da Silva, Domingos Peixoto (1898–1980)

Domingos Peixoto da Silva was an evangelist, pastor, administrator, lecturer, teacher, writer, and public relations expert of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Brazil.

Early Life and Education

Domingos Peixoto da Silva was born November 12, 1898, in the city of São Borja, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Son of Paulino and Virgínia Cândida Peixoto da Silva¹ (died 1928),² he was brother of Isaura Peixoto (born 1897), who also contributed to the progress of the Adventist message in the region of Rio de Janeiro as a Bible instructor for 40 years and Social Assistance Department director of the Rio-Minas Conference.³

Domingos had primary and secondary education in the city of Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul.⁴ He became involved in evangelistic activities while still in his youth. When he was 18 years old, he worked as an evangelist for the Baptist Southern Mission, remaining until 1919. At that time, still in the early years of Adventism in Brazil, his family became acquainted with the Adventist message. He, his mother, and his sister accepted Adventism.⁵ He was baptized in 1919 by Pastor H. F. Neumann, in the waters of Guaíba River in Porto Alegre.⁶

The following year he enrolled in the theology course at the Adventist Seminary (now referred to as UNASP-SP) in São Paulo.⁷ During vacations he canvassed in order to pay for his school expenses.⁸ He graduated on December 16, 1922, being part of the first class to graduate from the theology course at the seminary, together with Guilherme Frederico Denz, Luiz Waldvogel, Isolina Avelino Waldvogel, Rodolpho Belz, Adolfo Bergold, Alma Bergold, Adelina Zorub, and Philonila Assunção.⁹ Later he also studied law for two years in the Superior School of Law (now University of São Paulo, USP).¹⁰

Ministry

Domingos started to work as a pastor-evangelist for the Seventh-day Adventist Church in 1923, when he accepted a call to move to the city of Campo Belo, Minas Gerais. Later that year he worked in the southern part of the state and especially in the city of Varginha.¹¹ On December 19, 1923, he married Maria Luísa Chagas (1896-1943), in the city of Ibitinga, São Paulo, and from this union was born his only daughter, Virgínia.¹²

In 1925 he continued his work as evangelist, now in the state of São Paulo, where he contributed to spreading the Adventist message in many cities where there were only a few believers, such as Campinas, São João da Boa Vista, Espírito Santo do Pinhal, and other towns.¹³ In November 1926 he returned to his home state and went to work in the city of Santa Maria da Boca Monte, where he contributed to the growth of the Adventist community there.¹⁴

On March 18, 1928, Domingos was ordained to the ministry and, on that occasion, he conducted his first baptism. He continued to work in Santa Maria da Boca Monte until December 1928,¹⁵ and the following year he accepted a call to work as an evangelist in the East Brazilian Union in the state of Rio de Janeiro (now Southeast Brazil Union Conference). While living in the city of Niterói, as a result of their prayers and evangelistic efforts, many people were baptized. During this period he also worked in many neighborhoods of the capital, such as Vila Isabel, Cassuritiba, Ilha da Boa Viagem, and the city of Petrópolis.¹⁶ He served in Rio de Janeiro until 1933.¹⁷

In 1934 Domingos served as Bible and Evangelistic Training teacher at the Adventist Seminary in São Paulo.¹⁸ On August 28, 1935, he went to the United States in order to improve his knowledge of theology at Pacific Union College in California.¹⁹ After returning to Brazil in 1937, he became the director of the middle school at the Adventist Seminary, which had been officialized by the Brazilian government that year.²⁰

Among his administrative positions, Domingos was president of the Department of Civic Duties of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Brazil, also called at the time the SDA Brazilian Association, according to Revista Adventista. The department was created around 1930, due to the necessity of the SDA Church to deal with problems arising from the First World War and the threats of a Second World War. It belonged to the South-Brazilian Union and was composed by all the members of executive committees and elected delegates of the associations and missions of the territory.²¹

The main concern of the Adventist Church at the time was to make clear it’s position about Sabbath observance and a non-combative attitude on military service. On April 22, 1937, Domingos visited the federal president, Getúlio Vargas, in order to give him a declaration of principles from the Adventist Church prepared by the Commission of Civic Duties about these subjects. This was a significant act, considering that Brazil was governed by a dictatorial government.²²

