North Bahia Conference

The North Bahia Conference is an administrative unit of the Seventh-day Adventist Church operating in the territory of the East Brazil Union. Its current headquarters is provisionally operational on Imaculada Conceição St., no. 252, 48900-120, in the Piranga neighborhood in the city of Juazeiro in the state of Bahia, Brazil. The building where the permanent head office will operate is currently under construction.¹

The mission field of the North Bahia Conference (Adventistas Bahia Norte or ABN) covers an extensive geographical area made up of 63 municipalities. In this region of approximately 1,752,494 inhabitants, there are 29,232 Adventists in 437 congregations organized in 34 pastoral districts. There is about 1 Adventist per 59 inhabitants.² The youth of this region have 188 Pathfinder Clubs³ and 113 Adventure Clubs⁴ in operation, totaling 5,351 Pathfinders and 2,139 active Adventurers.⁵

The Conference has two school units from the Adventist Education Network: the Juazeiro Adventist Academy, in the city of Juazeiro, with 634 students; and the Jacobina Adventist School, in Jacobina, with 241 students.⁶ In addition, the institution offers three camp sites to receive young people during popular festivals in Bahia: the Centro Cultural dos Jovens Adventistas (CCJA) [Youth Adventist Cultural Center] located in the city of Capim Grosso; Fazenda Pilões located in the municipality of Saúde; and a third head office in the municipality of Mulungu do Morro.⁷

Communication through TV and the Internet is an important ally for the expansion of the Adventist message in the northern region of Bahia. The cities where the Hope Channel Brazil is available on open channel are: Barra, Caldeirão Grande, Canarana, Cansanção, Capim Grosso, Itiúba, Jacobina (village of Junco), João Dourado, Mairi, Pindobaçu, Ponto Novo, Quixabeira, Queimadas (at the headquarters and in the village of Riacho da Onça), Remanso, São José do Jacuípe, and Senhor do Bonfim. The broadcast has a potential reach of around 490 thousand people in these municipalities.⁸

Currently, the ABN has a total of 202 staff members. Included in this total are 99 Adventist education employees, 25 of whom are employees of the Conference’s own office. This group of servants still comprises 37 canvassers,⁹ 28 accredited pastors, and 13 licensed pastors.¹⁰

Origin of SDA Work in the Conference Territory

Canvassers were the first to preach the Adventist message in the northern region of the state of Bahia. During the first half of the 20th Century, around 1937, the pair of canvassers named Josué Manin de S. Meira and Nehemias Meira worked in Juazeiro, making significant advances in the preaching of the Gospel. Canvassers José Pereira Sobrinho and Nicolau Barreto sold literature in the city of Senhor do Bonfim.¹¹ The beginning of the Adventist work also included young canvasser Daniel Pereira Filho and his missionary companion, Valentina, in the cities of Irecê, Miguel Calmon, and Jacobina. In addition to these cities, those first evangelist canvassers also visited other towns and villages, attending to those interested and giving Bible studies about a decade before the first Sabbathkeepers appeared in the northern region of the state of Bahia.¹²

The first group of Adventists in the current territory of the North Bahia Conference emerged in 1939 when the patriarch of the Duarte family left the south of the state and returned to his native land, which was on the Diogo farm in the municipality of Jaguarari, Bahia. That man received the message through the preaching of Pastor Teófilo Berger when he worked in the cocoa forests of the Ubatã and Ibirapitanga region in the south of Bahia.¹³ A few years later, in 1942, two Adventist women from the municipality of Porto Novo do Rio Corrente moved to Juazeiro and contacted canvasser Plácido Pita, who visited them and, with them, gave rise to the first Sabbath School in Juazeiro .¹⁴

Within 1943 and 1944, some Adventists from Pernambuco moved to the Várzea Nova region in order to establish agricultural activities. After a time, those members founded the Várzea Nova group, with Nicodemos Falcão's father and uncle from Aracaju as their leaders. In 1945, a gentleman named Ramiro Carrero, also a member of the SDA Church, came from the Southeast and began to preach the Gospel to José Gonçalves, his countryman from the region of Junco and Quixabeira. This man, known as “Zé Grande,” became the first Adventist baptized in that region in 1946.¹⁵

