↩

  28. “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 5; “Parana Conference,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1971), 236.↩

  29. Waltrick, 8; “Siegfried Hoffmann,” 6.↩

  30. “Está Surgindo um Novo Internato” Revista Adventista, October 1981, 30, 31.↩

  31. “Pastor Siegfried Hoffmann,” Revista Adventista, June 1998, 29.↩

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UNASP, The Brazilian White Center –. "Hoffman, Siegfried (1903–1998)." Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists. June 18, 2021. Accessed November 28, 2024. https://encyclopedia.adventist.org/article?id=7GIZ.

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UNASP, The Brazilian White Center –. "Hoffman, Siegfried (1903–1998)." Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists. June 18, 2021. Date of access November 28, 2024, https://encyclopedia.adventist.org/article?id=7GIZ.

Copy to clipboard Download Word File

UNASP, The Brazilian White Center – (2021, June 18). Hoffman, Siegfried (1903–1998). Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists. Retrieved November 28, 2024, https://encyclopedia.adventist.org/article?id=7GIZ.

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