
Enoch de Oliveira
Photo courtesy of Brazilian White Center - UNASP.
Oliveira, Enoch de (1924–1992)
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: July 9, 2021
Enoch de Oliveira was a pastor, teacher, administrator, writer, and evangelist from Paraná, Brazil.1
Early Years
Enoch de Oliveira was born February 8, 1924, in the city of Curitiba, state of Paraná. His parents were Saturnino Mendes de Oliveira (May 10, 1890-August 18, 1977) and Jeronima Cervo de Oliveira (May 6, 1898-October 7, 1988). He had three siblings: Gideon, Ruth, and Rubem.2
Enoch grew up in an Adventist home under the positive influence of his parents. In his childhood, he attended the Sofia Costa Pinto Institute in Salvador, state of Bahia. His father, Saturnino, canvassed for 17 years and worked as a publishing director for 34 years, spreading the Adventist message throughout 11 states in Brazil, during which he visited about 830 villages and cities.3 Saturnino, alongside Pastor Ricardo Suessman, pioneered in introducing Adventism to São Paulo city.4
On the other hand, his wife, Jerônima, always encouraged her children to study, besides working on her own education. She enrolled in a biblical doctrines and Seventh-day Adventist Church history course offered by the Missionary Volunteer department, and a home hygiene and home care course offered by the medical department of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists.5
Ministry
In 1945, Enoch graduated simultaneously from the theology and technical accounting high school programs at Brazil College (now referred to as UNASP-SP), where at that period students could attend both series of courses at the same time.6 Since he failed in his homiletic classes, he felt discouraged about becoming a pastor, so he applied to work for the church in the accounting area. In 1946, he became an office assistant at the Paraná-Santa Catarina Mission, headquartered in Curitiba, where he took care of the packaging, mailing, and helped in the treasurer’s office.7
On February 3, 1948, he married Lygia Rosa Marques de Oliveira, in the city of Rio de Janeiro. They had met during school vacations as literature evangelists, four years prior to their wedding.8 Like Enoch, Lygia was also the daughter of prominent literature evangelist, Isidoro Marques.9 She contributed greatly to her husband’s ministry, helping him in many areas, including children's evangelism during his evangelistic campaigns. She also served as a secretary for the South American Division and the General Conference.10 Apart from that, she wrote the book In the Tracks of the Pioneers, which highlights the experiences of those who helped to establish the Seventh-day Adventist Church (published in 1990 by the Brazil Publishing House).11 Their marriage produced Lutero Marques de Oliveira (born September 9, 1949) and Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl (born June 30, 1951).12
From 1948 to 1949, Enoch led the education and young people’s departments of Paraná-Santa Catarina Mission.13 In order to become better prepared to assume administrative positions, he graduated in 1949 with a degree from the Economic Sciences College of Curitiba. At that same period, he eventually assumed some pastoral duties at the Curitiba Church, since the official pastor was struggling with illness. The experience helped him to develop his speaking skills as he preached at the church a few times.14
After serving for six years at the Paraná-Santa Catarina Mission office, church leadership appointed him in 1951 as director of the Paraná Adventist Academy (now referred to as IAP). However, as the director’s house on the Paraná Academy campus was still under construction and he had a newborn daughter, Enoch didn't adapt very well to the new job and asked for reassignment to another position. So, in 1952 he was ordained into the ministry and became senior pastor of the Curitiba Adventist Church, where he already served as assistant pastor. That same year, he graduated with a degree in education from the Philosophy, Sciences, and Languages University of Paraná.15
Afterwards, in 1954, Enoch accepted a call to be an evangelist-pastor at the Rio-Minas Conference, where he served for two years. In 1956, he became an evangelist in the East Brazil Union Conference (today Southeast Brazil Union Conference), conducting extended evangelistic series in various cities. Enoch performed his pastoral duties with great zeal, his sermons Christ-centered.16 In 1959 he took his first master’s degree in Bible and systematic theology at Potomac University. During that time the church transferred the seminary program Washington, D.C., to Berrien Springs, Michigan.17
That same year, he received an appointment as ministerial secretary for the South American Division (SAD), with headquarters in Uruguay, a position he held from 1959 to 1970. During those years he edited the magazine The Ministry in Spanish and Portuguese, publishing numerous articles and editorials to the thousands of ministers of the eight countries of the South American Division.18
Meanwhile, in 1967, he acquired his second master’s degree in church history at Andrews University.19 Later in 1975, he received a doctorate title (Honoris Causa) from Andrews University in recognition of two of his studies: Religious Liberty in South America and The Phenomenon of Glossolalia and the Response of the Seventh-day Adventist Church.20
After serving for 11 years as South American Division Ministerial secretary, he became general secretary of the division, a position he held from 1970 to 1975. The challenge was great, since at the time South American Division had 340,000 members and had the highest membership growth of all the church’s divisions. Then in 1975 Enoch was nominated as the first Brazilian president of the South American Division.21