At the same time, Manoel Veloso, a resident of the district of Caatinga do Moura in the region of Jacobina municipality, became acquainted with the Adventist Church and its doctrines, including observing the Sabbath. Although he was not baptized, Manoel Veloso paved the way for the conversion of his entire family, starting with sending his children to Adventist schools and boarding institutions. After graduating from denominational educational institutions, their children became workers and helped with the advance of evangelistic work in Jacobina in northern Bahia and throughout Brazil.¹⁶

As already mentioned, much of the development of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in northern Bahia is due to the work of canvassers. Those men and women were convinced that working in this ministry contributed to the saving of lives. Among them were Godofredo Batista¹⁷ (1939 and 1940), Plácido da Rocha Pita (1945 and 1946),¹⁸ Enoque Medrado (1947),¹⁹ Cipriano de Morais (within 1962 and 1965),²⁰ José Pastor de Oliveira (1966 and 1967), Severino Muniz Pimentel (1968 and 1969), José Naves (within 1971 and 1973), and Dilfo Martins de Castro (1976 and 1977). All of those men were greatly blessed by God.²¹

The second phase of expressive growth for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the northern region of Bahia occurred between 1993 and 1998, a period in which the Bahia Conference experimented with a regional administration system. This system gave the leadership a new motivation and, consequently, all regions grew significantly during that time. As a result of this expansion, the Central Bahia Mission (presently the Bahia Central Conference -- Associacao Bahia Central or ABaC) was created in 2004 and headquartered in Feira de Santana. This fact contributed to the development of the SDA Church in the northern region of Bahia. Over the years, the ABaC has made significant progress in all areas of growth assessment, and this has required a new administrative reorganization in the region.²²

Organizational History of the Conference

In 2011, during an administrative meeting in the city of Feira de Santana, the directors of Central Bahia Conference and the East Brazil Union (União Leste Brasileira or ULB)understood the need to reorganize the field after evaluating the expressive growth of the Church in each part of the ABaC territory. They also took into account the expansions made in other territories and the results of the creation of new administrative units. However, the proposal still needed to be formalized. Thus, the ABaC administrators made a request to the East Brazil Union, which received the request and forwarded it to the South America Division (SAD). The SAD, after evaluating the studies carried out by the survey commission, authorized the establishment of a new Administrative Unit of the Church: the North Bahia Mission (Missão Bahia Norte or MBN), officially created in 2014.²³

The creation of the MBN was possible due to careful and safe planning, carried out during the ULB Board of Directors in the city of Camaçari. During this Council, reports and statistical data on the growth of the Church in the northern region of the state of Bahia were studied. Among the administrators present were these pastors: Daniel Weber Thomas, Benildo Gabriel, Cleiton Lins da Mota, Nivaldo Julião, Geovani Souto Queirós, Ivo Vasconcelos, Cícero Gama, Antônio Oliveira, José Wilson Barbosa, Antônio Hélio Santiago, Fernando Sousa, and Jairo Torres.²⁴

It was decided that the location of its headquarters should be in a strategic city: Juazeiro which, when formed together with the neighboring municipality (Petrolina), is the largest urban agglomeration in the Brazilian semiarid region. At the time, it contained about 201,000 inhabitants. The main economic activities in the municipality of Juazeiro are industrialization and irrigated agriculture. Furthermore, the city is also "one of the region's main fruit exporters."²⁵ In this context, the MBN started operating with the mission of taking the Gospel to the entire northern region of the state of Bahia. With an average of about 1 Adventist per 100 people, efficient planning and execution would be needed to bring the Advent Message to a population of 2,430,239 non-Adventist people in this mission field. To reach them, the mission initially had 24,227 members who were distributed in 354 congregations--all were well motivated for missionary work.²⁶ Since its creation, this administrative unit has remained unchanged in the territory covered and functioning at the provisional headquarters, which is located on Imaculada Conceição St., no. 252, in the Piranga neighborhood in Juazeiro.²⁷

To mobilize the work of the members, the administrative leadership of the new mission field was quickly chosen and began to operate in 2013 (the same year that the Directive Committee took place). During the MBN Organization and Installation Assembly on November 11, 2013, Pastor Cleiton Lins da Silva Motta was elected to lead the Mission as president. Elected to serve alongside with him were pastors Eleonor Raimundo da Silva Júnior as treasurer, and Nadilson Lemos Santos as secretary. In addition to the administrators, department leaders were elected. Due to its limited start-up, the number of departments was reduced and their respective heads, in the vast majority, often assumed more than one function.²⁸

