Mark Johnson, New President of the SDACC

At a specially called meeting of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Canada (SDACC) Board of Directors on Sunday, July 18, 2010,  Pastor Mark Johnson, president of Alberta Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, was appointed to serve as president of the SDACC.   He replaces Dan Jackson who was recently elected as president of the North American Division (NAD) of Seventh-day Adventists.

Johnson was born in the United States and worked as a pastor in both Missouri and California before moving to Canada, where he has served for the last 25 years.

His Canadian service includes pastoral work at Bowmanville Church in Ontario, pastoral and departmental work in Manitoba-Saskatchewan Conference before being elected as executive secretary in British Columbia Conference.  He was elected as president of Alberta Conference in the spring of 2008.
   
Pastor Johnson and his wife, Rebecca ‘Becky’, are the parents of two adult children. 

DVDs of the 59th General Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, may be obtained ONLY through the Hope Channel.

For more information and o place your order, please call 888-446-7388.

To view videos from Atlanta visit, www.adventistreview.org/article.php?id=3496

World Church Elects Ted Wilson As President and G.T. Ng As Secretary

The Seventh-day Adventist Church at its 59th General Conference Session in Atlanta has elected Pastor Ted Wilson  as its new world president and Pastor G. T. Ng  as the new executive secretary.

Wilson, a former vice president of the world church, was elected on June 25, 2010. He replaces Jan Paulen, who has served the church since 1999.

Ng, a Singaporean who most recently served the church as associate secretary, was elected as the new executive secretary on the same day.  He replaces Pastor Matthew Bediako.

Robert E. Lemon was re-elected as treasurer, a post he has held since 2002.

For a full report of these and other  positions voted. go to

Ontario Conference’s Commissioning and Ordination Service 2010


On Sabbath, May 29, 2010, four pastors and five teachers were respectively, ordained and commissioned at the Ontario Conference’s camp meeting held at the International Centre, Mississauga.

The service was held at 4:30 p.m. in Arrow hall in the presence of  nearly 5,000 members and visitors.

Four teachers, Andon Boyce, Kevin Cameron, Edwin Mansook and Lucilla Naidoo teach at  Crawford Adventist Academy in Toronto. The other, Rose Wilson, is a teacher at Peel Adventist School in Caledon.  

Three pastors, Frank Dell’Erba, Philip Lee and Jayson Levy work in the Greater Toronto Area.  The other, Pastor Jagos Ivanovic, works with the congregation in Sudbury.

Commissioning and ordination services are among the most valued services for church members. The high attendance at this and previous year’s services attest to the strong belief of church members in the biblical teaching that God calls some  men and women for particular service.

In the commissioning service,  Dr. Janice Maitland, Ontario Conference education superintendent spoke of the significance of the act of commissioning in the life the teacher. It is the solemn recognition of the church that God has called men and women to dedicate themselves to the teaching ministry.  “The teacher,” she says, “is entrusted with the care of young, impressionable minds for God’s kingdom.”

In the North American Division of Seventh-day Adventists, the teacher’s role in a Seventh-day Adventist school is recognised as both evangelistic and pastoral.  
 
Newly Commissioned Teachers

Andon Boyce thoroughly enjoys working with young people and is happy to see them everyday.  He has been teaching Mathematics and Computer Science at Crawford Adventist Academy since 2002.  He is married to Paula Phillips and together they parent their two childen, Caleb, 17 months and Isaias, 2 months.

Kevin Cameron began his teaching career at Crawford Adventist Academy nearly ten years ago.
He extends his teaching of English into his favourite hobbies of creative writing, drama and film making.  Kevin considers himself to be a family man and takes time nurture his marriage to Simone.  They have two children, McKenna, 6, and Kendall, 3.