From 1940 to 1946, Domingos served as director of the Adventist Seminary. During this period, his contribution was important for the structural development and the growth in number of students. It was during his administration that the name of the institution was changed to Brazilian Adventist College, with the aim to attract more students. From 1941 to 1944 much construction took place to provide classrooms for nursing courses, new rooms for the elementary school, the college entrance, and housing for the food industry.²³

In 1943 Domingos suffered the death of his wife. Maria had accompanied him in his years of ministry until her early death at the age of 47.²⁴ On January 24, 1944, Domingos married Alice Wilfart in the state of Rio de Janeiro, and she also contributed to the SDA Church as a nurse and teacher.²⁵

In 1947 he accepted the call to be president of the Rio Grande do Sul Conference where he stayed for two years.²⁶ Later he accepted the call to serve in the Brazil Publishing House, as vice-president in 1949 and as secretary in 1950.²⁷

In 1951 he accepted a call to serve as a full-time leader of the Department of Civil and Religious Duties in the Brazilian territory, which at the time represented the North, East, and South Brazilian Unions. As its general secretary, Domingos endeavored to obtain financial and political support from the government for the assistance projects of the SDA Church. He made constant visits to officials of Brazil’s judiciary, legislative, and executive branches. He also searched for laws and information related to constitutional duties that were relevant to the Church in the denominational context. In order to keep the Church informed about these subjects, he frequently wrote a column for the department in the Revista Adventista (ARH).²⁸

He was also a defender of Adventist youth regarding the exemption from taking classes on Friday evenings and taking academic exams on Saturdays.²⁹ He headed the foundation, Socorristas Padioleiros (Corpsman Nurses Training Course), in 1953.³⁰ As an active writer, he published numerous articles at the Revista Adventista and three books: Quinhentos Esboços Para Sermões, Quinhentas Ilustrações Escolhidas, and Coletânea de Mil Esboços para Sermões.³¹

Later Years and Legacy

In 1971, after 20 years of dedication to defending the interests and positions of the SDA Church in Brazil, Domingos retired and he and his wife, Alice Peixoto, went to live in Rio de Janeiro. In his last days he experienced the painful effects of old age, suffering from sclerosis and needing special care from his wife.³² He passed away on September 11, 1980, at the age of 82, in Rio de Janeiro. He was mourned in the Guanabara auditorium and buried in the São Batista Cemetery, in the district of Botafogo.³³

Domingos Peixoto da Silva left an important legacy of service to the Seventh-day Adventist Church, working actively for the cause of God for 49 years. His pioneer contribution can be found by the fact that he was part of the first class to graduate with a degree in theology from the Adventist Seminary in Brazil. He was also one of the first Adventist pastors to be ordained in the country and, as such, had an important role in the consolidation of the Adventist Church in many of the cities of Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais.³⁴ He also made a relevant contribution by interceding on religious liberty issues on behalf of the Brazilian Seventh-day Advenistis Church and serving in public relations for more than 30 years.

Sources

“ASA Homenageia Idosos.” Revista Adventista, year 78, no. 1, January 1983, 26. Accessed November 7, 2019, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb

Domingos Peixoto da Silva. “Recordar é Viver.” Revista Adventista, year 67, no. 2, February 1972, 17. Accessed August 21, 2018, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb

Encyclopedia ASD. Archive of the National Center of Adventist History/Ellen G. White Research Center: UNASP-EC. Rack 2. Shelf 13. Accessed August 23, 2018.

Evaldo Schlemper. “Ressuscitou Dorcas.” Revista Adventista, year 59, no. 2, February 1964, 17. Accessed November 7, 2019, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb

Ferreira, Osmar Pinto. “Domingos Peixoto.” Monography, IAE), 1985.

Jairo Araújo. “Os Moços Adventistas e o CAEP.” Revista Adventista, year 48, no. 11, November 1953, 8. Accessed November 11, 2019, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb

“Morre Domingos Peixoto da Silva.” Revista Adventista, year 75, no. 10, October 1980, 29, 31. Accessed August 20, 2018, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb

R. Belz. “Novo Departamento.” Revista Adventista, year 46, no. 5, May 1951, 12. Accessed November 11, 2019, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb

Santos, André Oliveira. “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo.” Monography, IAE1997.