At the end of 2013, the ULB launched the project “Santuários da Esperança” [“Sanctuaries of Hope”], which consisted of the challenge to build a thousand Adventist temples spread across the territory of the Union within five years. For the project to work as expected, the commitment of the administrative units and the motivation of their pastors, leaders, and members was necessary. The plan was already in progress when the MBN was founded so that its creation contributed to the progress of the project. Since its inception, 175 temples have been built in the area where the ABN operates, representing more than 10% of the total number in the ULB field.²⁹

The “Santuários de Esperança” [“Sanctuaries of Hope”] project was especially important for the SDA Church in the northern region of Bahia since its mission field presents geographical challenges such as the so-called “drought polygon.” This is a semi-arid region in northeastern Brazil where long-term droughts result in serious damage to agriculture and serious social problems, which reflects the development of the Church in the region. Adventist Church leaders recognized the importance of this project and its benefit for hard-to-reach places. In 2018, “the Santuários de Esperança” [“Sanctuaries of Hope”] initiative allowed the Church to reach communities and rural territories, something that would be unlikely to happen without the mobilization carried out by the campaign.”³⁰

During its years of operation, the ABN has made a difference in the state of Bahia. State and local parliamentarians often highlight the work of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in the region, characterizing it as a caring institution focused on meeting the physical, spiritual, social, and emotional needs of society.³¹ The Church's identity with solidarity action, for example, has had a major impact on the community. The most recurrent mobilization programs are the project “Vida por Vidas” [“Life for Lives”],³² “Mutirão de Natal” [“Christmas Project”] ³³ “Dia do Abraço e Sorriso” [“Day of Hug and Smile”], youth actions to distribute hugs and smiles to the community, campaigns to combat drugs and smoking, and honors on “International Women’s Day.”³⁴

Many of the youth in this mission field participate in the “Caleb Mission,”³⁵ a project in challenging locations for the preaching of the Gospel. In 2015, for example, rural producers in the São Francisco River Valley region received young missionaries during a water crisis. After the project, some of the residents started to improvise their own places of worship with wood and coconut straw. Even the bar in one of the neighborhoods has been closed, and the rate of drug circulation has dropped considerably in the region.³⁶

Another important initiative is the annual distribution of missionary books through the “Impact Hope” project.³⁷ Also in 2015, the leaders of the North Bahia Mission contacted different radio stations and local political authorities in order to present the project to them. Then, about 80,000 copies of the book “Viva com Esperança para a população” [“Live with Hope for the population”] were distributed.³⁸ In the 2016 edition, around 1,000 members of the SDA Church distributed 400,000 copies of the book “Esperança Viva” [“Live Hope”].³⁹ On one of these occasions, the church posted billboards, held "Health Fairs,"⁴⁰ and counted on the participation of children and youth from Juazeiro Adventist Academy, Pathfinders, and Adventurers clubs.⁴¹

With the growth of missionary work in the region, the administrative unit had its status changed. During a committee meeting conducted between May 4 and 8, 2018, the South America Division approved the evaluation committee’s report proposing a change in the status of the North Bahia Mission, thereby recognizing its financial and organizational consolidation.⁴² As a result, the ULB voted to register this report in committee on November 15.⁴³ Since then, with the approval of all organizational bodies, the North Bahia Mission has been recognized as the North Bahia Conference.⁴⁴

In addition to the change in status, 2018 was also a remarkable year for this institution due to the intense support of its members. By September 25, the month in which the “Batismo da Primavera” [“Spring Baptism”] is celebrated,⁴⁵ about 1,100 baptisms had already been conducted. In the previous year (2017), the field had reached the mark of 800 baptisms in just three months. However, this time, the number of new converts was higher and happened in less time. This contributed to the ULB reaching the goal of around 8,000 baptisms by the end of September of that year.⁴⁶

On April 2019, the membership in the ABN mission field reached almost 30,000. This was an increase of approximately 5,000 compared to the 24,227 Adventists received at its foundation about five years earlier. This shows that, although the phrase “Missão Bahia Norte, Missão Bahia Forte” [“North Bahia Mission, Strong Bahia Mission”] is old, the objective of preaching, motivating, and training members to carry out the mission continues in progress. The ULB, the maintainer of this institution, has supported the Conference closely, being an ally in preaching the Gospel in the ABN territory. However, although serious missionary work has been carried out since the message arrived in northern Bahia in the 1930s, not all 75 municipalities in the North Bahia Conference camp can count on an Adventist Church temple. In this context, the ABN was challenged to establish a church in each municipality that makes up its mission field.⁴⁷

