The South American Division (SAD) of the Seventh-day Adventist Church voted, on July 8, 2021, to approve a policy document that includes allowing women to serve as church elders across their eight-nation territory.
The vote, taken during an Executive Committee Mid-Year sessions in Brasilia, Brazil, affirmed the document, which seeks to strengthen the role of the church elder.
The voted document had two major thrusts, the first of which was “to strengthen the role of the elder and make it more relevant,” and includes “initiatives to enhance the role of the elder as a spiritual leader.“
The second substantial change is the recommendation to affirm women’s participation in local church leadership, by allowing pastors across the region to ordain women as elders in their local congregations.
This is a significant action, because it emphasizes that the office of local elder is a spiritual headship role, and at the same time allows women to fill that spiritual headship role.