
South Andean Mission headquarters.
Photo courtesy of Jacob Rodríguez Mancilla.
South Andean Mission
By Jacob Rodriguez
Jacob Rodriguez Mancilla, M.A. in pastoral theology (Inter-American Adventist Theological Seminary) currently serves as executive secretary and ministerial secretary of the South Andean Mission. He has served the church as a district pastor for 30 years.
First Published: October 23, 2021
The South Andean Mission is located in the south-eastern part of Colombia.1 It is made up of the departments of Huila and Caquetá, with a population of 3,316,113. Its main office is in the City of Neiva, in the department of Huila, located in Carrera 7A No. 19 - 30 Neighborhood Quirinal. The mission is part of the Southern Colombian Union Conference of the Inter-American Division and has 11,765 members, 59 organized churches, ten ordained pastors, and three licensed pastors.
Origins of Work in the Territory
At the end of the 1890s, self-supporting missionary Frank C. Kelly arrived in Colombia, determined to introduce Adventism. He stayed in the country for only three years because his wife became ill and he had to return to his country. He worked selling photographic equipment and teaching English. Unfortunately, "after two decades there was no one to continue Kelly's pioneering work" and the seed he had sown could not germinate and bear fruit.2 His was the first attempt to preach the Adventist message in Colombia.
In 1913, missionary B. E. Connerly volunteered to try to break the "proverbial ice of Colombia" through publications. In 1915 he and his family settled in Barranquilla, and the following year, 1916, in Medellín. There he wrote: "This is the most delightful and toughest field I've ever worked in.”3 “G. A. Schwerin took on the work that Connerly had left unfinished in 1917, and at that time, E. M. Trummer visited Colombia for the first time. Less than two years later, when he moved to Bogotá, he used his expertise as a canvasser to distribute Adventist books as a means of preparing Colombia for active evangelism. It was during his years of service that the Adventist work in Colombia had its true beginning.”4
In 1921, Pastor Max Trummer arrived in Bogotá to strengthen the missionary work already begun. He contacted the Kelley and Cleves families to join forces in the preaching of the gospel.5 From Bogotá, the preaching of the gospel spread throughout this sector of the country.
In 1938, Cayetano Villamil, a farmer from the area of Campoalegre, Huila, having heard the Adventist message, immediately accepted it, and with great fervor shared it with his family. In the same year, an Adventist leader, Pastor Gregorio Laguna, visited them for the first time in Huila. On this trip he baptized three persons, namely Cayetano Villamil, Hernando Villamil, and Luis Guio who were the first converts. These also became the first preachers of the gospel in this area. They started meetings in the house of the Villamil family, located three blocks from the Catholic church. Campoalegre became the first city in the department of Huila where the gospel was preached in an organized way. This first group of believers faced strong opposition from the popular church and police authorities. Brother Hernando Villamil said: "I never felt fear, I was threatened with death many times, but faith in Christ was more powerful than any weapon."6 With the passage of time, the message extended to Neiva, the capital of the department, and from there to the entire territory of Huila and the department of Caquetá through Brother Sanmiguel and others.
Events Leading to Organization of the Mission
The Colombia Mission was organized in 1922 7 and its first president was Pastor E. M. Trummer. The address of the mission offices was: Section 599, Bogota, Republic of Colombia. The members of the executive board were, E.M. Trummer (president), L.V. Cleaves, Fred Brower, F. C. Kelley, and Antonio Redondo.8
In 1926 it was reorganized into four missions: Mission Antioqueña based in Medellín with Pastor Max Trummer as president; Atlantic Mission based in Barranquilla; Pacific Mission with headquarters in Cali; and Central Mission with headquarters in Bogotá with Pastor G.C Nickle as president. The territory of the Central Mission served the provinces of Cundinamarca, Tolima, Huila, Caquetá, Boyacá, Santander, Norte de Santander, Arauca, Vichada, Vaupés, and Meta.9 The territory that today comprises the South Andean Mission was part of the Central Mission until the creation of the Alto Magdalena Mission in 1929.10 In 2006, when the South Colombian Mission was created, the territory of Huila and Caquetá was served from the city of Ibagué, headquarters of the new field.11
South Andean Mission was initially organized in November 2013 as an experimental region. The idea of creating this mission arose from the need to better meet the needs of the members in the departments of Huila and Caquetá and reach the municipalities in which there was no Adventist presence. The main headquarters of the South Colombian Conference was based in Ibagué and it was difficult for members to participate in training and other activities because of the vast distances to travel. The pastoral districts were very widespread, making it challenging for pastors to give proper attention to them.