To succeed in this and other missionary objectives, the ABN leadership draws on the many lessons learned throughout its institutional trajectory. Based on these experiences, work is done to overcome the obstacles encountered in the process of evangelistic expansion in the territory. In the near future, the Conference plans to assist members and leaders with more training and incentives to the mission; to be present in all headquarters of municipalities without an Adventist presence today and, from there, to proceed to the evangelism of towns and villages not yet reached by the Adventist message; prepare pastors to serve new generations; prepare strong leadership for the future church; and build more school units so that, through Christian education, the Church has one more ally for preaching the Gospel in northern Bahia.

The northern region of Bahia has Adventists united and engaged in the purpose of saving and serving. However, the leaders and members of this Conference recognize that “human effort of itself is not sufficient. Without the aid of divine power, it avails nothing.”⁴⁸ But in the midst of the challenges, the confidence is certain that, guided by God, the difficulties inherent in the geography of the countryside will not be obstacles to the progress of the message of salvation. Motivated by love and hope and assured of divine direction, missionaries in this field will continue to expand the spread of the Gospel in new locations.⁴⁹ And so, each Adventist in the North Bahia Conference will continue to work tirelessly to bring the eternal Gospel to people in the certainty that the Holy Spirit will continue to guide God’s people towards victory.

Chronology of Administrative Officers⁵⁰

Presidents: Claiton Lins da Mota (2013-present).

Secretaries: Nadilson Lemos Santos (2013-2015); Eleonor Raimundo da Silva Junior (2016); José Geovanio Oliveira Melros (2017-present).

Treasurers: Eleonor Raimundo da Silva Junior (2013-2016); Antônio Hélio da Silva Santiago (2017-present).⁵¹

Sources

Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists]. Facebook post, May 14, 2016. https://www.facebook.com/.

Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists]. Facebook post, May 17, 2016. https://www.facebook.com/.

Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists]. Facebook post, May 25, 2018. https://www.facebook.com/.

Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists]. “Relatório Associação Bahia Norte” [“North Bahia Conference Report”]. Video with activity report, October 28, 2018. Accessed April 15, 2019, http://bit.ly/39ViBpV.

Caldas, Aderbal. “Pronunciamento sobre a trajetória da Igreja Adventista d Sétimo Dia na Bahia e seus préstimos à sociedade brasileira” [“Pronouncement on the trajectory of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Bahia and its services to Brazilian society”]. Speech, extraordinary session of the Legislative Assembly of Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, October 29, 2015.

Cardoso, Lorena. “Norte da Bahia contará com participação histórica de voluntários da Missão Calebe” [“Northern Bahia will have the historic participation of volunteers from the Caleb Mission”]. Adventist News Network, December 4, 2019.

Cardoso, Lorena, and Heron Santana. “Retiros Espirituais movimentam adventistas durante festejos juninos na Bahia.” [“Spiritual Retreats move Adventists during June festivities in Bahia”]. Notícias Adventistas (Online), June 25, 2019.

“Convocação da Assembleia Geral Denominacional de Instalação e Organização da Missão Norte Bahia da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia” [“Convocation of the Denominational General Assembly for the Installation and Organization of the Northern Bahia Mission of the Seventh-day Adventist Church”]. Revista Adventista, September 2013.

Ministry of Pathfinders and Adventurers. https://clubes.adventistas.org/br/.

Ministry of Regional Development. http://www.integracao.gov.br/

Minutes of the Bahia Mission, no. 003, March 18, 1937, vote no. 017.

Minutes of the Bahia Mission, no. 032, March 21, 1940, vote no. 183.

Minutes of the Bahia Mission, no. 039, March 26, 1969, vote no. 69-130.

Minutes of the SAD Plenary Steering Committee, May 4-8, 2018, vote no. 2018-064.

Minutes of the ULB Management Committee, November 15, 2018, vote no. 2018-210.

Pereira, Felipe. “Estudantes Transformam vida de família no interior da Bahia” [“Students transform family life in the countryside of Bahia”]. Adventist News Network, August 17, 2015.

Pita, Plácido da R. Por que Mudei de Exército: A História de um Pioneiro no Agreste [Why I changed my army: The Story of a Pioneer in Agreste]. Santo André, SP: Brazil Publishing House, 1985.