Many projects developed under his leadership. The year after he assumed the presidency, the division’s executive committee compiled a list of 230 communities in its territory not yet reached by the Adventist message, and in 1977 voted to focus the division’s efforts on those locations. The main goal was to transform lay members into volunteer workers. For that purpose, the division held many congresses and meetings to mobilize the members. Then the division carried out the plan during 1977 to 1980.22
Additional projects South American Division implemented included the large-scale distribution of The Desire of Ages by Ellen G. White; the creation of the Brazilian Adventist Hospital Group (GHAB) and the Latin-American Adventist Theological Seminary (SALT); and the convening of many conferences and workshops about health and Christian stewardship. Among the organizational decisions made, one of the most noteworthy was the division of the Bolivian field into the Bolivian Mission and the Lake Mission.23 On June 22, 1976, the new South American Division headquarters, previously in Uruguay, opened in Brasília, with the presence of representatives from the General Conference, unions, and Adventist institutions, as well as ecclesiastical and civic authorities. Enoch de Oliveira presided over South American Division from 1975 to 1980.24
Then, from 1980 to 1990, he served as one of the vice-presidents of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists,25 becoming responsible for coordinating the evangelistic efforts of the Adventist Church on a worldwide level. During that same time, he was a member of the administrative committees at Andrews University and Loma Linda University. Additionally, it is important to note his support for the new plant for the Brazil Publishing House, participating in the laying of its cornerstone on November 28, 1983 in Tatuí, São Paulo state. On January 4, 1985, he was present at the opening of the new facilities.26
In addition, Enoch was the author and promoter of the plan known as One Thousand Days of Reaping and its follow-up, Harvest 90. One Thousand Days of Reaping was the first worldwide-level evangelist plan launched by the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. It sought to foster spiritual renewal in the life of church leaders with the purpose of helping to finish God’s work on Earth. During the subsequent Harvest 90, South America became the second ranked division in membership.27
As vice-president of the General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, he traveled to many countries, attending to the administrative challenges of the different divisions, while also preaching in various churches and institutions. During periods of political crisis in some countries of the Euro-Africa Division, Enoch’s Brazilian citizenship became of great help, since he was one of the few General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists administrators who could visit African countries such as Angola and Mozambique.28
In 1988 he went to the Soviet Union as a General Conference representative to a large celebration held by the Orthodox Church celebrating the 1000-year anniversary of Vladimir the Great's baptism (he was converted to Christianity in A.D. 988). The country received Enoch with great honor and dignity in that country.29
On September 3 of 1989, now in Brazilian territory, he participated in the inauguration of the Bom Retiro Adventist Academy.30 An avid reader, he wrote many books, including A Mão de Deus ao Leme [The Hand of God at the Helm], in Portuguese and Spanish.31 In 1988, he authored Angústia ou Esperança [Anguish or Hope], distributed in the year 2000, and the devotional Bom dia, Senhor [Good Morning, Lord].32
Last Years
Enoch retired in June 1990 at the General Conference Session held in Indianapolis. Returning to Brazil in September of that same year, he settled in Curitiba. He had struggled with cancer for eight years, going through chemotherapy, but it did not stop him from preaching in many churches in the region and directing Weeks of Prayer and Revival. Enoch conducted his last baptism on December 29, 1991, and preached his last sermon at the Curitiba Central Church, February 29, 1992. However, on March 28 he preached his final sermon in a small church in Capão da Imbuia, also in Curitiba.33 It was entitled “The Trojan Horse.”
His health declined rapidly34 and he died April 10, 1992, at 68 years of age, in Curitiba where he had lived since his retirement. The funeral took place at the Curitiba Central Church with the presidents from the East Brazil Union, Central Brazil Union Conference, and South Brazil Union Conference attending. Pastor Rodolpho Gorski, from the South Brazil Union Conference, and Pastor Léo Ranzolin, as the General Conference's representative, were also present. Pastor João Wolff, president of the South American Division, presented the main sermon.35 Enoch was buried in the Parque Iguaçu cemetery, in Curitiba.36
Contribution
Enoch de Oliveira rendered a significant contribution to the Seventh-day Adventist Church in its Brazilian, South American, and worldwide territories. He worked for 45 years as a pastor, teacher, economist, administrator, author, and evangelist. Together with his wife, Lygia de Oliveira, he accomplished much. Pastor Enoch is still remembered today for his powerful preaching, advanced evangelistic visions, culture, administrative abilities, and most of all, for his profound sense of mission.37
Sources
Canedo Gullón, Roberto. Una Semilla de Esperanza. Tatuí, SP: Brazil Publishing House, 2015.
