Brazilian businessman and philanthropist, Dr. Milton Afonso, was recognized for
Williams Costa Jr. of ADSAT, left, during one of the workshops.
Through the ADSAT truck some of the congress events were transmitted live.
Participants from Chile.
No technology can surpass the influence of the people, said Rogerio Sorvello, lecturer in communication at Brazil Adventist University. He was addressing participants of the first communication congress of the South American region of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, organized on the premises of the university in Engenheiro Coelho, near Sao Paulo.
Organizers said that the planning of the event went beyond their expectations. “We planned for 500 attendees from all countries in our region, and twice as many came,” said Siloe Almeida, church communication director for the region in Brasilia, Brazil.
The Adventist Church in South America has the second largest concentration of Adventists internationally with 1.9 million baptized church members. Claiming 1.2 million persons of that total, the Adventist Church in Brazil has the largest single-country membership in the world church.
“The gospel is our motivator, and much of what we do has its foundation in the ‘how’ we do it. Communication has a big part in this,” Almeida explained. “Our situation was good before, but now, as you can see at this congress, we have accelerated by 1,000 times. It’s the first time that we have locked hands with the laity.”
It’s the people of the church and their involvement that matters most, said one of the lecturers.
Perhaps as much as 80 percent of the participants came from the various communication branches involved in the church’s mission, and represented the church in Bolivia, Brazil, Peru, Chile, Argentina, Ecuador, Uruguay and Paraguay. “In these countries we have dozens of radio stations, and we aim at an even greater involvement in bringing the church’s life and mission to the people’s homes through television,” Almeida explained.
Almeida was eager to speak about the “new philosophy of communication involvement in South America.”
“Look at these students. They are perhaps as many as 20 percent of all the participants. They are able to witness and join in creating a new day in communication supporting the church’s mission,” he added.
The spread of workshops included special emphasis on the contemporary delivery systems and the “in” branches of communication, such as marketing and advertising. Internet evangelism received special attention. Several workshops emphasized the need for individual church members and evangelistic institutions to communicate through this medium if the church is to reach the Internet generation. That’s where we should be present in an intentional and creative way, one speaker said.
ADSAT is paving the way in making this communication vision a reality. Brazil-based, ADSAT is the church’s most advanced satellite television production ministry already on the air with continuous broadcasting around the clock. The broadcaster has eight years of experience in television production and transmitting by satellite. ADSAT is part of the Adventist Television Network’s global family of broadcasters.
Williams Costa Jr. is its director. “We are providing a service to our Portuguese and Spanish viewers with one aim, to bring the message of hope to the homes of the people,” he said. ADSAT, whose studios are currently based in Nova Friburgo, near Rio de Janeiro, operates a third television channel know as ADSAT-Executive, exclusively tailored for broadcasting to the “Adventist family.”
“Our church members are now accustomed to be involved in training and view programming from church events and nurture-type content. This way we speak to the world, and also motivate our church members to be involved in the church’s mission,” Costa added. ADSAT is re-broadcasting through local television transmitters and cable networks.
Much of the congress program was organized for the purpose of creating awareness about communication strategies and methods, as well as increasing involvement in the already existing technical infrastructure of communication.
Giselle Camargo, a third-year journalism student, was one of the congress participants. Her comment was indicative of the interest in being a part of some of the 56 workshops and plenary sessions. “I can learn the technical things at university or elsewhere. But I came here to see how communication can be integrated with the mission of the church,” she said.
According to organizers, the congress also aimed to increase the church’s awareness of the need to elevate communication efforts to include professional expertise in the church. This need was also articulated in a series of recommendations to be followed up throughout the South American church.
Speaking at the congress, Ray Dabrowski, communication director for the world church, challenged the participants to review “our communication methods. We are in the marketplace of ideas and options. Our relevancy as a church rests on the way we present the message to the diverse church audiences, and in the way we live the message within the communities where we are,” he said.
“One method to fit the whole world does not cut it. Nor is the satisfaction some may have at articulating their religion and then resting on it. Our belief has to be lived and seen.”
The congress program included a special tribute to Dr. Milton Afonso, a well-known Brazilian businessman and philanthropist who contributed to the church’s acquisition of numerous radio stations and the establishment of the television ministry in South America. He was presented with the “Bridge Award” on behalf of the communication ministry of the world church.
Involved in the workshops and presentations was John Banks, associate director of communication for the world church. “This was one of the most significant communication events in the world church to highlight the communication ministry,” Banks said. “The response of the participants was quite overwhelming. The future of church communication in this part of the world is assured. It rests on the shoulders of the church members in the pews, supported by the visionary leadership.”
These words were echoed by representatives from Portugal in the Euro-Africa region of the world church. “We came to be informed and are leaving inspired by the congress. I wish we could do something similar in Europe,” said Ezequiel Quintino, who attended the event.
The congress included a concurrent seminar in issues of religious liberty. Under a theme of “Religious Liberty After September 11,” some 100 lawyers, teachers and church administrators heard a series of lectures and participated in panel discussions ranging from religious liberty and security to public evangelism and public image, as well as crisis management. The seminar included presentations by Dr. John Graz, director of public affairs and religious liberty for the world church.
During the closing session of the congress, Almeida was also presented with a “Bridge Award” for his contribution to the corporate communication of the church and raising church awareness in South America.