ULB Education Department report. Obtained at the headquarters of the Union, April 13, 2018.

Santana, Heron. “Adventistas escolhem líderes para nova sede administrativa na Bahia” [“Adventists choose leaders for new administrative headquarters in Bahia”]. Adventist News Network, June 10, 2013.

Santana, Heron. “Bahia e Sergipe definem últimos preparativos para o Impacto Esperança” [“Bahia and Sergipe define the last preparations for the Impact Hope”]. Adventist News Network, May 29, 2015.

Santana, Heron. “Produtores rurais do Vale do São Francisco transformam comunidades pela Missão Calebe” [“Rural producers in the São Francisco Valley transform communities through the Caleb Mission”]. Adventist News Network, February 4, 2015.

Santana, Heron. “‘Tempo de Celebrar’ comemora construção de mil templos adventistas” [“‘Time to Celebrate’ commemorates the construction of a thousand Adventist temples”]. Adventist News Network, October 1st, 2018.

Sella, Luiz Fernando and Daniela Tiemi Kanno, Manual da Feira de Saúde [Health Fair Manual]. South America Division, 2015.

Seventh-day Adventist Church - Central Caxias do Sul – RS. https://www.centralcaxias.org/.

Seventh-day Adventist Church (Brazil) Website. http://www.adventistas.org/pt/.

Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook. Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association. Various years. https://www.adventistyearbook.org/.

Silva, Natan F. and Nesias J. Santos, Contando nossa História: 110 anos da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia No estado da Bahia [Telling our History: 110 years of the Seventh-day Adventist Church In the state of Bahia]. Salvador, BA: Empresa Gráfica da Bahia [Bahia Graphics Company]. 2016.

Superintendence of Economic and Social Studies in Bahia. http://www.sei.ba.gov.br/.

Vida por Vidas [Life for Lives]. http://www.vidaporvidas.com/pt/. 

White, E. G. Atos dos Apóstolos [The Acts of the Apostles]. Tatuí, SP: Brazil Publishing House, 2007.

Notes

1. The Seventh-day Adventist Church secretary system, accessed April 16, 2018.↩

2. Seventh-day Adventist Online Yearbook, “North Bahia Mission,” accessed April 3, 2019, https://bit.ly/2D4CSuq.↩

3. The Pathfinders Club is made up of “boys and girls aged 10 to 15 years old, from different social classes, color, religion. They meet in general once a week to learn how to develop talents, skills, perceptions and a taste for nature.” These boys and girls “vibrate with outdoor activities. They like camps, hiking, climbing, explorations in the woods and caves. They can cook outdoors, making fire without phosphorus.” In addition, they demonstrate “skill with discipline through united order and have creativity awakened by the manual arts. They fight, also, the use of the tobacco, alcohol and drugs.” Portal da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia [Seventh-day Adventist Church Website], “Quem somos” [“Who we are”], accessed February 4, 2020, http://bit.ly/2FDRqTh.↩

4. “The Adventurers Club is a program for children from 6 to 9 years old, created by the Seventh-day Adventist Church in 1972. [...] At the meetings, children carry out activities with a focus on physical, mental and spiritual development.” Seventh-day Adventist Church - Central Caxias do Sul - RS, “Clube de Aventureiros: Duquinhos,” accessed February 4, 2020, https: // bit. ly / 389AQGG. ↩

5. Pathfinders and Adventurers Ministries ABN, “Statistics - North Bahia Conference,” accessed March 23, 2020, https://bit.ly/2SJEcet.↩

6. ULB Education Department report, obtained at the headquarters of the Union, April 13, 2018.↩

7. Lorena Cardoso and Heron Santana, “Retiros Espirituais movimentam adventistas durante festejos juninos na Bahia” [“Spiritual Retreats move Adventists during June festivities in Bahia”], Adventist News Network, June 25, 2019, accessed March 10, 2020, http://bit.ly/3cPA1ps.↩

8. Report of the Communication Department of the North Bahia Conference, n.d.↩

9. Canvassing is an “activity of voluntary and independent distribution of publications with religious content and themes related to family health and quality of life.” Whoever does the canvassing work is called canvasser. Seventh-day Adventist Church (Brazil) website, “Colportagem” [“Canvassing”], accessed February 14, 2020, https://bit.ly/2RQirbB.↩

10. “North Bahia Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Nampa, ID.: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 2018), 238; Seventh-day Adventist Church Secretary system, accessed April 16, 2018.↩