Certificate. In: National Adventist Memory Center Archive/Ellen G. White Research Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP. Stand: 2. Shelf: 14. Folder/box: “Oliveira, Saturnino.” Accessed December 16, 2019.
“Curso de leitura para 1991.” Revista Adventista, January, 1991.
Diploma de Efficiencia. In: National Adventist Memory Center Archive/Ellen G. White Research Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP. Stand: 2. Shelf: 14. Folder/box: “Oliveira, Saturnino.” Accessed December 16, 2019.
Enoch de Oliveira biography. In: National Adventist Memory Center Archive/Ellen G. White Research Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP. Stand: 2. Shelf: 14. Folder/box: “Oliveira, Enoch de.” Accessed December 16, 2019.
Gross, Renato. Instituto Adventista Paranaense: Uma história em três tempos. 1939-2009. Ivatuba, PR: Parana Adventist College, 2009.
Lessa, Rubens. “Descansa o príncipe dos pregadores adventistas.” Revista Adventista, May, 1992.
Lessa, Rubens. “Líder Inesquecível.” Revista Adventista, February, 2016.
Oliveira, Saturnino M. de. “Bendito o que Semeia... Livros.” Revista Adventista, September, 1971.
Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook. Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1949 and 1950.
Week of Prayer bulletin with Enoch de Oliveira, September 1-9, 1989. In: National Adventist Memory Center Archive/Ellen G. White Research Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP. Stand: 2. Shelf: 14. Folder/box: “Oliveira, Enoch de.” Accessed December 16, 2019.
Notes
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Week of Prayer bulletin with Enoch de Oliveira, September 1-9, 1989 (Archive of the National Adventist Memory Center/Brazilian White Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP).↩
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Enoch de Oliveira biography (Archive of the National Adventist Memory Center/Brazilian White Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP), 1; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Saturnino Mendes de Oliveira, “Bendito o que semeia… livros,” Revista Adventista, September, 1971, 13.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Certificate (Archive of the National Adventist Memory Center/Brazilian White Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP), 1; Diploma de Efficiencia (Archive of the National Adventist Memory Center/Brazilian White Center: UNASP-EC, Engenheiro Coelho, SP), 1; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl, email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Enoch de Oliveira biography, 1; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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“Dormiram no Senhor,” Revista Adventista, June, 1982, 32.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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“Curso de leitura para 1991,” Revista Adventista, January, 1991, 22; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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“Parana-Santa Catarina Conference,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1949), 167; “Parana-Santa Catarina Conference,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1950), 168.↩
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Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1949), 167; Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook, (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association 1950), 168.↩
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Enoch de Oliveira biography, 1, 2; Renato Gross, Instituto Adventista Paranaense: Uma história em três tempos. 1939–2009 (Ivatuba, PR: Parana Adventist College, 2009), 104.; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Enoch de Oliveira biography, 1, 2; Gross, 104; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Enoch de Oliveira biography, 2; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Enoch de Oliveira biography, 2; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Roberto Canedo Gullón. Una Semilla de Esperanza (Tatuí, SP: Brazil Publishing House, 2015), 205; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Canedo Gullón, Una Semilla de Esperanza 205; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Canedo Gullón, Una Semilla de Esperanza (Tatuí, SP: Brazil Publishing House, 2015), 205, 206.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Enoch de Oliveira biography, 2.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Canedo Gullón, Una Semilla de Esperanza, 207.↩
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Enoch de Oliveira biography, 2.↩
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Ibid.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Rubens Lessa, “Líder Inesquecível,” Revista Adventista, February, 2016, 45; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018; Enoch de Oliveira biography, 1.↩
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Ibid., 2.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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Enoch de Oliveira biography, 3.↩
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“Descansa o príncipe dos pregadores adventistas,” Revista Adventista, May, 1992, 18.↩
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Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩
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“Descansa o príncipe dos pregadores adventistas,” 18; Vera Lúcia de Oliveira Dorl email message to Camilla Seixas, September 17, 2018.↩