Eighteen Years Without a Home: A Church Region in Venezuela Finally Opens Its Own Headquarters

• The East Venezuela Union was organised in 2005
• It bought property in the Montalbán area of Caracas in 2016
• The new headquarters was inaugurated on 27 May 2023
• It has 13 offices, a 110-seat auditorium and a media studio

A regional church body in Venezuela has opened its first permanent headquarters, Inter-American Division News reported in June 2023.

The East Venezuela Union of the Seventh-day Adventist Church was organised in 2005 and served more than 180,600 members in 791 churches and congregations. For 18 years it operated without a building of its own. It bought property in the Montalbán neighbourhood of Caracas in 2016, and the new building was inaugurated on 27 May 2023.

The two-storey headquarters has 13 offices, a conference room, a 110-seat auditorium, a reception area, a kitchen and a media studio. The article did not give the cost or say how it was funded.

“God guided and sustained us and today after 18 years we can see the inauguration of this new headquarters,” said Pastor Josney Rodríguez. Pastor Elie Henry, president of the Inter-American Division, urged leaders to “always remain in communion with God and steadfast in prayer during each spiritual meeting”.

The seven years between buying the land and opening the building show how long church construction can take, particularly in a difficult economy. Owning the land early gave the union a fixed site and a clear goal to work towards.

For Jamaican denominations and larger congregations still renting offices, the lesson is to secure land when the opportunity arises, even if building must wait. A headquarters that combines offices, meeting space and a media studio can also save on rent and serve the wider church.

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