Edwin Mansook is a musician.  He ‘lives and breathes’ music and uses his gifts to teach his pupils to glorify God.  His desire his to take his pupils the highest standard of attainment and refuses to settle for less than best. Edwin has served at Crawford Adventist Academy for nearly nine years and is currently the chairperson of the Music Department.   He and his wife, Rhonda, have an eleven-year old daughter, Janay.

Lucilla Naidoo believes that service is a large part of her teaching ministry and that she should model Christ’s teachings and principles to her grade 8 pupils.
 
She is completing her ninth year at Crawford Adventist Academy and is committed to integrating faith and learning in her teaching.

Lucilla is married to Raghen and is mother to their two sons, Ravell, 17, and Rowan, 11.

Rose Wilson comes from a family of educators. Her parents were both teachers and she teaches in the same school, Peel Adventist School, as her sister, Fran.

Rose is very creative and uses her unique abilities to provide a class room that stimulates keen interest from her energetic six and seven-year old pupils.

She has served in the Seventh-day Adventist school system for eight years.  

Ordination Service

Dr. Ganoune Diop, director for the Global Mission Study Centers in Maryland, USA, was the ordination speaker.  A biblical scholar and linguist, Diop, tasked the four ordinands to be pastors of their congregations in the same way that Jesus pastors His church.  He cited Psalm 23 to spell out the work of the pastor in caring for his congregation but also urged the ordinands to remember their ‘little flock’ at home.

 “Care for the larger flock must not cause you to neglect your little flock at home, he said. “Neither should you neglect the larger flock because you are spending too much time with your little flock.  Find the balance.”

It was the first ordination service for Pastor Edwards as president of the conference but his confidence in giving the ordination charge belied that fact. However, it was his display of affectionate support as a husband to his wife, Sharon, as she struggled with the microphone as she addressed the wives of the ordinands, that seemed to have won the admiration and respect of the congregation.

The ordination prayer was offered by Pastor Daniel Jackson, president of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Canada.

Newly Ordained Pastors

Frank Dell’Erba pastors Harmony Adventist Church and Italian Adventist Company.  He was baptised at age 13 but it was wasn’t until his early 20's that he felt the conviction to respond to the call to become a pastor.
Frank interned under Pastor Fred Irish in the North Bay/South River district and later under Pastor Jeff Brown at Apple Creek Church in Markham.

He has a passion for connecting the un-churched to Jesus and is constantly seeking new ways of doing so.

His ministry is shared by his wife, Irene, with whom he has an active three-year old son, Nicholas.

Jagos Ivanovic enjoys being the pastor of the congregation at Sudbury. “They’re really wonderful people,” he says.

His love for God’s people has been evident throughout his adult life and lead him to prepare for ministry in his homeland of Montenegro.

Jagos has been employed by the Ontario Conference since 2005 and his ordination is a confirmation that he is fulfilling God’s purpose.

He and his wife, Zorica, have two children, Stephanie, 9, and Gabriel, 7.


Sang Yun (Philip) Lee is primarily a product of Adventist education.  His faith was developed and nurtured while attending Adventist schools in Manitoba, British Columbia and Canadian University College in Alberta.

Since 2004 he has served as an assistant pastor at Toronto Korean Seventh-day Adventist Church.  He is currently pursuing his Master of Divinity degree at the Seventh-day Adventist Seminary in Michigan, USA.

Philip is married to Hye Rim (Emily).  They have two young children, Enoch and Chloe.


Jayson Levy is a graduate of Northern Caribbean University (NCU). He chose to attend there after sensing a call to pastoral ministry at age 20.  It was at NUC that he met and his future wife, Margeaux Rhoden.  

Jason entered church employment in early 2004 as a Bible instructor at Toronto East Adventist Church. Eighteen months later he was appointed at the assistant pastor at Scarborough Adventist Church.

Jayson and Margeaux are proud first-time parents of ten month-old Kaylon Robert.






 the associate pastor at Scarborough Adventist Church.