In the meeting of the South Colombian Conference executive committee on November 19, 2013, it is recorded: "Create the South Andean Experimental Region, which will serve the departments of Huila and Caquetá, based in Neiva."12 Joel Archila, executive secretary of the South Colombian Conference, was appointed as coordinator of the region. The South Andean Mission was organized on November 17, 2016, in a congress led by Pastor Israel Leito, president of the Inter-American Division, with Pastor Jaime Joseph appointed as president.13 In 2017, a property was acquired in a strategic area of the city to house the administrative offices of the mission, from which the task of sharing the good news of salvation continues.
Educational Institution
Neiva Adventist Secondary School is located in the Downtown District of the city of Neiva Huila. It was founded on February 4, 1991 with 35 elementary students. Its first director was Pastor Marco Barrera. It currently has 281 students and offers preschool through high school. Graduates receive a secondary school diploma in software programming.
Plans to Fulfill the Mission
The South Andean Mission is trying to fulfill its mission through promoting ministries that will lead each pastor and each believer to a personal encounter with Jesus, as well as give support to the total development of members. These initiatives include application of health principles; education with values; teaching Christian principles in homes and educational institutions; good management of the resources provided by the Lord; developing activities in each church department, taking into account the principle of unity in diversity; and involving all members of the field in the mission of preaching the gospel to the whole world.
Perspectives for Future of the Mission
The South Andean Mission works with its administrators, pastors, missionaries, and laity to achieve the objective of the preaching the gospel throughout its territory. One of the proposals for this period is to reclaim former Adventists, as they represent 40% of the total membership. Revival days with fasting and prayer are held monthly for both remote members and new converts.
The extensive territory of the mission makes the task complex. There are difficulties in communications in the sparsely populated territories in the Caquetá area.14 Additionally, the long distances of travel in places with unpaved roads can take up to 15 hours or many hours by boat through the Orteguaza and Caquetá rivers.
Presidents
Jaime Patricio Joseph Vargas (2016 – ).
Sources
“Caqueta.” Wikipedia, La enciclopedia libre. Accessed 2019. https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caquet%C3%A1.
Greenleaf, Floyd. The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Latin American and the Caribbean Berrien Springs, Michigan: Andrews University Press, 1992.
“Huila.” Wikipedia, La enciclopedia libre. Accessed 2019. https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huila.
Schwarz, Richard W. and Greenleaf Floyd. Light Bearers: A History of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. Buenos Aires: South American Publishing House, 2002.
Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, Accessed July 22, 2019. http://documents.adventistarchives.org/Yearbooks.
Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook. Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1923.
South Colombian Conference Executive Committee minutes. Vote 9, November 19, 2013. South Colombian Conference archives, Bogota, Colombia.
Yerko, Viana. History of Adventism in Bogotá D.C. 1921-2011. Bogotá, Colombia: Communications Department, Upper Magdalena Conference, SF.
Notes
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“Huila,” Wikipedia, La enciclopedia libre, accessed 2019, https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Huila.↩
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Richard W. Schwarz and Floyd Greenleaf, Light Bearers: A History of the Seventh-day Adventist Church (Buenos Aires: South American Publishing House, 2002).↩
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Floyd Greenleaf, The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Latin American and the Caribbean (Berrien Springs, Michigan: Andrews University Press, 1992), 173.↩
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Ibid.↩
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Yerko Viana, History of Adventism in Bogotá D.C. 1921-2011 (Bogotá: Communications Department, Upper Magdalena Conference, SF), 28.↩
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Hernando Villamil, interview by author, Neiva. Huila, September 12, 2017.↩
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Greenleaf, 134.↩
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“Colombian Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Conference, 1923), 176.↩
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Ibid.↩
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“Colombia, Alto Magdalena,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (1931), accessed July 22, 2019, http://documents.adventistarchives.org/Yearbooks/YB1931.pdf.↩
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“Colombia, South Colombian Conference,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (2018), accessed July 22, 2019, http://documents.adventistarchives.org/Yearbooks/YB2018.pdf↩
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South Colombian Conference Executive Committee minutes, Vote 9, November 19, 2013, South Colombian Conference archives.↩
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“South Andean Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (2018), accessed July 21, 2019, http://documents.adventistarchives.org/Yearbooks/YB2018.pdf↩
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“Caquetá,” Wikipedia, La enciclopedia libre, accessed 2019, https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caquet%C3%A1.↩