Adventist Church in Davao, Philippines, Trains Digital Missionaries

Committed to expanding its digital evangelism efforts, the Communication Department of the Davao Mission (DM) of Seventh-day Adventists hosted the Adventist Communication Training on September 20-21. The event received strong support and organizational backing from Hope Channel Davao and Adventist World Radio 104.3 Hope Radio Davao, as media enthusiasts gathered to learn more about sharing the love of Jesus through digital platforms.

A total of 152 participants from the seven clusters representing the provinces of Davao del Sur, Davao Occidental, and the cities of Davao, Digos, and Island Garden City of Samal attended the event, along with a media team from Mountain View College in Valencia City. The group consisted of individuals who are passionate about writing stories, producing videos and graphics, and generally creating content across platforms, which continuously attracts traffic. The communication event provided the most comprehensive opportunities to impact the digital mission of sharing the gospel of Jesus in many creative ways.

Danielo Palomares, president of Southeastern Philippine Union Mission (SePUM), affirmed that God qualifies those He calls. He reminded attendees that all digital missionaries must possess godly mindsets and characteristics such as Christian dignity and politeness, assertiveness in advancing the triumphs of the cross of Christ, faith, determination, patience, sympathy, sociability, wholeheartedness, honesty, faithfulness, and diligence. “God’s servants should be minutemen, ready to move fast as His providence opens the way,” he read, quoting Adventist Church co-founder Ellen White. “Any delay on their part gives time for Satan to work to defeat them” (Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 423).

Rhoen Shane P. Catolico, communication/PARL/media director for the Adventist church in the Southeastern Philippines, reminded participants of the importance of Adventist identity. “The identity of the Adventist Church is shaped not only by our beliefs and mission but also by how [we] are perceived through the visual and graphic elements that represent [us],” he said. “These elements are to be consistent across all platforms and give people a clear and unified perception of who Adventists are.”

Jan Elexis Mercado, director of the Adventist World Radio (AWR) Center for Digital Evangelism (CDE) in the Southern Asia-Pacific Division (SSD), shared some exciting aspects of his conversion to faith and his unique digital ministries. He identified the characteristics of successful digital missionaries and other factors that increase engagement between church members and potential believers. Since the digital ministry aims to meet the needs of others and share the gospel with those online, the Adventist Church is taking advantage of new technologies to reach many more people with its message of hope, love, and salvation.

Edward Rodriguez, SSD communication assistant director, talked about “shaping the voice behind the church’s social media content” with a specific focus on “church social media captioning.” He emphasized that in captioning, personality, purpose, and engagement are essential, as are eliminating unnecessary details or digressions, deleting redundancies, and modifying weak noun and verb pairings.

Sherman Fiedacan, president of Hope Channel Philippines, expounded on the Hope Channel’s mission. He reminded each attendee that more people than ever are turning to the internet daily; this means that digital evangelism is one of the most effective ways to reach people worldwide. Digital evangelism does not discriminate against any age group, language, ethnic background, or economic status.

On Sabbath, Elmer Lagan, a social media influencer and Adventist soldier who was disabled after being struck by a bullet, shared inspiring stories and engaged personally with his followers. Lagan encourages people to depend upon God more than on our strength; he also helps others with disabilities find financial and spiritual support through his resources. He believes our churches can create engaging content that entice viewers and encourages them to discover more about Christianity and Jesus’ teachings.

DM president Reynaldo Merin urged digital evangelists to commit themselves to reaching the “unchurched” and making it easier for nonbelievers who may have questions about faith or Christianity. Communication coordinators in the seven clustered districts paved the way for the success of this unique and beneficial training, organizers said.

This story is based on the version posted on the Southern Asia-Pacific Division news site.