Schmidt. “Convenção no Auditório do Rio.” Revista Adventista, year 57, no. 4, April 1962, 20. Accessed November 7, 2019, http://acervo.revistaadventista.com.br/capas.cpb

Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook. Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1934-1935, 1950-1951. Accessed November 8, 2019, https://www.adventistyearbook.org/.

Notes

1. da Silva, Domingos Peixoto, “Recordar é Viver,” Revista Adventista, year 67, no. 2, February 1972, 17.↩

2. André Oliveira Santos, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo” (Monography, IAE - current UNASP-EC, 1997), 62.↩

3. André Oliveira Santos, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo” (Monography, IAE, 1997), 62; “ASA Homenageia Idosos," Revista Adventista, year 78, no. 1, January 1983, 26; Schlemper, Evaldo, “Ressuscitou Dorcas,” Revista Adventista, year 59, no. 2, February 1964, 17; and Schmidt, “Convenção no Auditório do Rio,” Revista Adventista, year 57, no. 4, April1962, 20.↩

4. André Oliveira Santos, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo” (Monography, IAE, 1997), 4.↩

5. Ibid., 5.↩

6. da Silva, Domingos Peixoto, “Recordar é Viver,” Revista Adventista, year 67, no. 2, February 1972, 17.↩

7. Ibid.↩

8. André Oliveira Santos, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo” (Monography, IAE, 1997), 6.↩

9. Encyclopedia ASD (Archive of the National Center of Adventist History/Ellen G. White Research Center: UNASP-EC, also known as New Brazil College, Engenheiro Coelho, SP), 1395-1396; and André Oliveira Santos, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo” (Monography, IAE, 1997), 7-8.↩

10. da Silva, Domingos Peixoto, “Recordar é Viver,” Revista Adventista, year 67, no. 2, February 1972, 17.↩

11. Ibid., 9-10.↩

12. “Morre Domingos Peixoto da Silva (1898-1980),” Revista Adventista, year 75, no. 10, October 1980, 30; and Ritter, Germano, “Maria Luiza Chagas Peixoto da Silva,” Revista Adventista, year 38, no. 8, August 1943, 25.↩

13. Ibid., 11-12, 17.↩

14. Ibid., 18.↩

15. Ibid., 20-21.↩

16. Ibid., 21-23.↩

17. “Rio-Minas Mission,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1934), 169.↩

18. “Brazillian Training School,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1935), 223.↩

19. Ibid., 31-32.↩

20. Ibid., 34-35.↩

21. Ibid., 36, 69, 72; and “Associação dos Adventistas do Sétimo Dia no Brasil,” Revista Adventista, vol. 35, no. 11, November 1940, 16.↩

22. André Oliveira Santos, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo” (Monography, IAE, 1997), 44; and “Visitando o Presidente da República,” Revista Aventista.↩

23. Ibid., 35, 37, 41.↩

24. André Oliveira Santos, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo” (Monography, IAE, 1997), 59.↩

25. Ibid., 61.↩

26. Ibid., 41.↩

27. “Brazil Publishing House,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1950), 323; and “Brazil Publishing House,” Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook (Washington, D.C.: Review and Herald Publishing Association, 1951), 309.↩

28. André Oliveira Santos, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo” (Monography, IAE, 1997), 70-74; and Belz, R., “Novo Departamento,” Revista Adventista, year 46, no. 5, May 1951, 12.↩

29. Ibid.↩

30. Encyclopedia ASD (Archive of the National Center of Adventist History/Ellen G. White Research Center: UNASP-EC), 1396; and Araújo, Jairo, “Os Moços Adventistas e o CAEP,” Revista Adventista, year 48, no. 11, November 1953, 8.↩

31. Osmar Pinto Ferreira, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva” (Monography, IAE, 1985), 12.↩

32. André Oliveira Santos, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva: Um Pioneiro nas Linhas de Fogo” (Monography, IAE, 1997), 74.↩

33. Osmar Pinto Ferreira, “Domingos Peixoto da Silva” (Monography, IAE, 1985), 17.↩

34. Ibid., 6.↩