11. Minutes of the Bahia Mission, no. 003, March 18, 1937, vote no. 017.↩

12. Gildasio Publio, interviewed by the author, Itamaraju, Bahia, October 18, 2016.↩

13. Natan F. Silva and Nesias J. Santos, Contando nossa História: 110 anos da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia No estado da Bahia [Telling our History: 110 years of the Seventh-day Adventist Church In the state of Bahia], Salvador, BA: EGBA Empresa Gráfica da Bahia [Bahia Graphic Company], 2016, 132.↩

14. Plácido da R. Pita, Por que Mudei de Exército: A História de um Pioneiro no Agreste [Why I changed my army: The Story of a Pioneer in Agreste], Santo André, SP: Brazil Publishing House, 1985, 46, 47.↩

15. Idem.↩

16. Gildasio Publio, interviewed by the author, Itamaraju, Bahia, October 18, 2016.↩

17. Minutes of the Bahia Mission, no. 032, March 21, 1940, vote no. 183.↩

18. da Rocha Pita, Por que Mudei de Exército: A História de um Pioneiro no Agreste [Why I changed my army: The Story of a Pioneer in Agreste], 46, 47.↩

19. Ibid., 63.↩

20. Minutes of the Bahia Mission, no. 039, March 26, 1969, vote no. 69-130.↩

21. Nesias Joaquim dos Santos, personal knowledge for attending the Adventist Church of Campo Verde, Juazeiro district, during this period.↩

22. Silva and Santos, Contando nossa História 110 anos da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia No estado da Bahia [Telling our History 110 years of the Seventh-day Adventist Church In the state of Bahia], 252.↩

23. Nesias Joaquim dos Santos, personal knowledge for working 34 years in the territory and being the AB secretary within 2014-2015 biennium.↩

24. The Denominational General Assembly of Installation and Organization of the Northern Bahia Mission of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, which was created from the split of the Central Bahia Conference, according to the votes ULB 2013-001, ULB 2013- 071 and DSA 2013- 132, was held on November 11, 2013. For more details on the call for this Meeting, see: “Convocação da Assembleia Geral Denominacional de Instalação e Organização da Missão Norte Bahia da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia” [“Convocation of the Denominational General Assembly for the Installation and Organization of the Northern Bahia Mission of the Seventh-day Adventist Church”], Revista Adventista, September 2013, 28.↩

25. Heron Santana, “Adventistas escolhem líderes para nova sede adminsitrativa na Bahia” [“Adventists choose leaders for new administrative headquarters in Bahia”], Adventist News Network, June 10, 2013, accessed on November 14, 2018, https: //bit.ly/2wEsmdr.↩

26. “North Bahia Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Nampa, ID.: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 2015), 285.↩

27. “North Bahia Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Nampa, ID: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 2018), 238.↩

28. Ibid.↩

29. Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists], Facebook post, September 25, 2018 (7:39 pm), accessed April 3, 2019, https://bit.ly/2U6fVwG.↩

30. Heron Santana, “‘Tempo de Celebrar’ comemora construção de mil templos adventistas,” [“‘Time to Celebrate’ celebrates the construction of a thousand Adventist temples], Adventist News Network, October 1st 2018, accessed April 4, 2019, https://bit.ly/2P02FJ9.↩

31. Aderbal Caldas, “Pronunciamento sobre a trajetória da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia na Bahia e seus empréstimos à sociedade brasileira” [“Statement on the trajectory of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Bahia and its services to Brazilian society”], speech, extraordinary session of the Legislative Assembly of Bahia, Salvador, Bahia, October 29, 2015.↩

32. “Iniciativa voluntária promovida pelos Jovens Adventistas. Em 2005 o Projeto surgiu com a proposta de contribuir com os hemocentros através do incentivo à doação de sangue durante o período da Páscoa” [“Voluntary initiative promoted by Adventist Youth. In 2005 the Project came up with the proposal to contribute to blood centers by encouraging blood donation during the Easter period”], Vida por Vidas [Life for Lives], “O Projeto” [“The Project”], accessed February 4, 2020, https://bit.ly/3dskZ9G.↩

33. “The Christmas Project is an initiative that was born in an Adventist Church in Brazil, in 1994. The idea was to gather food and clothing to deliver to people in need during the holidays at the end of the year, especially at Christmas.” Seventh-day Adventist Church Brazil webiste,“Mutirão de Natal” [“Christmas Project”], accessed February 4, 2020, https://bit.ly/2WEKM4W.↩

