In the Dominican Republic, Adventist ministers are accredited to officiate civil marriages

Group photo of the 80 Adventist ministers and government leaders after the accrediting ceremony at the Ensanche Quisqueya Adventist Church in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, Jan. 20, 2016.  Images by Wilkin Santana/IAD

January 25, 2016 | Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic | Bernardo Medina/IAD Staff/AR

When Luis Miguel Acevedo, ADRA director for the Dominican Republic, tied the knot in 2012, he and his bride, Arjoy, had to visit a court to legally register their marriage.

The couple also had to pay the judge a fee, which currently amounts to about US$200, to officiate the wedding. Only then could they head to the local Adventist church for the religious ceremony.

Luis Miguel Acevedo, ADRA director for the Dominican Republic, had to go to court first when he married Arjoy in 2012. (Facebook)

The extra bureaucracy experienced by Acevedo and other Seventh-day Adventist couples ended last week when the Dominican Republic’s government authorized about 80 Adventist ministers to officiate civil marriages on the Caribbean nation.

The Central Electoral Board, a government agency that oversees marriages as well as elections, accredited the ministers during a ceremony in Santo Domingo, fulfilling a requirement of a 2010 law that allows Protestant churches to perform state-recognized civil marriages.

Before the law, only judges and Catholic priests were allowed to perform the unions. Adventist couples had to go to court to be married by a judge and then hold the wedding at church.

“A family should be based on legality,” Roberto Rosario Márquez, president of the Central Electoral Board, said at the record-sized accreditation ceremony at the Ensanche Quisqueya Seventh-day Adventist Church. “A family should be an institution formed by a man and a woman.”

Roberto Rosario Márquez, president of the Central Electoral Board of the Dominican Republic spoke to Adventist administrators and ministers during the accrediting ceremony, Jan. 20, 2016.

“We commit ourselves before God to fully abide by the laws governing the solemn responsibility to make the sacred matrimonial ceremony,” Acevedo said.

The new law, No. 198-11, stipulates that churches are now responsible for record books and religious marriage certificates as well as obtaining accreditation and training for ministers, pastors, and priests.

Teófilo Silvestre, executive secretary of the church in the Dominican Republic, said the church began the process of accreditation with government leaders in 2013.

“Our ministers now have the opportunity to be public servants recognized by the state and can provide these services to Seventh-day Adventists as well as to those from other churches,” he said.

Accredited Adventist ministers will hold the status of court judges when performing marriage ceremonies. But they will not need to charge for their services as do judges.

Pastor Alejandro Pascual Lizardo receives his accredited ID from Civil Registration Director Dolores Fernandez during the special ceremony.

This is good news for many people who struggle to cover the expense, said Acevedo, the ADRA director.

“This is an extraordinary opportunity because many people cannot afford to pay the judge,” he said Monday.

Sylvester said the change in the law promised to enhance the church’s role in society.

“The Adventist Church has an opportunity to be a positive influence over society and strengthen families according to Christian norms,” he said.

During the accreditation ceremony, each Adventist minister received a special identification card with their approved status. The card also allows access to government facilities.

For now, just the some 80 of the 270 Adventist ministers across the island hold this accreditation.

The Seventh-day Adventist Church in the Dominican Republic was established in 1907 and has more than 303,000 church members in 1,262 churches and congregations.