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Ontario Conference Hosts Prayer Breakfast for Oshawa City Officials, Spiritual and Business Leaders        

June 4, 2010, Oshawa, Ontario...OCN

Mr. Jerry Ouellette, MPP for Oshawa, and Councillor Nester Pidwerbecki, deputy mayor, were among a number of dignitaries, spiritual leaders and business leaders in Oshawa who attended the first-ever prayer breakfast held at the Ontario Conference on Friday, June 4, 2010.

The 8:00 a.m. prayer breakfast was organised by the Prayer Ministries Department of the conference and coincided with the official opening of a prayer room.
Prior to the start of the breakfast, Prayer Ministries director, Pastor Eustace Williams, was very clear about the purpose of the event.

“We want the community to see our church headquarters as more than simply an office building,” said Pastor Eustace Williams,  “We want our community leaders to see this building as a place of prayer.  Each time they are in need of guidance, we want them to think of us.”

After a warm welcome by Williams, the prayer breakfast began with joyful worship led by Pastor David Schwinghammer.  The enthusiastic response of a number of guests suggests that they had not expected Adventist worship to be as lively and inspiring  as it was.  It was also clear that they  were moved by the devotional thoughts by conference president, Dr. Mansfield Edwards.  

One of the highlights of the morning was the rendition by a group from among the staff of the song, “Shout to the Lord!” However,  it was evident that prayer was the main feature of the morning.

Dr. Nilton Amorim, executive secretary of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Canada (SDACC), led the prayer for the business community.  He was followed by Dr. Daniel Linrud, executive secretary of the Ontario Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, who prayed for city officials.  Former Ontario Conference president, Pastor Derrick Nichols, led the prayer for the spiritual leaders.  

After prayer, everyone moved to the prayer room, where councillor Nester Pidwerbecki cut the ribbon and declared the prayer room open.  Dr. Dennis Marshall, superintendent of education for the SDACC offered a prayer of dedication.

Pastor Williams brought the service to a close and reminded everyone that the prayer room is available for the community to use for prayer.

“This room is not just for the occupants of this building,” he said.  We want the community to know that if ever they are looking for a place to pray, they can come right here.”

A delicious breakfast followed in the spacious foyer of the conference office.

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Camp Meeting 2010: The “Spiritual Camp Meeting!”

“Spiritual” was the word used by many as Ontario’s one-day camp meeting drew to a close a few minutes after 9:00 p.m.  at the International Centre in Mississauga on  May 29, 2010,

Satiated from the abundance of the day, campers searched for the most appropriate adjective to describe their experience and quickly settled on ‘spiritual’, smiling as they did so.

An enthusiastic Alona Abla from Mount Zion Filipino Seventh-day Adventist Church, said that she loved all the speakers for their spiritual orientation and described her experience as “awesome” and “blessed”.

First-timer, Lorna Alfred from Toronto Central Adventist Church said, “It’s been a really good experience. I really liked it–the preaching, the singing–it was good!”

Others spoke of the new feature–the Parade of Nations–as something new and rich in its significance as well as its presentation.

“The Parade of Nations left me thinking as what it will be like when we get to heaven,” said Apple Creek’s Edson Ambersly.

Another member who had been watching the Parade of Nations via the broadcast on his computer at home was so inspired by seeing so many nations represented in national costumes and carrying their flags that he decided that he had to be present and immediately made his way to the International Centre.
 
The Parade of Nations was a first for Ontario’s camp meeting, and it was also the first time that Pastor George Brown and Pastor Hyveth Williams were the selected guest speakers.  

Brown was clearly a drawing card for some campers.  As a former president of the Inter-American Division of Seventh-day Adventists, he is well- known and greatly loved by a significant number of members in Ontario, who were formerly members of the  Inter-American Division.  In anticipation of this, the seating was increased to 6,000 in the adults section.   Nearly all of these were taken, but it seemed as if some people still preferred to remain standing at the rear of the hall.

