GLOBAL EXPANSION OF ADVENTISM
As the Seventh-day Adventist Church continued to spread across the United States, the early church leaders knew this Advent Message of the Three Angels should be shared around the world as well. They would not let themselves become complacent in their “comfort zones,” and they began serious talks about mission work.
James and Ellen White, along with Joseph Bates, an Adventist preacher, urged the development of a plan for missions that included a focus on medical work to help meet the needs of people around the world.
The first Adventist missionary was J.N. Andrews. He was selected to go to England and Switzerland in 1874 to assist Adventist church leaders there. He eventually established the Adventist printing press in Basel, Switzerland.
Ellen White also traveled to Switzerland, as well as South Africa, South America, the South Pacific, and Australia. The Advent Message spread rapidly as missionaries worked closely with publishing houses and gathered teams to canvas different areas and distribute literature. Several of these areas began writing to the General Conference to request more missionaries!
By the end of the 1870s, Adventist membership had tripled, passing 16,000 members. By 1901 there were 75,000 members worldwide, and the Church had also established two colleges, a medical school, 12 secondary schools, 27 hospitals, and 13 publishing houses.
Eventually, the Church also organized regional administrative offices, such as divisions, unions, and conferences, to more efficiently oversee various operations in education, publishing, health and mission work.
Today the Adventist Church continues to grow globally, maintaining its focus on health and wellness, community development and mission work, publishing, and education. The Church currently operates over 8,000 schools around the world, nearly 200 hospitals, and over 50 publishing houses. According to Pew Research, the Seventh-day Adventist denomination is the most ethnically diverse Christian denomination in the world.
With a rich history of dedicated Bible study and a commitment to applying biblical principles to daily life, Adventists remain an active, dedicated global faith community. Together they cling to Jesus as their only hope and eagerly await His Second Coming.
