Inter-American Division Tithes Rise 6.8 Percent in 2026, Treasurer Reports

Ivelisse Herrera, treasurer of the Inter-American Division (IAD) of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, opened her Treasurer’s Report at the regional Annual Council in Bogota, Colombia, on November 3. “To fulfill the mission, we need two things: consecration and money,” she said. Addressing more than 200 members of the IAD Executive Committee and almost 60 participants online, Herrera thanked church members for their faithfulness and called for careful and transparent management of resources to support mission.

Herrera drew on the account of ancient Israel building the sanctuary in the desert, where the people brought more than enough for the work (Exodus 36:5). She identified three factors behind that generosity. “First, the people knew why they were giving. There was a spiritual motivation, and that promise that God would dwell among them.” She also said the people were able to see the work moving forward, and that they trusted the leaders and administrators who managed the resources. “This is what I wish for the finances across our region,” she said.

Herrera told the committee that her team is committed to connecting generosity with mission. “The faithfulness of our brethren doesn’t end in a bank account or in a financial statement,” she said. “It ends in transformed lives, in new congregations being born, in young people following studies, in communities that get to know Jesus as the result of a church that is mission-driven and committed to mission.” She said her report would therefore be about “a story of how God has done through the faithfulness and the generosity of His church in 2026,” not only about financial figures.

Before presenting figures, Herrera asked members to consider the people behind the giving. “Behind every tithe cent, there’s a brother who before paying his bills put aside what he understood belonged to the Lord,” she said. “And behind every cent in offerings there’s a family that, when planning for their finances, put something aside for God’s work.” Giving with a spirit of sharing what one has, a practice Hebrews 13:16 associates with doing good, was presented as central to the report.

Herrera reported that as of October 31, tithes in 2026 had risen 6.8 percent in US dollars, and offerings had risen 9.5 percent. Compared with October 2025, net tithe showed a 9.5 percent increase and offerings a 14 percent increase. She said other figures that depend on external factors were negative: investment returns were down 60 percent, and exchange fluctuations produced a 136 percent decrease in returns compared with a year earlier. She said the increase in tithes and offerings had helped offset those losses, and that operating expenses had been kept under budget.

Herrera also said the IAD now contributes 18 percent of the resources of the General Conference, even though most IAD countries have weak currencies. Only two of the church’s 13 divisions contribute more, she reported. She added that the increases had positively affected financial indexes, which are well above what policy has established. “The financial position of the Inter-American Division is strong,” she concluded.

Source: Read the original report