Brown preached for both the morning and evening services.   His first sermon, “There Must Be No Retreat”, was based on Israel’s liberation from Egypt as recorded in Exodus 14.  He identified three perils that the church must guard against in taking God’s message to the people of Ontario–the peril of the status quo, the peril of detours and the peril of regression.

Speaking of the church, he said, “We as a body of believers, do not constitute a monument.  Ours is not a mere philosophy.  Ours is not a mere culture. Ours is not an enterprise.  We are a body of believers, a growing, redemptive, historical movement, raised up by God Almighty to accomplish a work in this world!”
He encouraged the church in Ontario to be a “Spirit-filled empowered body of believers”.

He concluded that the church in Ontario does not have any reason to retreat and must not be fearful in moving forward.  “Because Christ is with us,” he said, “we have nothing to fear!”   

Meanwhile, in the Youth and Young Adults service, Pastor Hyveth Williams was telling nearly 2,000 worshippers that the same power Jesus used to raise Lazarus from the tomb (John 11) is also available for His people to live successful Christian lives and to become instruments in God’s hands.

She used the examples of Jesus commanding the people to roll away the tomb stone and remove the grave clothes from a newly resurrected Lazarus to demonstrate the responsibility Christians have towards others.  “We must help to loosen people from their grave clothes of sinful habits,” she said. “Those who are suffocating, burdened with sin and sorrow need our help to free them.”

She particularly emphasised the need for church members to help people who are new to the faith or who have been hurt.  

Ten persons responded to the appeal to accept Jesus as their Saviour.

The ordination of four pastors and commissioning of five teachers in the afternoon was one of the camp meeting’s highlights.  Teachers Andon Boyce, Kevin Cameron, Edwin Mansook, Lucilla Naidoo and Rose Wilson were commissioned.  Pastors Frank Dell’Erba, Jagos Ivanovic, Philip Lee and Jayson Levy were ordained.

Ordination speaker, Dr. Ganoune Diop, director of the  Global Mission Study Center in Maryland, drew parallels to the selection of priests in ancient Israel as the people’s offering to God.  He also cited the example of God’s relationship to His people as their pastor as a model for pastors to follow.

The afternoon programme in the Youth and Young Adults section featured a presentation by Richard Fangrad from Creation Ministries International in Guelph, Ontario.  He presented a rivetting and thought-provoking biblical account on creation and evolution to show the Genesis six-day creation account as completely reliable.

Camp meeting’s regular features of concerts, education, evangelism and numerous ministry display booths were also prominent.   


For many people like O’Brian Alexander, a youth from Toronto West Church, camp meeting  also provides a time of rich fellowship.

“It’s a great social experience,” he said. “You can get to talk with other people and hear how they like it.  You also get to make new friends.  I like it.”

O’Brian can look forward to seeing his new friends at camp meeting next year, July, when once again everyone can look forward to another time of a rich spiritual experience.

Camp Meeting 2011 will take place on Sabbath, July 9, at the International Centre, Mississauga.
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April 14, 2010, Oshawa, Ontario...OCN

Church members in Canada may now register for events online in Canadian funds.  

The announcement was made by Pastor Mansfield Edwards and Mr. Ulysses Guarin, conference president and treasurer, respectively, in a letter to church pastors, elders and treasurers in the Ontario Conference of Seventh-day Adventists earlier today.

“We have just completed the software development that will allow us to accept credit card payments via our website for conference-sponsored events,” said Guarin.  

According to Guarin, the system is very simple to use.  If the event requires registration, there will be a link directing the user to enter payment details.

The software development is a direct response to the needs expressed by church members.

Previously, the conference used the services of Advent Plusline, but an increasing number of church members were unhappy to pay in US funds as Plusline  required, especially when the Canadian dollar was low compared to the US dollar.  

The announcement follows fast on the heels of February’s announcement that tithes and offerings may also be donated online through Adventist Giving.