34. Felipe Pereira, “Estudantes transformam vida de família no interior da Bahia” [“Students transform family life in the countryside of Bahia”], Adventist News Network, August 17, 2015, accessed March 25, 2020, https://bit.ly/2xnhZL9.↩

35. “Caleb Mission project is a volunteer program, social service, and a witnessing that challenges the Adventist youth to dedicate their vacations to evangelism in places where there’s no Adventist presence, to strengthen the small congregations and gain new people for the kingdom of God.” Portal da Igreja Adventista do Sétimo Dia [Seventh-day Adventist Church Website], “Missão Calebe 2020” [“Caleb Mission 2020”], accessed February 4, 2020, http://bit.ly/2HRpvRi.↩

36. Heron Santana, “Produtores rurais do Vale do São Francisco transformam comunidades pela Missão Calebe” [“Rural producers in the São Francisco Valley transform communities through the Caleb Mission”], Adventist News Network, February 4, 2015, accessed March 25, 2020, https://bit.ly/2PaXxTT.↩

37. The project “Impact Hope is a program that encourages reading and provides for the annual mass distribution of books by Seventh-day Adventists in the territory of South America.” Seventh-day Adventist Church Website, “Impact Hope,” accessed February 4, 2020, https://bit.ly/34dZROO.↩

38. Heron Santana, “Bahia e Sergipe definem últimos preparativos para o Impacto Esperança” [“Bahia and Sergipe define the last preparations for the Impact Hope”], Adventist News Network, May 29, 2015, accessed February 20, 2020, https://bit.ly/2SI33zx.↩

39. Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists], Facebook post, May 17, 2016 (11:59), accessed February 20, 2020, https://bit.ly/2wqt6Cv.↩

40. “The Health Fair is a one, two or more days event, open to the public of all ethnicities and beliefs, without cost or profit. It is usually organized in public places such as gymnasium, schools, parks, squares and shopping malls. The community is invited to participate and receive the benefits of the tests and guidelines.” Luiz Fernando Sella and Daniela Tiemi Kanno, Manual da Feira de Saúde [Health Fair Manual] (South America Division, 2015), 15.↩

41. Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists], Facebook post, May 14, 2016 (11:59), accessed March 25, 2020, https://bit.ly/33MQcQv.↩

42. Minutes of the SAD Plenary Steering Committee, May 4-8, 2018, vote no. 2018-064. The evaluation committee’s report is filed with the SAD secretary (18-037).↩

43. Minutes of the ULB Management Committee, November 15, 2018, vote no. 2018-210.↩

44. Daianne Plínio (ABN secretary), e-mail message sent to Adilson da Silva Vieira, April 11, 2019.↩

45. “The Spring Baptism was created by pastor Ademar Quint in Rio de Janeiro, and it takes place annually in churches. The aim is to encourage juvenile and young people to give themselves to Jesus. In 2013, this event celebrated 50 years, and more than one million people are already baptized on this special date.” Accessed January 7, 2020, https://bit.ly/2s3e0RL https://bit.ly/2s3e0RL.↩

46. Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists], Facebook post, September 25, 2018 (7:39 pm), accessed April 3, 2019, https://bit.ly/2U6fVwG. ↩

47. Seventh-day Adventist Online Yearbook, “North Bahia Mission,” accessed April 3, 2019, https://bit.ly/2D4CSuq; Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists], Facebook post, September 25, 2018 (19:39), accessed April 3, 2019, https://bit.ly/2U6fVwG.↩

48. E. G. White, Atos dos Apóstolos [The Acts of the Apostles] (Tatuí, SP: Brazil Publishing House, 2007), 270.↩

49. Adventistas Bahia Norte [North Bahia Adventists], “Relatório Associação Bahia Norte” [“North Bahia Conference Report”], video with activity report, October 28, 2018, accessed April 15, 2019, http://bit.ly/39ViBpV.↩

50. “North Bahia Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Nampa, ID.: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 2015), 285; “North Bahia Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Nampa, ID.: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 2018), 238. For more details about all administrative officers, consult the SDA Yearbooks from 2015 to 2018.↩

51. More information about the ABN can be found on their website at http://mbn.adventistas.org/ or through their social media outlets on Facebook: @adventistasbahianorte and YouTube: North Bahia Adventists.↩