wfn.org | Adventist Church Growing at Record Pace

[APD <APD_Info_Schweiz@compuserve.com>]

July 1, 2000
Adventist Press Service (APD)
Christian B. Schaeffler, Editor-in-chief
Fax +41-61-261 61 18
APD@stanet.ch
http://www.stanet.ch/APD
CH-4003 Basel, Switzerland

Adventist Church Growing at Record Pace

Toronto, Canada.  Every 28.91 seconds, someone 
becomes a Seventh-day Adventist. Every 4.73 hours, 
a new Adventist church is organized.

Such applause-drawing statistics highlighted a 
comprehensive report on the growth of the world 
church given by General Conference Secretary G. 
Ralph Thompson at the June 30 business meeting of 
the 57th world session. 

With 1,090,848 accessions in 1999 alone (a rate of 
10.73 percent), church membership neared-and has 
since crossed-11 million members, said Thompson. 
Whereas in 1995, one in 647 people was an 
Adventist, the ratio is now one in 552. Adventists 
can now be found in 205 of the 229 countries and 
areas of the world recognized by the United 
Nations, with 91.6 percent of membership living 
outside of North America, the church's birthplace. 
For every 66 church members, one denominational 
worker is employed-a total of 166,000. 

Thompson briefly surveyed the state of the 
church's dozen Divisions (and dozens more 
departments and ministries within those 
divisions):

Of particular note:

* The fastest growing division, from 1994 to 1999, 
was the Southern Asia Division, with a 63.19 
percent increase. 

* The Trans-European Division was the only 
division to have a net decrease, down .35 percent. 

* Israel now has 500 registered members, up from 
50 in 1985. 

* China has 250,000 baptized members and 2,600 
Sabbathkeeping congregations. "It is now 
permissible to build churches funded by outside 
sources," noted Thompson. 

Thompson didn't detail the secession rate among 
Adventists, but General Conference Archives and 
Statistics Director Bert Haloviak reported that 
"for every 100 that joined during the quinquennium 
[past five years], 24 left." That ratio is an 
improvement from statistical secretary Robert 
Radcliffe's 1966 estimate that one of three 
members would either leave or be dropped from 
membership. "We are challenged to create 
communities where none will choose to leave," said 
Haloviak.

A major evangelistic challenge, said Thompson, 
continues to be the 10/40 window, where 60 percent 
of the world's population resides. "The approaches 
used in the western world cannot be used in this 
part of the world," he said. "[Reaching this 
people] will be a slow, hard, and at times 
disappointing process. But under God we have got 
to find a way."

Meanwhile, world church per capita giving of 
tithes and offerings dipped to US$168.32 in 1999 
from US$169.36 in 1998. In 1981, per capita giving 
was at US$202.32. The North American Division-
whose members' earnings are comparatively high-led 
total contributions in 1999, giving US$981,354,266 
(or US$1,115.39 per member). [Editor Andy Nash for 
ANN/APD]