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Ontario Conference Approves Online Giving
 
The Ontario Conference of Seventh-day Adventists announced today that church members may now return their tithes and offerings electronically.
In a letter to pastors, local elders and treasurers, Mr. Ulysses Guarin, conference treasurer, announced that the conference board of directors had approved the use of AdventistGiving for its members.
AdventistGiving is an online donation system created by the North American Division (NAD) that has been in operation in the United States for the past three years. It is currently being used by 671 congregations in 50 conferences.
“As soon as the Canadian version became available, we wanted to let our members know immediately,” said Guarin, “because many have been asking about it, and now it’s here.”
He made it very clear that AdventistGiving is not replacing the traditional method of returning tithes and offerings via the offering plate in church. “It is,”  he said, “simply another option for the convenience of those who prefer to do their banking and financial transactions online. Members are free to use either option or both.”
In its current form, the Canadian version of AdventistGiving is by credit card only. The electronic debit from bank accounts, as with regular bill payments, is not yet available, although it could possibly happen in the future.
AdventistGiving is not free. As is the usual banking practice, there will be transaction and other banking fees. However, the Ontario Conference (70%), the SDACC (10%), NAD (10%) and the General Conference (10%) will pay those fees, making it free to the donor who will receive a charitable receipt for 100% of the value of all qualified donations.
Currently, AdventistGiving is only available in English. The SDACC will discuss with the NAD the possibility of having a French and Spanish version.
 Members are able to make use of AdventistGiving after their churches have registered by sending an email, indicating the name, location of the church and email address of the local treasurer to help@adventistgiving.ca. Registration may also be done online at www.adventistGiving.ca
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On Sunday, February 7, 2010, Ontario Conference of Seventh-day Adventists will host a benefit concert for Haiti at Apple Creek Seventh-day Adventist Church.

The benefit concert, scheduled for 4:30 p.m. will feature award-winning gospel artistes and others, including Alliance, an Ottawa-based choir of Haitian-Canadians.  The outstanding line-up of performers is expected to make this concert one of the most exciting events in the Greater Toronto Area for 2010.

As a joint partnership between the Ontario Conference of Seventh-day Adventists, ADRA Canada and the evangelical Christian newspaper, Maranatha News, the concert will attract people from across the GTA.   A number of dignitaries and celebrates are also expected to be present.

“We are happy to work with both ADRA Canada and Maranatha News to put on this concert,” said Dr. Mansfield Edwards, Ontario Conference president, “because there is still so much to be done for the people of Haiti.  The involvement of Maranatha News is a clear demonstration that Adventists are recognized as people who deeply care for the distressed and helpless.”

Edwards is encouraging as many Adventists as possible to attend the concert and to take a “significant donation” with them.

“It’s a free concert, but we want it to be more than simply entertainment,” he said.  “We will hear an eye-witness account about the devastation caused by the earthquake, and we will catch a glimpse of the struggles that people are going through.  When the appeal is made for donations, we anticipate that everyone will respond according to his or her ability to give.”

According to organisers, the concert is being held at short notice in order to qualify for the government’s matching fund that expires a few days later.

After the concert, football fans will be able to watch the Super Bowl XLIV on the big screen in the basement hall of Apple Creek Church.

The concert will also be streamed live on www.AdventistOntario.org

Ontario Conference Urges Support for Haiti Earthquake Victims  

Oshawa, Ontario, Thursday, January 14, 2010...OCN

The Ontario Conference has set aside funds and is urging its 28,000 members to support Adventist Development and Relief Agency (ADRA) relief effort in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, after the Tuesday’s devastating earthquake.             

Today, in a letter to all churches, Pastor Theodore Sargeant, Community Services director and ADRA representative, asked members to give a donation on Sabbath, January 23.

“Our members have been horrified by the news of the tragedy,” says Sargeant, “and they are looking for ways in which to help.  We are urging them to use ADRA, the humanitarian arm of the church.”

