An Introduction
The Seventh-day Adventist Church
Locally, Nationally and Internationally
Worldwide President |
Jan Paulsen |
|
British Union President |
Cecil Perry |
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North British Conference President |
Egerton Francis |
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Sheffield District Minister |
Andrew Rashford-Hewitt |
A Growing Church
Seventh-day Adventist Churches literally circle the globe. 2001 statistics show membership greater than 12.3 million worshipping in more than 48,000 congregations in 204 countries. (Note that there are only about 228 countries in the world!) The Church is increasing in net world wide membership by about 7 percent every year - a high figure for a denomination its size.
A Caring Church
The Adventist Church also operates 174 hospitals, 393 clinics and dispensaries, and 158 nursing homes, retirement centres, orphanages and children's homes, that in the year 2000 served over 10 million people. In the UK our caring ministry includes Roundelwood in Scotland and The Dell in East Anglia.
A Teaching Church
In addition the Church runs a worldwide system of more than 5,900 schools with over 1,065,000 students from kindergarten to graduate professional schools.
Educational institutions in the UK and Ireland include 1 college, 2 secondary schools and 9 primary schools.
A Serving Church
In response to Christ's invitation to feed the hungry and clothe the naked, Seventh-day Adventists try to help friends and neighbours in need irrespective of race, colour or religion.
Internationally, the Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) helps victims of war, famine, floods, earthquakes, and other disasters. In addition, many Adventist congregations have community service facilities, from which volunteers help those in need close to home. In the year 2000, Adventists helped over 15 million men, women and children. An annual camp, sponsored by ADRA-UK, is held in North Wales for disabled children.
A Communicating Church
The Adventist Church also has a worldwide publishing ministry, with more than 50 publishing companies, printing scores of magazines and other publications in nearly 327 languages and dialects.
Leading magazines in the United Kingdom include `Focus' - dealing with doctrine and prophecy from Scripture, and `Encounter', a specialised youth magazine.
A Local Church
The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Sheffield has a membership of 350 (out of a total British & Eire membership of 20,000) with many more friends and family visiting the three local congregations on a regular basis.
Sheffield is a University City so the local congregations are enhanced by a regular influx of students each academic year.