The Seventh-day Adventist Church in Canada (SDACC) has also moved to help with a financial donation of $10,000 to support ADRA’s work.
 
Pastor Daniel Jackson, SDACC president, is also urging church members across Canada to support the relief effort.

“As Seventh-day Adventists living in a privileged land, we must act to assist our brothers and sisters in Haiti who are in need,” said Jackson.  “Fundamentally, all of us are being asked, ‘What will you do to alleviate this suffering of your fellow human beings?’ ”

While members have been shocked by pictures of the devastation, members of Ottawa French Seventh-day Adventist Church, many of whom are from Haiti, are grieving. Some have lost  multiple family members while others are desperately attempting to make contact with their loved ones.  

News coming from Haiti is sketchy but according to CBC, the Red Cross federation estimated that between 45,000-50,000 people might have died.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church has also been affected.  Larry Evans from the President’s Council in Florida reported that,

“Two of our largest churches near the presidential palace were destroyed—five congregations met in these churches. One of those churches had a school and there are serious concerns for the children who were attending school at that time. It is believed that the union president is alive but contact has not been made. The union office is not damaged seriously. One union worker was killed when a wall fell on him.”  

As rescue work takes place, additional information regarding the church will no doubt come to light.

While waiting for financial support to be donated by members, the Ontario Conference has also called for a time of prayer at Willowdale Church, on January 16 at 7:00 p.m. Prayer Ministries director, Pastor Eustance Williams, explained that the “primary purpose of this prayer service is to bring together God’s people, especially from the Haitian community for a time of support and encouragement and to pray about the situation in Haiti.”
 
Willowdale Adventist Church is located at 535 Finch Ave West, Toronto.

Immediate financial donations may paid directly to ADRA Canada, tel: 1 (905) 433-8004,
1 (888) 274-ADRA or online at https://www.adra.ca/SSLPage.aspx?pid=204

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Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Toronto West Seventh-day Adventist Church members woke early this morning to television news reports of a fire at their church.  

The fire broke out in a shed adjoining the church building at 1621 Albion Road, Toronto.  However, it does not appear that the church building sustained any damage.

Pastor Allan Chichester, senior pastor of the congregation said that he received the call shortly after six a.m. and went immediately to the church.  The fire department had already left but police had secured the building, waiting for daylight for the Fire Marshall to begin an investigation into the cause of the fire.

"We just do not know what the cause is", says Chichester, "but we are just grateful that it is not worse.  We are so thankful to God."

The shed was used to store Pathfinder equipment and other materials.

Toronto West Seventh-day Adventist Church, with its outreach programmes, has become central to the lives of many people in a community that is often adversely affected by gang violence and unemployment among young people.

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 Pastor David Schwinghammer, senior pastor at College Park Seventh-day Adventist Church, has been appointed by the Ontario Conference Board of Directors as the stewardship director for the conference.

The appointment was made on Sunday, August 23, 2009 at the first meeting of the new board of directors. 

“We have been without a stewardship director for the past four years”, explained Pastor Mansfield Edwards, president of the Ontario Conference, “and the delegates at the July constituency meeting tasked the new board to appoint one at its earliest opportunity.  We are very pleased that Pastor Schwinghammer has accepted the responsibility of serving the entire membership in this important role.  We are very confident in his abilities, and we are looking forward to his leadership in helping our entire conference grow in faithful stewardship.”

The appointment of Schwinghamer means that the conference now has a full complement of directors.

Schwinghammer has served as senior pastor at College Park Church since December 2003 and leaves with mixed feelings.

“It’s been a great privilege to serve the College Park Church for almost six years”,  he said, “My family and I have been blessed to be part of this amazing church family. However, it’s my prayer that as stewardship director, I will be able to assist God’s church in Ontario to enjoy and further embrace these lifestyle principles.”
 
Schwinghammer’s departure from College Park will add to the administration’s task of placing nearly thirty pastors, including the former president and executive secretary, with new congregations over the next few months. 

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